Character guide

Fionn mac Uail

major

Also known as Fionn, little Fionn, great Fionn, proud Fionn, young Fionn, Fionn mac Uail

Fionn mac Uail stands at the center of Ireland's warrior elite, the leader whose judgment the High King and the nobles seek when a plague threatens the land. When the magicians demand a prince's blood to cleanse the kingdom, Fionn is among those who must weigh personal honor against national survival, a debate that exposes how even a hero's authority can be divided against itself. His presence in the tale anchors the tension between the old ways of magic and the fierce, personal codes that bind the Fianna together.

Mongan

major

Also known as Mongan Tender Blossom

Mongan Tender Blossom rules Ulster with a poet's heart and a magician's blood, and when he sees the King of Leinster's herd of red-eared cows, he falls in love with them utterly. The two kings strike a reckless bargain—cows for Duv Laca—and Mongan brings his new wife home to a life of chess and shared delight in the herd. But when the King of Leinster arrives to claim what was promised, Mongan's grief and Duv Laca's confusion set in motion a story about desire, honor, and the price of a handshake.

Goll mac Morna

supporting

Also known as Morna, Goll Mor mac Morna, Goll, Goll mor mac Morna, Goll Mor, Goll mac Morna

Goll mor mac Morna is one of the pillars of the Fianna, a man whose presence at Fionn's banquet carries the weight of past conflicts and present alliances. When Fionn places him in the seat of honor, the gesture acknowledges both Goll's standing and the fragile peace between them. Around the drinking-horns, young heroes grow merry and old wounds are kept in check, but Goll's fierce reputation and complicated history with Fionn make every shared cup a small act of diplomacy.

Becfola

supporting

Becfola is the queen at Tara whose heart belongs elsewhere, and when a cleric denounces her before the king, her double life collapses in a single devastating moment. Accused of being in the Shí with her arms around Flann, she does not deny it; instead she admits the truth with proud shame and walks out of the palace toward the man who waits for her. Her departure leaves the king stupefied and the court shaken, and she vanishes from Ireland entirely, a figure whose brief, blazing honesty costs her everything.

Tuan mac Cairill

supporting

Also known as Tuan, Cairill, Tuan mac Cairill

Tuan mac Cairill is the foster-brother of Time itself, a man who has leaped over the scythe and dodged under it while centuries of belief crumbled around him. When Finnian of Moville arrives to convert him, Tuan refuses admittance, shuttering his windows and continuing practices ten thousand years old. But Finnian's hunger strike turns the stronghold into a siege, and the servants' enforced seclusion begins to fray the household from within, setting the stage for a confrontation between the oldest survivor in Ireland and the newest faith.

Cael

supporting

Also known as Cael of the Iron

Cael of the Iron is a champion whose temper is as quick as his feet, and when Fionn presents a hulking, disheveled stranger as his opponent, Cael nearly chokes on his own rage. He insults the Carl, refuses to build a shelter, and sulks on the hillside while his competitor constructs a house and cooks a wild boar single-handedly. His pride and refusal to cooperate paint him as a man whose strength is undone by his own stubbornness, and the race to come will test whether he can swallow his contempt long enough to run.

Becuma

supporting

Becuma arrives at Tara as Conn's new queen, but her vanity has been bruised by submission, and she rages against Ireland and especially against young Art. She challenges Art to a chess match with stakes, loses deliberately, and binds him to a quest for the wand of Curoi. Her presence poisons the court's peace and sets the story's central pursuit in motion.

Fergus Fionnliath

supporting

Also known as Fergus

When Fionn's people and clann-Morna fall into a bloody brawl, Fergus gathers the poets and chants the combatants into stillness. At Tara he is the one witness Goll will accept, sworn to do justice between the two sides, and his account of the slaughter carries the judgement. He embodies the poet's strange power in a warrior world: to stop swords with rhythm and to speak truth where kings and chiefs cannot.

Mac an Dáv

supporting

Also known as mac an Dáv, mac, Dáv

Mac an Dáv keeps the ancient practices, refusing Finnian admittance and trusting that the abbot's hunger will drive him away. But Finnian fasts on his doorstep until hospitality forces the door open, and the siege works on the household from within. He is the story's image of a world that will not simply vanish when a new god arrives, and his resistance frames the tale of Tuan Mac Cairill.

Duv Laca

supporting

Also known as Duv Laca of the White Hand, young Duv Laca

Duv Laca is married to Mongan after peace is made with Fiachna Duv, and their chess games at the palace seem a picture of ease. When the King of Leinster claims her as the price of a bargain, she refuses to let Mongan break his word, telling him honour is longer than life. Her insistence forces Mongan into loss and later into the vengeance that makes him King of Ulster.

Cormac mac Art

supporting

Also known as Cormac, Art, young Art

Cormac mac Art presides at Tara with his son Cairbre and daughter Ailve beside him, calling witnesses and weighing the claims of Fionn and Goll after the great brawl. He is the still centre of a violent world, demanding evidence where others want vengeance, and his discomfort at the lopsided death toll pushes the truth into the open. His court is the story's measure of law against the Fianna's private war.

Conn

minor

Also known as II, II Conn

A king or warrior, often appearing in tales of the Fianna.

Uct Dealv

minor

Also known as Uct Dealv (Fair Breast)

A beautiful woman from the Otherworld, sought after by heroes.

The Carl of the Drab Coat

supporting

Also known as the Carl, Carl, the Drab Coat

The Carl appears in humble dress among the great, and his plain coat conceals a power that the proud consistently underestimate. He is the kind of figure who watches, waits, and then acts when the moment suits him, turning the tables on those who judge by appearance. His presence keeps the reader alert: in these tales the ragged stranger is often the one who decides the outcome.

Aillen mac Midna

minor

Also known as Aillen, Midna

A supernatural being who terrorizes Tara with his fiery breath.

Finegas

minor

A poet and sage who mentors the young Fionn in wisdom.

Branduv

minor

A warrior of the Fianna, known for his dark hair and fierce nature.

Conán the Swearer

supporting

Also known as Conán, bald Conán

Conán belongs to the Fianna, the roving warrior band whose exploits and quarrels fill these tales, and he is the member most likely to be talking when he should be fighting. His bluster is his flaw and his function: he swears great oaths, claims great deeds, and generally gets the better of no one but himself, which sets him at odds with quieter, deadlier comrades. He matters because his noise throws the band's real courage into relief, and because a company that tolerates him is a company we can believe in.

Fiachna Finn

minor

Also known as Fiachna

A warrior and ally of the Fianna, involved in various adventures.

Manannán mac Lir

supporting

Also known as Manannán, Lir

Manannán moves between the Many-Coloured Land and the mortal world, appearing unannounced where kings are cornered and heroes are desperate. He is generous and dangerous at once: when Fiachna is besieged by venomous sheep, Manannán offers deliverance in exchange for the rights of his crown and household for a single day, and the king must weigh his people against his sovereignty. His bargains and his monstrous little dog set the moral machinery of the tales turning, asking what a ruler will surrender to save what he rules.

Crimthann

minor

Also known as Crimthann mac Ae

A king or warrior in tales of the Fianna and Irish legend.

Tibraidè

minor

A character appearing in the tales, possibly a warrior or king.

Segda

minor

A minor figure in the Fianna stories, likely a warrior.

Fiachna Duv

minor

Also known as Fiachna Duv mac Demain, Fiachna

A dark-haired warrior of the Fianna, involved in conflicts.

Muirne

minor

Mother of Fionn, a central figure in his origin story.

Dermod

minor

Also known as Dermod mac Ae, Ae, Ae the Beautiful

A handsome warrior of the Fianna, often in romantic tales.

Uail mac Baiscne

minor

Also known as Uail, Baiscne

Father of Fionn, a leader of the Fianna before his death.

Fiacuil mac Cona

minor

Also known as Fiacuil

A warrior of the Fianna, known for his strength and loyalty.

Iollan Eachtach

minor

Also known as Iollan

A warrior of the Fianna, often in battle scenes.

Delvcaem

minor

A beautiful maiden from the Otherworld, sought by heroes.

The Fianna

supporting

Also known as the Fianna - Finn, the victorious Fianna

The Fianna are the fighting fellowship at the heart of the cycle, bound by oath and led by Fionn, moving through a landscape where gods, saints, and venomous sheep alike test them. Their strength is also their fragility: pride, boasting, and old grudges constantly threaten the solidarity that makes them formidable, and even a comic blowhard like Conán can unsettle the whole company. They matter because the tales measure heroism not in lone victories but in whether this quarrelsome brotherhood can hold together when the strange world presses in.

Morgan

minor

A character in the Fianna stories, possibly a warrior or king.

Caelte mac Ronán

minor

Also known as Caelte, Caelte mac Ronán, Ronán

A swift warrior of the Fianna, known for his speed and skill.

The Black Hag

minor

A malevolent supernatural figure who appears in various tales.

Cairell Whiteskin

minor

Also known as Cairell

A warrior of the Fianna, known for his pale complexion.

Conaran

minor

Also known as This Conaran

A minor figure in the Fianna cycle, possibly a foe.

Oscar

minor

A grandson of Fionn and a mighty warrior of the Fianna.

Cuillen

minor

A minor character in the Fianna stories, possibly a servant.

Cromdes

minor

A druid or wise figure in the tales of the Fianna.

Bran

minor

Fionn's magical hound, famous for his loyalty and size.

Tuiren

minor

A woman transformed into a hound in a tale of enchantment.

Caevóg

minor

A minor female character in the Fianna stories.

Cairidè

minor

A warrior or figure in the Fianna tales.

Conán Mael mac Morna

minor

Also known as Conán mac Morna

A member of the Fianna, possibly related to Goll.

The Ard-Rí

minor

Also known as the Ard - Rí

The High King of Ireland, a recurring authority figure.

Saeve

minor

A woman transformed into a deer, mother of Oisín.

Fergus True-Lips

minor

Also known as Fergus

A truthful warrior or poet in the Fianna cycle.

Partholon

minor

An early mythical settler of Ireland, mentioned in tales.

Oisín

minor

Son of Fionn and Saeve, a poet and warrior of the Fianna.

Sceólan

minor

One of Fionn's loyal hounds, often mentioned with Bran.

Eolgarg

minor

Also known as Eolgarg Mor

A giant or monstrous figure in the Fianna tales.

Credè

minor

A beautiful woman in the Fianna stories, often a love interest.

Ben Edair

minor

A warrior or figure associated with the Fianna.

The Lochlannachs

minor

Also known as the Lochlannachs

Viking-like invaders who appear in some tales.

Tara

minor

The ancient seat of the High Kings, personified in tales.

Clann-Morna

minor

Also known as Morna, the clann - Morna

A rival clan to Fionn's Baiscne, often in conflict.

Bovmall

minor

A minor character in the Fianna cycle.

Brótiarna

minor

A minor character in the Fianna cycle, possibly a servant or warrior.

Ivell of the Shining Cheeks

minor

Also known as Ivell

A beautiful queen of Connaught, married in a tale.

Lugaidh

minor

A warrior or king appearing in the Fianna cycle.

Rough Hair mac Morna

minor

Also known as the Rough mac Morna, Morna

A member of the Morna clan, often an antagonist.

Iaran

minor

A minor character in the Fianna cycle.

Flann

minor

A minor warrior or king in the Fianna stories.

Brotar

minor

A minor figure, possibly a servant or warrior.

Flahri

minor

A minor character in the Fianna tales.

Starn

minor

Also known as Tuan mac Starn

An ancient figure in Irish myth, father of Tuan.

Beothach

minor

A minor figure from early Irish legend.

Deimne

minor

An early name for Fionn in his youth.

Feehal

minor

A minor warrior in the Fianna stories.

Tibraidès

minor

A minor character, possibly a variant of Tibraidè.