Tras-scríbhinn

Bhí beirt bhan ann fadó agus bhíodar 'na gcónaí i dteannta a chéile in aon tigh amháin. Aon oíche amháin nuair a bhíodar ag dul a chodladh do chuimhníodar ná raibh aon uisce glan istigh acu i gcomhair na hoíche agus dúradar lena chéile go mb'fhearra dhóibh dul á iarraidh. Thógadar bucaod an duine agus chuadar ag iarraidh an uisce. Agus do thógadar bucaod an duine don uisce ón dtobar. Agus nuair a thánadar isteach leis is amhlaidh a bhí bradán[1] istigh ins gach aon bhucaod acu. Bheireadar ar na bradáin agus mharaíodar iad. Chuireadar a(r) beiriú iad agus (dh')itheadar iad.

(...) An oíche chéanna do saolaíodh mac an duine dhóibh agus is iad na hainmneacha do ghlaodar orthu ná Émhic an Bhradáin agus Ómhic an Bhradáin. D'fhás na leanaí suas 'na bhfearaibh agus do fuair a máthaireacha bás. Agus is é (an) ghnó do bhíodh acu gach aon lá ná fiach. Do bhí (feighle fuinte) ag gach éinne acu.

Aon lá amháin chuaigh Émhic amach ag fiach agus nuair a bhí sé ag teacht abhaile tháinig an ceo air agus ní fhéadfadh sé an tigh a fháil. Do bhí sé ag dul amú agus ag siúl roimis agus chonac... chonaic sé solas. Dhein sé fé dhéin an tsolais agus do bhí sé istigh i gcoill. Do bhí tigh ann. Chuaigh sé isteach sa tigh agus ní raibh éinne istigh roimis. Do shuigh sé síos agus do bhí ana-ocras air agus ní fhéadfadh sé aon ní a fháil le n-ithe. I gcionn tamaill do tháinig trí bhanbh isteach agus do shíneadar iad féin i lár an tí. Dúirt sé leis féin go mb'fhearra dhó ceann acu a mharú agus é a ithe dhó féin. Do dhein. Agus nuair a bhí sé marbh aige dúirt sé leis féin go n-íosfadh sé é sin go léir agus go mb'fhearra dhó na trí cinn acu a mharú. Do dhein agus do chuir sé ag beiriú iad. Nuair a bhíodar geall leis beirithe do tháinig cailín beag isteach agus do shuigh sí in aice na tine. Do bhí sí ag fás agus ag fás i gcónaí gur dhein seanabhean chríonna chaite dhi. Nuair a bhí an fheoil beirithe do thóg sé ón dtine é agus do chuir sé ar an mbord é. Do bhí sé ag ithe agus do thug sé blúire dhe don tseanabhean agus do thóg sí uaidh é. Agus bhí sé ag féachaint uirthi féach a raibh sí á ithe. Agus is amhlaidh a bhíodh sí ag cur a fiacla anso agus an ansúd air. Agus nuair a dh'fhéach sé arís uirthi bhíodh sé ite aici. Do bhíodar go léir ag ithe go raibh na muca ite acu.

Ansan do sheasaimh sí suas agus dúirt sí leis, "Tánn tú go láidir anois agus an raghfá ag iomrascáil liom?"

"Raghad," ar seisean. Sheasaimh sé suas.

"Ceangail na gadhair sin," ar sise.

"Níl aon ní agam do cheanglódh iad," ar seisean.

Do strac sí dhá ribe dá (...) agus thug sí dhó iad. "Ceangail leis sin iad," ar (sí sin).

Do cheangail sé na gadhair. Do bheireadar ar a chéile agus ba ghearr go dtug sí an talamh dó. Do bhí sí á thachtadh agus do ghlaoigh sé ar na gadhair, "Cabhair! Cabhair, a chonairt!" ar seisean.

"Fáisc! Fáisc, a ribe!" arsa an tseanabhean. D'fháisc an ribe agus do thacht sí na gadhair.

Do mhairibh sí é agus do thóg sí léi amach é agus do chuir... do chuir sí amuigh é in aice an chlaí.

Aistriúchán

Long ago there were two women and they were living together in the one house. One night when they were going to sleep they remembered that they didn't have any clean water for the night and they said to each other that they had better go and get some. They took a bucket each and they went to get water. And they took a bucket of water each from the well. And when they came in there was a salmon in each of the buckets. They caught the salmon and killed them. They set them to boil and they ate them.

(...) The same night they gave birth to a son each and the names they gave them were Émhic an Bhradáin and Ómhic an Bhradáin ('É-son of the Salmon' and 'Ó-son of the Salmon'). The children grew up into men and their mothers died. And they used to spend every day hunting. Each of them had a (...).

One day Émhic went out hunting and when he was coming home fog surrounded him and he couldn't find the house. He was going astray and walking on and he saw... he saw a light. He headed towards the light and he was in a forest. There was a house there. He went into the house and there was no one inside before him. He sat down and he was very hungry and he couldn't find anything to eat. After a while three piglets came in and they lay down in the middle of the house. He told himself he had better kill one and eat it. He did. And when he had killed it he told himself he would eat all of it and that he had better kill all three of them. He did and he set them to boil. When they were nearly boiled a small girl came in and she sat down beside the fire. She was growing and growing all the time until she turned into an ancient worn old woman. When the meat was boiled he took it from the fire and put it on the table. He was eating and he gave some to the old woman and she accepted it from him. And he was looking at her to see if she was eating it. And she was biting it here and there. And when he looked at her again she would have eaten it. They were all eating until they had eaten the pigs.

Then she stood up and she said to him, "You are strong now and would you wrestle with me?"

"I will," he said. He stood up.

"Tie those dogs," she said.

"I have nothing to tie them with," he said.

She tore two hairs from her (...) and gave them to him. "Tie them with this," said (she).

He tied the dogs. They caught hold of each other and it wasn't long before she had him on the ground. She was choking him and he called the dogs, "Help! Help, dogs!" he said.

"Tighten! Tighten, hair!" said the old woman. The hair tightened and she choked the dogs.

She killed him and she brought him out and she buried him... she buried him outside by the wall.

Fonótaí

Tráchtaireacht

Is cosúil gurb éard atá anseo ná tosach an scéil idirnáisiúnta béaloidis ATU 303 The twins or blood-brothers. Is éard a bhíonn ann de ghnáth ná bean a itheann iasc draíochta agus a mbeirtear cúpla di. I leaganacha áirithe, nuair a bhíonn na deartháireacha ag fás suas, faigheann siad ainmhithe cúnta draíochta. Téann duine de na deartháireacha chun bóthair lá agus na hainmhithe cúnta ina theannta, agus tagann sé faoi smacht caillí a athraíonn ina chloch é. Cuireann comhartha draíochta de shaghas éigin in iúl dá dheartháir go bhfuil sé i mbaol, agus tagann sé chun fóirithinte air. Tá níos mó mionsonraí ná sin sa scéal, ach ní féidir a dhéanamh amach cén leagan a bhí ar eolas ag an scéalaí, ós rud é go bhfuil an leagan seo neamhiomlán. Is minic a insítear na leaganacha béil in éineacht le roinnt scéalta béaloidis eile, agus is minic go gcuirtear ATU 567 The magic bird-heart mar bhrollach leo. Tá an-tóir ar an scéal ar fud an domhain, agus faightear é go forleathan san Eoráise, i dtuaisceart agus in oirthear na hAfraice, agus ar fud chríocha Mheiriceá. Féach Hans Jorg Uther, The types of international folktales: a classification and bibliography (3 iml., Helsinki, 2004). Is scéal an-choitianta é leis in Éirinn, agus tá samplaí againn ó gach cearn den tír. Féach Seán Ó Súilleabháin agus Rieder Th. Christiansen, The types of the Irish folktale (Helsinki, 1968).

Tá an mhóitíf idirnáisiúnta béaloidis T511.5.1 Conception from eating fish sa leagan seo. Féach Stith Thompson, Motif-index of folk literature (atheagrán méadaithe, Bloomington, Ind., 1955-8). Tá móitíf cosúil leis seo in Éirinn ó na meánaoiseanna ar aghaidh, mar shampla i scéal Thuán mac Caraill, a coimpríodh nuair a d'ith a mháthair bradán. Féach Louis H. Gray, George Foot Moore agus John A. Mac Culloch, The mythology of all races (13 iml., Boston, 1916-32), iml. 3, eag. J.A. Mac Culloch, Celtic ... (Boston, 1918), 207. Tá anailís ar na leaganacha Gaeilge den scéal béaloidis agus ina ndéantar imlíniú ar na móitífeanna coitianta, ainmhithe á gceangal le ribe gruaige ó cheann na caillí ina measc, le fáil in Reidar Th. Christiansen, 'Towards a printed list of Irish fairytales II', Béaloideas 8:1 (1938), 97-105: 103. Tá leagan den scéal ann dar teideal 'É Mhic an Bhradáin agus Ó Mhic an Bhradáin', a ndearnadh taifeadadh air ón scéalaí Conchubhar Ó Deasmhumhna as contae Chorcaí. Féach Fiachra Éilgeach (eag.), Scéalta triúir (BÁC, 1919), 16. Tá leagan a bhfuil 'É Mhic agus Ó Mhic an Bhradáin' mar theideal air leis ó Amhlaoibh Ó Loingsigh, a bhí ina fhaisnéiseoir do Thionscadal Doegen, le fáil in Seán Ó Cróinín (eag.), Scéalaíocht Amhlaoibh Í Luínse (BÁC, 1971), 11-17.