Cirein-cròin
Encyclopedia
Ceirean, Cirein-cròin or cionarain-crò was a large sea monster
in Scottish Gaelic folklore. An old saying claims that it was so large that it fed on seven whale
s:
According to Forbes,
"[In another saying] cionarain-cro here is substituted, as Avill be seen, for the cirein-croin in the former saving, and ranks second to the "great sea
animal."
Forbes identifies the creature as a large sea serpent
, but this is arguable. He also proposes it as a dinosaur -
"It is not known what this monster animal was, though it may well have been one of these "Giant fish-destroyers," so ably, inler-alia, described by Dr Carmichael M'Intosh, which waged war in sea and on land against all and sundry as well as against each other, viz., the gigantic Deinosaurs,[sic] some of which, notably the Atlantosaurus
, reached to one hundred feet in length with a height of thirty feet, and proportionately awful of aspect."
Sea monster
Sea monsters are sea-dwelling mythical or legendary creatures, often believed to be of immense size.Marine monsters can take many forms, including sea dragons, sea serpents, or multi-armed beasts. They can be slimy or scaly and are often pictured threatening ships or spouting jets of water...
in Scottish Gaelic folklore. An old saying claims that it was so large that it fed on seven whale
Whale
Whale is the common name for various marine mammals of the order Cetacea. The term whale sometimes refers to all cetaceans, but more often it excludes dolphins and porpoises, which belong to suborder Odontoceti . This suborder also includes the sperm whale, killer whale, pilot whale, and beluga...
s:
| Gaelic | Translation | Notes |
| Seachd sgadain, sath bradain; | Seven herrings, a salmon's fill; | |
| Seachd bradain, sath ròin; | Seven salmon, a seal's fill; | |
| Seachd ròin, sath mial-mòr-mara | Seven seals, a large whale's fill | (Mial here is archaic; killer whales eat seals, but baleen whale Baleen whale The Baleen whales, also called whalebone whales or great whales, form the Mysticeti, one of two suborders of the Cetacea . Baleen whales are characterized by having baleen plates for filtering food from water, rather than having teeth. This distinguishes them from the other suborder of cetaceans,... s do not.) |
| Seachd mial, sath Cirein-cròin | Seven whales, a cirein-cròin's fill |
According to Forbes,
"[In another saying] cionarain-cro here is substituted, as Avill be seen, for the cirein-croin in the former saving, and ranks second to the "great sea
animal."
Forbes identifies the creature as a large sea serpent
Sea serpent
A sea serpent or sea dragon is a type of sea monster either wholly or partly serpentine.Sightings of sea serpents have been reported for hundreds of years, and continue to be claimed today. Cryptozoologist Bruce Champagne identified more than 1,200 purported sea serpent sightings...
, but this is arguable. He also proposes it as a dinosaur -
"It is not known what this monster animal was, though it may well have been one of these "Giant fish-destroyers," so ably, inler-alia, described by Dr Carmichael M'Intosh, which waged war in sea and on land against all and sundry as well as against each other, viz., the gigantic Deinosaurs,[sic] some of which, notably the Atlantosaurus
Atlantosaurus
Atlantosaurus is a dubious genus of sauropod dinosaur. The type specimen, found by Arthur Lakes in the Morrison Formation of Colorado, USA, was described by Othniel Charles Marsh, a Professor of Paleontology at Yale University , in 1877 as "Titanosaurus" montanus...
, reached to one hundred feet in length with a height of thirty feet, and proportionately awful of aspect."