Everything about Mormaer totally explained
The title of
Mormaer designates a regional or provincial ruler in the
medieval Kingdom of the Scots. In theory, although not always in practice, a Mormaer was second only to the
King of Scots, and the senior of a
toisech.
Origin
The
etymology is variously debated as "
Great Steward" (incorporating
Gaelic and
Picto-Latin), or "Sea Lord" (perhaps defenders against the attacks of
Vikings). Historians don't know if the institution was
Gaelic or
Pictish. It is notable that the word Mormaer occurs
only in the post-Pictish period, and so it's difficult to sustain any argument for Pictish origins. There is also debate whether the term
mormaer was simply the east-coast equivalent of
Kinglet (Gaelic:
ruirí or
rí). For the earliest periods, we're unsure about the exact difference between a
Mormaer and a
Toisech. The earliest Scottish
Latin sources use the word
thanus (
Thane) for the word Toisech. This word was adopted from the
Anglo-Saxon lands to the south. It is possible that both
Thanus and
Comes, and
Mormaer and
Toisech, all originally meant similar things, or at least were not part of a stratified hierarchy as we've come to think.
Earliest Mormaers
The office of
Mormaer is first mentioned in the context of the
Battle of Corbridge (
918), in the
Annals of Ulster. The first individual Mormaer to be named was
Dubacan mac Indrechtaich, one of the companions of Amlaib, the son of King
Causantín II (Constantine II). His death at the
Battle of Brunanburh (
937) is recorded in the
Chronicle of the Kings of Alba. He is mentioned as
Mormair Oengusa (
Mormaer of Angus).
Another three Mormaers are named, though without provinces, in the
Annals of Tigernach, s.a.
976. However, the earliest Mormaers of each province are generally unknown until the
12th century, by which time the
Mormaer is being referred to in
Latin documents as
Comes.
Mormaer, Comes and "Earl"
This has led to the erroneous impression that "Mormaerdoms" were scrapped and replaced by "Earldoms." In fact,
Comes (literally Companian, in the feudal age
Count, which word derives from it) is just a
Franco-
Latin word used on the British Isles to render either
Mormaer or
Earl into
Latin (with
French). For instance, several Irish sources call King
Robert Bruce Mormaer (of
Carrick) in the
14th century. As this isn't an Irish word, it's clear that the word is being used by the Scots for the office. Moreover, the term is still recorded as being used for the "Earl" of
Lennox a century later. On the other hand, the
West Germanic word
Earl isn't recorded as being in use in
Scotland until the mid-
14th century, and then only in an
English literary text.
As a result, scholars now recognize that
Mormaer was the vernacular word used by the
Gaels.
Earl on the other hand is an
English or
Scots translation, alien to the Gaelic tradition.
There might be nothing wrong with this. However, many authors use the term
Jarl to describe contemporary Scandinavian lords of the same rank, and the term
Count for French and German ones. In this context, using the term
Earl for
Mormaer is simplistic and inappropriate, and might be compared with calling a
Roman Emperor Shah. Some of this objection is removed as the Scottish comital lordships become increasingly acquired by families of French or Anglo-French origin, and as
English becomes the dominant language of Lowland Scotland in the
later Middle Ages. Of course,
Count would still be safer, but almost no Scottish historian employs this word. In fact, one might even use Duke, especially in the case of Moray, since Mormaer was the highest noble rank under the King.
Mormaers and other Lordships
A Mormaerdom wasn't simply a regional lordship, it was a regional lordship with official comital rank. This is why other lordships, many of them more powerful, such as those of
Lords of Galloway,
Argyll and
Innse Gall, are not and were not called Mormaerdoms or Earldoms.
List of Mormaers
This list doesn't include
Orkney, which was a Norwegian Earldom, and became ruled by Scotland in the
15th century. Sutherland might be included, but it was created only late, and for a foreign family (see
Earl of Sutherland)
Bibliography
Anderson, Alan Orr, Early Sources of Scottish History: AD 500-1286, 2 Vols, (Edinburgh, 1922)
Barrow, G.W.S., The Kingdom of the Scots, (Edinburgh, 2003)
Broun, Dauvit, "Mormaer," in J. Cannon (ed.) The Oxford Companion to British History, (Oxford, 1997)
Lynch, Michael, Scotland: A New History, (Edinburgh, 1991)
Roberts, John L., Lost Kingdoms: Celtic Scotland in the Middle Ages, (Edinburgh, 1997)Further Information
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