Grainne

MEANING: From gran “grain, corn.” Grainne in ancient Ireland was the patron of the harvest. In later legends Grainne was the name of the beautiful daughter of a High King of Ireland, Cormac Mac Art. She had been promised in marriage to the king Fionn Mac Cool (read the legend). When Grainne saw him at the wedding banquet she realised Fionn was too old for her and put a “geis,” a love spell on Fionn’s nephew, Diarmuid. They ran away together but Fionn’s pursuit prevented them from spending two consecutive nights in the same place. Megalithic sites throughout Ireland are still traditionally referred to as “the bed of Grainne and Diarmuid” (read the legend).