In Irish mythology the Fir Bolg (Fir Bholg, Firbolg) were one of the races that inhabited the island of Ireland prior to the arrival of the Tuatha Dé Danann.
Etymology
The origin of their name is the subject of some dispute. Many commentators consider them the "men of Builg" or "men of bags", or possibly "men with spears", from bolg meaning spear or by comparison with the modern Irish word bolg meaning 'belly' (and originally meaning 'bag'). Alternatively they may be related to the Belgae tribe, whose name meant the "shining ones" (from Proto-Celtic *belo, meaning "bright"). In Early Irish, "boillsg" meant gleam; from Proto-Celtic *bolg-s-cio-; related to Latin "fulgeo", shine, English "effulgent", Lithuanian "blizgù" and even Russian "byela" (white).
Powers
The Fir Bolg were smaller in stature than the Tuatha Dé Danann and are believed to have been gold workers. One theory is that the this is the origin of the Irish myth of the Leprechaun, a small faerie type creature. The myth says that every leprechaun has a crock of gold which the successful captor of the leprechaun *gets to keep.
History
The first tribes that set foot on Ireland belonged to three groups: the Fir Bolg, the Fir Domnann and the Gaileanga. The Fir Bolg are likely derived from the historical Belgae, known from Gaul and Britain, and related to the historical Builg of Munster; the Fir Domnann are probably related to the British, Dumnonii; and the Gaileanga are another name for the Laigin, who founded Leinster. The three groups probably represent the Ivernic-speaking peoples who inhabited Ireland before the Goidelic-speaking Gaels.
The King of the Tuatha Dé, Nuada, sued for half the island for his people, but the Fir Bolg king refused. At the ensuing Battle of Mag Tuired the Fir Bolg were all but conquered and their king slain by the goddess Morrigu, though the fierce efforts of their champion Sreng saved them from utter loss, and the Tuatha Dé were so touched by their nobility and spirit they gave them one quarter of the island as their own. They chose Connacht. After this, the Fir Bolg all but disappear from mythology. The Firbolgs' last king was Eochaid Mac Eirc, whose wife, Tailtiu, was the foster mother of Lugh Lamfata, the Danann hero and solar god.
Another version states that the Fir Bolg were given, as a place of settlement, the Aran Islands and surrounding coastland (the largest of these Islands, Inishmore--Árainn--is home to a fortress allegedly related to Aengus and the Fir Bolg, Dún Aengus).
Theories
Other theories have been advanced about the origin of the Fir Bolg. Some scholars have related the name of a Celtic god with the word Bolg. The Fir Bolg, according to one legend, were involved in carrying bags of earth at one point in their history, hence the "Men of Bags" interpretation. Others speculate that "Bolg" relates to a word for small boats.
One interpretation which has gained ground is drawn from the recorded histories. The Fir Bolg, according to this theory, were largely conquered by the Gaels, and thus, as a lower class in society, would have had different customs befitting a lower social status. In particular, this theory holds that "Fir Bolg" is a corruption of a term for "Breeches-Wearers", reasoning that, as manual laborers, the Fir Bolg would have found it useful to wear trousers rather than the robes and garb of the Gaels. This theory, however, remains largely speculative, and there is little hard evidence to confirm this interpretation.
Popular culture
Games
- The Fir Bolg are represented in the online game World of Warcraft as Furbolgs - furry, bearlike, hulking, feral, tribal creatures with large bellies, wielding spears.
- The Fir Bolg also appear in the online game City of Heroes as grim, pumpkin-headed monsters which wreak havoc in the lore-filled town of Croatoa.
- The Fir Bolg are a playable race within the game Dark Age of Camelot. They are represented as being a warrior race that carries spears and inhabits the mythical celtic continent of Hibernia.
- The Firbolg is a type of fighter drone you can use with any of four carriers or motherships in the space sci-fi MMORPG EVE Online.
- The Fir Bolg were a race of bow wielding warriors in the PC game MYTH.
- Firbolgs are present in Dungeons and Dragons 3.0 as a race of red-haired giants in the Monster Manual II. They aren't known for being particularly bad-tempered in this incarnation, nor are they associated with spears.
- The Fir-bholg are also a type of faerie in White Wolf's World of Darkness game Changeling: the Dreaming and detailed in the sourcebook Denizens of the Dreaming. They are classed as Adhene, a group encompassing several types of Faerie that have spent hundreds of years in the Dreaming after the Shattering and returned shortly before Endless Winter, as opposed to the more commonly known Kithain who bound their souls to mortals in the Autumn World. The Fir-bholg are portrayed as beast men from ancient Ireland, fiece and respected warriors, tall and frightening with great antlers growing from their foreheads. Having previously ruled over the Dreaming and even defeating the dreaded Fomorians in time past, they have lost much of their power during their exile. All Fir-bholg have a constant hunger for a particularly sort of unprepared food and will die if they do not consume it regularly, and require some sort of sacrifice (of people, animals or treasured possessions) from mortals to be able to regain the Glamour they need to survive.
- The Fir Bolg lends their name to one of the factions in the Celtic-inspired miniatures wargame Celtos.
- The Firbolgs are a race of mining creatures in the Orkney Islands in the InExile game The Bards Tale.