Amhráin Mhuighe Seóla (1919) – First Edition Gaelic Song Treasury

For the collector who cherishes Ireland’s lore and language, Amhráin Mhuighe Seóla offers a direct link to the heart of Gaelic tradition. Opening this 1919 first edition is like stepping into a West-of-Ireland parlor a century ago – you can almost hear the lilting voices and fiddle strains as each song’s melody and verse comes alive. This rare volume (whose title means “Songs of Maigh Seóla”) gathers the soul of Connacht in its pages, preserving the folk songs of Galway and Mayo exactly as they were lovingly passed down through generations. It’s a book that invites you to feel the warmth of peat fires and the echoes of ancient stories in every line.

A Treasury of Irish Song and Story

Amhráin Mhuighe Seóla is celebrated as a classic collection of traditional Irish-language songs – one of the relatively few ever published that includes both the original Gaelic lyrics and their musical notation. Within its covers are over 80 melodies and poems (spanning roughly 150 pages) that paint a vivid picture of Irish life: love songs (the majority of the repertoire), playful ballads, mournful laments, and soothing lullabies. The very name Maigh Seóla points to deep roots – it refers to an ancient territory in County Galway where many of these songs were first sung. As you turn each page, you encounter the joys and sorrows of generations past, from tender courtship verses to haunting tales of longing, all preserved in their pure Gaelic form and melody.

Each song is presented in the original Irish language, printed in the traditional seanchló typeface of the era, with English translations and notes provided so that even those still learning the language can appreciate the meaning. The result is a bilingual cultural artifact – a bridge between worlds, allowing you to immerse yourself in the sound of the Irish words while understanding the stories they carry. You’ll even find the musical score for each air on the page, so if you read music, you can literally play the past – imagine sitting at a piano or with fiddle in hand, bringing to life the same strains that once echoed through country kitchens and village gatherings over a hundred years ago.

Collected by a Cultural Pioneer

The genesis of this collection is as captivating as the songs themselves. It was compiled by Mrs. Eileen Costello of Tuam, a schoolteacher-turned-folklorist whose life reads like an Irish saga. Born in London to Irish/Welsh parents, Eileen (born Edith Drury) fell in love with the Irish language in the halls of the London Gaelic League, where she learned her ancestral tongue as a young woman. Her very first find was “Neillí Bhán” (“Fair Nellie”), a love ballad she scribbled down from a fellow traveler on a train ride from Woolwich – a fitting beginning for a woman who would soon roam the rural west of Ireland in search of old songs.

After marrying a doctor from County Galway, Costello settled in Tuam and set out to save the disappearing music of the people. Picture her in the early 1900s: riding along in a horse and trap as her husband made his medical rounds, she would sit by turf fires in cottage kitchens, notebook in hand, listening intently as farmers’ wives, labourers, and local bards sang the time-worn melodies of their village. Every song in Amhráin Mhuighe Seóla was collected directly from oral tradition, giving the book an authenticity and intimacy that can be felt in each verse. One of her chief informants was a gifted young singer from Belclare named Maggie Hession – and tellingly, Maggie’s family carries on the tradition in Irish music to this day. Such continuity speaks to the living heart in these pages.

Eileen Costello’s dedication went hand-in-hand with Ireland’s fight for cultural survival. She gathered these songs during the Gaelic Revival and revolutionary period, driven by a desire to preserve a living heritage for future generations. In fact, she intended this volume “for popular use in the schools and Gaelic League classes of Connacht” rather than as a dry academic tome. Her work had the overt support of the Irish Folk Song Society, but also a personal urgency – Costello was active in the Irish War of Independence and later became a Senator in the new Free State. When you hold this book, you are truly holding the life’s work of a remarkable woman who believed in the power of music and language to shape a nation’s soul.

Rare First Edition in Gaelic Script

This particular copy is the coveted 1919 first edition, published jointly in London and Dublin at the height of Ireland’s cultural renaissance. The Irish Folk-Song Society oversaw its release, making a special arrangement with a Dublin press (The Candle Press, run by Gaelic revivalists) to produce the book in the elegant Gaelic typeface of the day. It was issued separately as its own volume (as well as a special issue of the Society’s journal) – a testament to its importance. The book itself is a handsome quarto-size volume of about 150 pages, including an insightful introduction and 84 songs with their musical scores. In addition to the Irish lyrics and music, each piece is accompanied by an English translation or synopsis, as required by the publishers to broaden its reach beyond Irish speakers. The layout is clear and artfully done, inviting you to explore song after song with ease.

Remarkably, for a book over a century old, this copy is in good condition. The binding remains intact and strong, all pages are present with no tears or loss, and only a mild, even yellowing of the paper hints at its age. It has clearly been well cared-for by previous owners – perhaps cherished on a scholar’s desk or a musician’s shelf – and it exudes that gentle aura of antiquity without any detriment to readability. Owning this first edition is not only about rarity, but also about authenticity: you’ll be reading the songs in the original beautiful Gaelic script (seanchló) and format used in 1919, experiencing the book just as early Gaelic League enthusiasts and folklorists did.

A Living Link to Ireland’s Heritage

Amhráin Mhuighe Seóla is more than an antiquarian volume – it’s a living link between past and present, a conduit of memory and melody. To hold this first edition in your hands is to feel the heartbeat of Irish history and folklore. Whether you are a scholar, a traditional musician, or a passionate lover of Irish culture, this volume will be the jewel of your collection, radiating inspiration and pride. Original printings of this work became so scarce that for decades it was known only to libraries and a lucky few – making the opportunity to own one today truly extraordinary. Don’t miss the chance to become the caretaker of this cultural treasure. Embrace this rare find, and let the voices of Galway and Mayo – the songs of Maigh Seóla – sing to you across time. Add this piece of Ireland’s soul to your collection, and ensure that these ancient melodies continue to live on through you.

References

ITMA — Amhráin Mhuighe Seóla

ITMA — Journal of the Irish Folk Song Society. The Second Phase