Amlaíb, King of Scotland

Amlaíb
King of Alba
Reign	973-977
Predecessor	Kenneth II
Successor	Kenneth II
Died	977
House	Alpin
Father	Indulf, King of Alba

Amlaíb mac Ilduilb (Modern Gaelic: Amhlaigh),^[1] known in English as simply Amlaíb (died 977) was King of Scots during the 970s.^[2] He was the son of King Indulf (Idulb mac Causantín) and brother of King Cuilén (Cuilén mac Iduilb). His name is of Old Norse or Norse-Gael origin, in this case the Old Irish equivalent of Olaf.^[3]

He is known from the notice of his death in the Annals of Tigernach,^[4] which reports that he was killed by Kenneth II of Scotland (Cináed mac Maíl Coluim).^[5] His name is not included in any extant king lists, nor is he named as a king in 973 when Kenneth II met with King Edgar the Peaceable at Chester,^[6] so that the length of his reign is unknown.^[7]

Alex Woolf asserts that the Norse origin of the name Amlaíb "...strongly suggests that his maternal kind may have been from a Scandinavian background and they are likely to have been a branch of the Uí Ímair... ...He may well be the grandson of Amlaíb Cúaran, or his cousin Amlaíb son of Gothfrith".^[8]

Notes

1. Amlaíb mac Ilduilb is the Mediaeval Gaelic form. The modern form has no patronymic; this is because the name Ildulb ("Indulf") has died out in Gaelic, and there is no modern rendering of it.
2. Duncan, pp. 21–22.
3. Amlaíb appears as Olaf in Smyth, pp. 220–221, table 4, where he is presumed to have been co-ruler with Kenneth II.
4. Annals of Tigernach, s.a. 977.4. See also Chronicon Scotorum, s.a. 977; Annals of Clonmacnoise, s.a. 970.
5. The Annals of Ulster, s.a. 977, agree with the other chronicles in reporting Amlaíb's death, but call his killer Cináed mac Domnaill. Cináed mac Maíl Coluim's grandfather was named Domnall.
6. Early Sources, pp. 478–479.
7. There are two king lists which list a 22-year reign for Kenneth rather than the 24 found in the majority, but whether this has any significance is unclear; Duncan, p. 18.
8. Woolf (2007), p. 206.

References

For primary sources see also External links below.

• Anderson, Alan Orr, Early Sources of Scottish History A.D 500–1286, volume 1. Reprinted with corrections. Paul Watkins, Stamford, 1990. ISBN 1-871615-03-8
• Duncan, A.A.M., The Kingship of the Scots 842–1292: Succession and Independence. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 2002. ISBN 0-7486-1626-8
• Smyth, Alfred P. Warlords and Holy Men: Scotland AD 80-1000. Reprinted, Edinburgh: Edinburgh UP, 1998. ISBN 0-7486-0100-7
• Woolf, Alex. (2007), "Amlaíb son of Ildulb and Cinaed Son of Mael Coluim", From Pictland to Alba: 789 - 1070, Edinburgh University Press, ISBN 978-0748612345

External links

• CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts at University College Cork includes
  • The Annals of Tigernach (translation in progress)
  • The Annals of Ulster (translation)
  • The Chronicon Scotorum (translation)
• The Annals of Clonmacnoise at Cornell University