Uí Mháine
ancient Irish kingdom
Uí Mháine, often Anglicised as Hy Many, was one of the oldest and largest kingdoms located in Connacht, Ireland. Its territory of approximately 1,000 square miles (2,600 km2) encompassed all of what is now north, east and south County Galway, south and central County Roscommon, an area near County Clare, and at one stage had apparently subjugated land on the east bank of the Shannon, together with the parish of Lusmagh in Offaly.
There were two different Uí Mhaine, the Uí Mhaine of Tethbae and the Uí Mhaine of Connacht; these tribes were separated by the Shannon River. The people of the kingdom were descendants of Maine Mór, who won the territory by warfare. Its sub-kingdoms, also known as lordships, included – among others – Soghan, Corco Modhruadh, Delbhna Nuadat, Síol Anmchadha, and Máenmag. These kingdoms were made up of offshoots of the Uí Mháine dynasty, or subject peoples of different backgrounds.
The Uí Mhaine are among the ancient Irish dynasties still represented today among the recognised Irish nobility and Chiefs of the Name, by the O'Kelly of Gallagh and Tycooly, Prince of Uí Mhaine and Count of the Holy Roman Empire. The Fox (O'Kearney) may represent the eastern Uí Mhaine of Tethbae.
Early times
Maine Mór is said to have established the kingdom around 357 AD, and ruled for fifty years. Before his arrival, the area had been occupied by the Fir Bolg, ruled by King Cian d'Fhearaibh Bolg.
“Uí Mháine” enters the record as ancient Irish kingdom. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Mháine, ancient and Irish can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Uí Mháine” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Mháine, ancient and Irish provides the most credible route into that argument.
Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 22, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q4994052. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Uí Mháine”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Uí Mháine primary sources, Uí Mháine archive and Mháine research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Uí Mháine”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Uí Mháine” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.