Amergin Glúingel

Amergin is presented in the Mythological Cycle as a son of Míl Espáine, one of the seven brothers who lead the Milesian invasion of Ireland. During the Milesian attempt to land at Inber Scéne, after retreating beyond the narrative boundary called the 'ninth wave', Amergin sings an invocation invoking the spirit of Ireland (the Song of Amergin) which parts the storm raised by the Tuatha Dé Danann and allows the ships to land. After the conquest narrative he helps divide the land between his brothers and is appointed Chief Ollam of Ireland; local tradition in Drogheda later locates his burial under Millmount.

Sources give no sustained physical description beyond the epithets attached to his name. The cognomen Glúingel is glossed as 'white knees' and the variant Glúnmar as 'big knee'; these function as distinguishing nicknames in the tradition rather than detailed anatomical descriptions. No clothing, stature, or other bodily detail is recorded in the provided material.

Amergin's principal capacities in the narratives are poetic, juridical, and ceremonial. He is credited with composing and performing the Song of Amergin, an invocation addressed to the spirit of Ireland that in the story parts a storm and secures a safe landing for the Milesians. He acts as an impartial judge mediating terms between the Milesians and the Tuatha Dé Danann, setting rules of engagement prior to combat, and later is named Chief Ollam — the highest poetic/learned office — and participates in the division of land among his brothers as narrated in the conquest story. The corpus attributes multiple poems to him as part of Milesian mythology. The sources do not record ritual formulas, material implements, or step‑by‑step procedures for his rites.