Adding us as a Preferred Source tells Google you trust our content, so our articles show up more often in your Google Search, Discover feed, and AI Overviews.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.
Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
coronach
Celtic poetry
Also known as: corranach
coronach, in Celtic tradition, choral lament or outcry for the dead; also, a funeral song sung or shrieked by Celtic women. Though observers have frequently reported hearing such songs in Ireland or in the Scottish Highlands, no such songs have been recorded. The Scottish border ballad “The Bonny Earl of Murray” is supposedly composed in the tradition of the coronach. It begins:
Ye Highlands, and ye Lawlands,
Oh where have you been?
They have slain the Earl of Murray,
And they layd him on the green.
Discover how ordinary objects work, and expand your understanding of the familiar.
" height="20" alt="HEW Logo">
By clicking "Sign Up", you consent to the Britannica Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.