ST. COLUMBA AND THE DAWN OF LETTERS IN SCOTLAND
The fugitive MSS.—Gaelic a literary language for ages—Scotland’s
first writer—St. Columba one of the rarer master-spirits—His
peculiar qualities—Intellectual standpoint—Birth—Early life—A
fateful incident—Set sail for Pictland—Motive—Arrival in pagan
Scotland—His missionary enterprise—Light the lamp of
literature—An ardent scholar, penman, and poet—The famous
“Cathrach”—His Gaelic poems—Latin hymns—The Columban
renaissance—Encouragement of bards and scholars—The _Amra
Choluimcille_—Iona as an educational centre—European fame and
influence 40