Brian Merriman

Brian Merriman was born around the year 1747 in Ireland, likely in County Clare, and grew up near the village of Feakle. A poet and a teacher, he taught at various schools around Feakle and served as a private tutor for local families. Merriman is known for his poem “Cúirt an Mhéan Oiche,” published in English as The Midnight Court (M. Fridberg, 1945). Many notable poets, including Seamus Heaney and Ciaran Carson, have published partial or complete translations of The Midnight Court, which is written in the form of an aisling, or vision poem. Merriman died in Limick City in July of 1805.