The Soghain were a people of ancient Ireland. Dubhaltach Mac Fhirbhisigh identified them as part of a larger group called the Cruithin, and stated of them: Of the Cruithin of Ireland are the Dál Araidhi (Dál nAraidi), the seven Lóigisi of Leinster, the seven Soghain of Ireland, and every Conaille (see Conaille Muirtheimne) that is in Ireland.

Locations[link]

Early peoples and kingdoms of Ireland, c. 800

The location of four of the seven Soghain is as follows:

• 1 - A branch in the territory of Fernmag (barony of Farney, County Monaghan).

• 2 - In Delvin (County Westmeath) where a Soghain tribe lived with a branch of the Delbhna in an area called Trícha cét na Delbna Móire agus na Sogan.

• 3 - The Corcu Shogain, who were subject to the Benntraige under the Eoghanacht. An Ogham inscription discovered near Aglish in the barony of Muskerry, some twelve miles west of the city of Cork, displays the words MUCOI SOGINI, which probably means of the Corcu Sogain.

• 4 - The Soghain of Connacht were located in central east County Galway, in a kingdom called Tír Sogháin.

Tír Sogháin[link]

The Soghain of Connacht were located in Tír Sogháin, and area in central east County Galway bounded by the river Suck on the east, the river Clare on the west; the Grange and Shiven rivers to the north; the Raford and Ballinure rivers to the south. A poem recorded in The Book of Uí Maine, Cruas Connacht clanna Sogain, lists the kingdom's boundaries, which can be found to tie in with the above locations:

• From Áth an Ibar west
• to Glais Uair Arnaigh
• was the extent of Sodhan
• that sword-guarded land.

• From Béal na Róbe in Maenmagh
• to the clear, soft-reeded Simin
• was the breath of the plain
• which bore no ignominy.

The previous, pre-Gaelic people of the area were called the Senchineoil. Very little information survives on them.

The Soghain of Connacht were described by Seán Mór Ó Dubhagáin in his poem Triallam timcheall na Fodla where he states:

The six Sogain let us not shun/their kings are without oblivion/Good the host of plundering excursions/to whom the spear-armed Sogain is hereditary.

The Book of Lecan lists their six branches as Cinel Rechta, Cinel Trena, Cinel Luchta, Cinel Fergna, Cinel Domaingen and Cinel Deigill.

The genealogy of Saint Kerrill of Cloonkeekerrill is given as Caireall mac Curnain mac Treana mac Fionnchada mac Nair mac Earca mac Tiobraide mac Sodhain Salbhuidhe mac Fiacha Araidhe. His grandfather, Treana mac Fionnchada, was the eponym of the Cinel Trena, who were apparently located close to Knockma as evinced by the placename Tír Mhic Trena (the land of the sons of Trena). This area was the western limit of the kingdom of the Connacht Soghain.

Early Christian evangelists among the Soghain included Conainne, St Connell and Kerrill. Their successors include Naomhéid, Cuana of Kilcoonagh, Dubhán, Felig, Íbar, Íomar of the Sogain, Laisren of Cloonkerrill, Maol Chosna, Modiúit, Menott, Molua of Kilmoluagh.

Parishes known to be included in Tír Sogháin were:

• 1 - Abbeyknockmoy
• 2 - Abbert
• 3 - Ballymacward
• 4 - Cloonkeenkerrill
• 5 - Fohenagh
• 6 - Lackagh
• 7 - Kilconnell
• 8 - Kilgerrill
• 9 - Killascobe
• 10 - Monivea
• 11 - Moylough

Tír Sogháin became subject to the Uí Maine sometime in the middle of the first millennium.

Descendants[link]

Descendants of the Soghain are still found in great numbers in County Galway, bearing names such as Mannion, Ward/Mac an Bhaird, Gill/Gillane, Scarry, Duggan, Megan/McGann, Martin, Cassain.

Annalistic references[link]

• 811. Irghalach, son of Maelumha, lord of Corca Soghain;

See also[link]

• Clann Fhergail
• Uí Fiachrach Aidhne
• Clann Taidg
• Conmhaícne Mara
• Delbhna Tir Dha Locha
• Muintir Murchada
• Trícha Máenmaige
• Uí Díarmata
• Cóiced Ol nEchmacht
• Síol Anmchadha
• Maigh Seola
• Cenél Áeda na hEchtge

References[link]

• The Book of Uí Maine, otherwise called 'The book of the O'Kellys', R.A.S. Mac Alister (ed.), Dublin, 1942.
• Punann arsa part i, Martin Finnerty, Galway, 1951.
• The parish of Ballinasloe, Rev. Patrick K. Egan, Dublin and London, 1960. Facsimilie reproduction, Galway, 1994.
• Ballymacward:The story of an east Galway parish, John S. Flynn, 1991.
• The Life, Legends and Legacy of Saint Kerrill: A Fifth-Century East Galway Evangelist, Joseph Mannion, 2004. 0 954798 1 3
• The true identity of Saint Kerrill of Clonkeenkerrill, Joseph Mannion, in Making shapes with slates and marla:A Gurteen anthology, John and Margaret Corbett (compilers), Galway, 2004.
• The Senchineoil and the Soghain: Differentiating between the pre-Celtic and early Celtic Tribes of Central East Galway, Joseph Mannion, Journal of the Galway Archaeological and Historical Society, Volume 58, pp. 165–170, 2006.

Inayat Hussain Bhatti (1928–1999) was a Pakistani singer, actor, producer, director, script writer, social worker, columnist, religious scholar and a protagonist of the development of Punjabi language and literature.

Descendants[link]

In 1953, Bhatti married Mohtarma Shahida Banoo, the daughter of Ahmed Din Butt, a retired superintendent of the Indian Railways. This was Bhatti's second marriage. Mohtarma Shahida Banoo died on 12 March 1997.

Bhatti's progeny includes three sons, three daughters, thirteen grandsons and six granddaughters. Bhatti's eldest son (from his first marriage) is Asmat Abbas. His son, Nadeem Abbas Bhatti, is a film producer, and played a lead role in the movie Ishq roug (1991) but then shifted his focus to film distribution. His youngest son Waseem Abbas is a film, TV and stage artist. His grandson, Junaid Abbas Bhatti - the son of Asmat Abbas - is a member of the British nobility titled "The Baron of Ballencrieff".^[1][2]

Bhatti's younger brother Kaifi, was an actor and director from the mid 1960s until the late 1990s.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Inayat Hussain Bhatti at the Internet Movie Database
• Inayat Hussain Bhatti's memorable songs
• Pakistan Film Magazine
• Songography
• music
• www.folkpunjab.com

Toumani Diabaté
Toumani Diabaté describing the construction of the kora during a performance at Afrofest 2007 in Toronto, Ontario
Background information
Born	(1965-08-10) August 10, 1965 (age 46)
Origin	Mali
Genres	Mali Music, Pop, World music
Occupations	Musician
Instruments	Kora
Years active	1987–present
Labels	World Circuit
Website	worldcircuit.co.uk/#Toumani_Diabate
Notable instruments
Kora

Toumani Diabaté (born August 10, 1965) is a Malian kora player. In addition to performing the traditional music of Mali, he has also been involved in cross-cultural collaborations with flamenco, blues, jazz, and other international styles.

Biography[link]

Diabaté comes from a long family tradition of kora players including his father Sidiki Diabaté, who recorded the first ever kora album in 1970. His family's oral tradition tells of 71 generations of musicians preceding him in a patrilineal line. His cousin Sona Jobarteh is the first female kora player to come from a Griot family.

In 1987, Diabate made his first appearance on an album in the UK, on Ba Togoma, an album featuring his father's ensemble. In 1988 Diabaté released his first album in the West, a solo album entitled Kaira, recorded in one afternoon in London and produced by Lucy Duran.

In addition to performing Malian traditional music, Diabaté has also performed and recorded in cross-cultural settings. He has collaborated with flamenco group Ketama, forming a combined group known as Songhai and releasing two recordings: Songhai I and Songhai II. In 2006, Diabaté collaborated with American blues musician Taj Mahal on the release Kulanjan. "MALIcool" is a collaboration with American jazz trombonist Roswell Rudd. He also collaborated with the Icelandic popular musician Björk on her 2007 album Volta.

In 1999 Diabaté released the album New Ancient Strings, a collaboration with Ballake Sissoko and in September 2005, he released In the Heart of the Moon, for which he collaborated with Ali Farka Touré. The album went on to win the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Traditional World Music Album. On July 25, 2006 he released his latest album Boulevard de l'Indépendance, recorded with his Symmetric Orchestra. In the Heart of the Moon and Boulevard de l'Indépendance, are both part of the Hotel Mandé Sessions, recorded by Nick Gold and released on World Circuit Records. Both Boulevard and Hotel Mandé are references to landmarks in Mali's capital city, Bamako.

The Symmetric Orchestra led by Toumani Diabaté is composed of musicians (mostly griots)^[1] from the across the old Mande Empire of west Africa, who play a mix of traditional instruments including the kora, djembe, balafon and bolombatto, as well as modern ones like the guitar and electronic keyboard.

Diabaté appeared in 2006 at the WOMAD Festival UK, Roskilde Festival in Denmark, and at the Sziget Festival in Budapest, Hungary. In 2007 he performed at the Glastonbury Festival and toured the U.S.A.. In 2008, he was at WOMADelaide (in Adelaide, South Australia).^[2] In early 2008, Diabaté released his new album of solo Kora music, The Mande Variations, to widespread critical acclaim. Many reviewers praised the album for its detailed recording of the Kora and careful mastering, in addition to the improvisational skills and wide range of apparent influences displayed on the album.^[3]

In October 2008 the Arabic language lyrics in Diabaté's song Tapha Niang (from Boulevard de l'Indépendance) were removed from the PlayStation 3 video game LittleBigPlanet, after it elicited objections from a Muslim individual due to their inclusion of verses from the Qur’an.^[4] The publisher Sony Computer Entertainment Europe decided to delay the launch of the game by a week and recall most discs in order to replace the song with a lyric-free instrumental version. However, some copies of the original game had already been sold in the Middle East and United States.^[5]

Diabaté was chosen by Matt Groening to perform at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in May 2010 in Minehead. Diabaté also performed at Hay Festival in June. In July he performed at the Larmer Tree Festival to huge acclaim.

Discography[link]

Toumani Diabate performing at the 2007 Winnipeg Folk Festival

• 1987 - "Ba Togoma" (with Sidiki Diabaté, Mariama Kouyaté, Djeli Mady Sissoko, Kandia Kouayté)
• 1988 - Kaira
• 1988 - Songhai (with Ketama and Danny Thompson)
• 1994 - Songhai 2 (with Ketama and Danny Thompson)
• 1995 - Djelika
• 1999 - New Ancient Strings (with Ballake Sissoko)
• 1999 - Kulanjan (with Taj Mahal)
• 2001 - Jarabi: the Best of Toumani Diabate
• 2002 - Malicool (with Roswell Rudd)
• 2005 - In the Heart of the Moon (with Ali Farka Touré)
• 2006 - Boulevard de l'Indépendance
• 2008 - The Mandé Variations
• 2010 - Ali and Toumani - (World Circuit/Nonesuch Records) (with Ali Farka Touré)
• 2011 - A Curva da Cintura (with Arnaldo Antunes and Edgard Scandurra) - Brazil

Filmography[link]

• Bamako Is a Miracle by Maurice Engler, Arnaud Robert and Samuel Chalard (Afro Blue, Geneva 2003).
• Toumani Diabaté - Koraklänge aus dem Land der Flusspferde by Martina Pfaff (WDR, Cologne 2007).

References[link]

External links[link]

• Toumani Diabaté official website
• Toumani Diabaté on the label website (worldcircuit.co.uk)
• Official Toumani Diabaté biography
• Toumani Diabaté on Myspace
• Afropop Worldwide Slideshow of Toumani Diabate Performing Live in Brooklyn (July 2007)
• The Kora Star (August 2007)
• 'Our music is older than Bach' - Interview in The Guardian (October 2008)
• Info on the kora & Toumani Diabaté
• Toumoani Diabante review in The New Current
• Making of Boulevard de L'Indépendance short documentary
• Making of In the Heart of the Moon short documentary
• Ali and Toumani Review and interview with Tounami Diabaté| Folk Radio UK