The Celtic harp is a triangular frame harp used by the Celtic nations in northwest Europe. It is called cláirseach in Irish, clàrsach in Scottish Gaelic, telenn in Breton, and telyn in Welsh. In Ireland and Scotland, the harp had strings made of wire and needed a lot of skill and practice to play. It was linked to the noble families of Ireland. The harp can be seen on Irish coins, Guinness products, and the official symbols of the Republic of Ireland, Montserrat, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

Early history

The early history of the triangular frame harp in Europe is disputed. The first instrument linked to the harping tradition in the Gaelic world was called a cruit. This word may have originally described a different stringed instrument, as it is related in origin to the Welsh word crwth. It has been suggested that the word clàrsach or cláirseach (from clàr or clár, meaning a board) was created to describe the triangular frame harp that replaced the cruit, and this creation may have come from Scotland.

A piece of notched wood, possibly part of the bridge of an Iron Age lyre from around 300 BC, was found on the Isle of Skye. If this piece was indeed a bridge, it would be the oldest surviving part of a stringed instrument in western Europe. However, images of Greek lyres are much older. The earliest descriptions of a European triangular framed harp—those with a fore pillar—are found on carved stones from the 8th century made by the Picts. Pictish harps were strung with horsehair. These instruments later spread south to the Anglo-Saxons, who used gut strings, and west to the Gaels in the Highlands and Ireland. Exactly thirteen images of triangular chordophone instruments from before the 11th century exist in Europe, and twelve of them are from Scotland.

The earliest Irish references to stringed instruments date to the 6th century. Players of these instruments were respected by the nobility. Early Irish laws from 700 AD stated that bards and cruit players should sit with nobles at banquets, not with common entertainers. Another stringed instrument from this time was the tiompán, likely a type of lyre. Although these instruments are the earliest evidence of stringed instruments in Ireland, no records describe their appearance or how the cruit and tiompán differed.

Only two quadrangular (four-sided) instruments are found in the Irish context on the west coast of Scotland, and both carvings are from about 200 years after Pictish carvings. The first clear images of the Irish triangular harp appear in the late 11th century on a reliquary and in the 12th century on stone. The earliest harps used in Ireland were quadrangular lyres, used in religious settings. One study suggests that Pictish stone carvings may have been copied from the Utrecht Psalter, the only other source outside Pictish Scotland showing a triangular chordophone instrument. The Utrecht Psalter was written between 816 and 835 AD. However, Pictish carvings on the Nigg Stone date from 790 to 799 AD, which is up to 40 years earlier than the Psalter. Other Pictish carvings, such as the harper on the Dupplin Cross from around 800 AD, also predate the Psalter.

Gerald of Wales, a Norman-Welsh scholar who wrote about Ireland from the Anglo-Norman perspective, praised Irish harp music, though he disliked the Gaelic Irish. He claimed that while Irish music originated in Ireland, many believed the Scots and Welsh had surpassed them in skill. Gerald mentioned the cythara and tympanum, but it is unclear if these were harps. He may not have visited Scotland.

Early images of the clàrsach are rare in Scottish art, but a gravestone from around 1500 in Argyllshire shows one with a large soundbox decorated with Gaelic designs. The Irish Saint Máedóc of Ferns reliquary shrine, dated around 1100, clearly shows King David with a triangular framed harp that includes a "T-Section" in the pillar. The Irish or Scottish word lamhchrann or làmh-chrann was used to describe this pillar, which would have supported the harp’s structure to handle the tension of wire strings.

Three of the four surviving authentic harps from before the 16th century are of Gaelic origin: the Brian Boru Harp in Trinity College, Dublin, and the Queen Mary and Lamont Harps, both in the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh. The last two are examples of small, low-headed harps. These were once thought to be made from hornbeam, a wood not native to Scotland or Ireland. This idea has been challenged by Karen Loomis in her 2015 PhD thesis. All three harps are dated to around the 15th century and may have been made in Argyll, western Scotland.

One of the largest collections of 17th–18th century harp music is the work of Turlough O'Carolan, a blind Irish harper and composer. At least 220 of his compositions remain today.

In Wales, the harp was called telyn in Welsh. Additional words were used to describe types: telyn benglin (lap harp), telyn farddol (bardic harp), telyn rawn (harp with horsehair strings), and telyn ledr (harp with gut strings). Harps are frequently mentioned in Welsh literature from about the 12th century AD. Welsh harps, played by professional musicians called clerwyr, were distinguished by their stringing methods from those in other parts of Europe.

Like the Irish, the Welsh used metal-strung harps. However, they preferred horsehair strings over the gut strings commonly used on the continent. Horsehair strings were widely used in Wales until the 17th century, after which gut strings became more common. Early Welsh harps had a single string per note, a "straighter pillar" than Irish harps, and a wooden frame with an animal-hide soundboard, wooden or bone pegs, and about 30 horsehair strings. Some strings had L-shaped wooden pegs called gwarchïod, which touched the strings and caused them to buzz. Welsh harps were played on the musician’s left shoulder. Over time, Welsh harps came in many shapes and sizes, but by about 1700, they were replaced by the Italian chromatic triple harp and later the pedal harp. Today, harpists in Wales claim their tradition has continued unbroken from the early use of harps to the present. After being replaced by the pedal harp, the triple harp has seen a revival in Wales.

Characteristics and function

Two experts, John Bannerman and Michael Newton, agree that by the 1500s, the most common strings on the Celtic harp were made of brass. Historical records do not mention the thickness or other materials used for the strings, except for references to a low-quality brass, often called "red brass" at the time. Modern experiments on the Celtic harp have tested various materials, such as copper alloys, silver, and gold. Other experiments have used more common materials, like softer iron, as well as yellow and red brass. The strings are attached to a soundbox, usually carved from a single piece of wood, often willow. Other woods, like alder and poplar, have also been found in surviving harps. The Celtic harp had a strong curved support and a thick neck, with thick brass bands on the sides. The strings are plucked using long fingernails. This type of harp is unique because the first two strings in the middle of the musical scale were tuned to the same pitch.

The parts of the cláirseach were named as follows:

The corr had a brass strip nailed to each side, with holes for tuning pins. The treble end of the corr fit into the top of the com (soundbox). On a low-headed harp, the bass end of the corr had a slot to connect with the lámhchrann; on a high-headed harp, the slot was on the back of the lámhchrann.

The com (soundbox) was usually carved from a single piece of willow, hollowed out from the back. A piece of harder wood was inserted to close the back.

Crúite na dtéad (string shoes) were made of brass and protected the soundbox from damage caused by the metal strings.

The fhorshnaidhm may refer to a wooden piece used to fasten a string after it passed through a hole in the soundboard.

Playing the wire-strung harp was described as very difficult. Because the sound lasted a long time, the player had to stop the sound of recently played strings while plucking new ones, even when playing quickly. Unlike modern practice, the left hand played the higher notes, and the right hand played the lower notes. It was said that children should start learning the harp by age seven. However, modern players have shown that people can learn to play reasonably well even later in life.

During the medieval period, the wire-strung harp was popular in Gaelic regions, which included parts of Scotland and Ireland. By the 16th century, Scotland and Ireland, though still connected, showed differences in language, music, and society.

The harp was the main instrument of Gaelic aristocracy in Ireland, and harpers had high social status, as recorded in Brehon Law. Norman and British settlers in Ireland also supported harpers until the late 18th century, but their status declined with the English class system.

In the biography of Turlough O'Carolan, historian Donal O'Sullivan wrote:

The role of the clàrsach (harp) in Hebridean lordships, as both entertainment and a symbol in poetry, is shown in the songs of Màiri Nic Leòid (Mary MacLeod), a famous poet. A chief was praised for his ability to judge harp playing, which was central to stories and wisdom:

The music of the harp and the bagpipe was considered essential to the grandeur of the MacLeod court, along with wine in fine cups:

Here, the Highland bagpipe shared the same high status as the clàrsach. The bagpipe later replaced the harp and may have developed its own classical music style called "great music" (ceòl mòr). An elegy written in 1618 for Sir Donald MacDonald of Clanranald mentions the bagpipe in a noble setting:

There is evidence that the musical traditions of the clàrsach influenced the bagpipe. A system called canntaireachd, used to teach and remember ceòl mòr, was first recorded in 1226 in the obituary of a harp player. Terms used for musical themes and variations on the harp and bagpipe are similar. Some founders of bagpipe families were also known as clársach players.

The names of some of the last known harpers are recorded. Duncan McIndeor, who was blind, died in 1694 and was the harper for Campbell of Auchinbreck. He also played in Edinburgh. A payment for "two bolls of meall" (a type of grain) in 1683 was made to another blind harper, Patrick McErnace, who played for Lord Neill Campbell. Manus McShire is mentioned in records from 1688 to 1704. A letter from 1702 refers to a harper named Neill Baine, who played for Allan MacDonald of Clanranald. Angus McDonald, a harper, was paid by Menzies of Culdares in 1713. The Marquis of Huntly’s records show payments to two harpers in 1714. Other harpers include Rory Dall Morison (died around 1714), Lachlan Dall (died around 1721–1727), and Murdoch MacDonald (died around 1740).

By the middle of the 18th century, the "violer" (fiddle player) had replaced the harper, possibly because of the growing influence of Lowland Scots culture in the Gaelic world.

Revival

In the early 1800s, as the old Gaelic harp tradition was fading, the growing power of England led people in Celtic countries to try to create their own national identities. Since pedal harps were made in England, Celtic nationalists began to revive traditional harps. In Ireland, a self-taught man named John Egan from Dublin started this revival. He first opened a business making pedal harps, but later joined the movement to restore traditional harps. He created twelve new models, including the "Improved Irish Harp" (5 feet tall, with a cone-shaped back and flat soundboard) and the "Portable Irish Harp" (3 feet tall, with a bowed pillar). These were considered his most important inventions. The Improved Irish Harp had wire strings, but its shape came from the pedal harp. The Portable Irish Harp was said to look like the antique Irish Harp in Trinity College’s museum, but it had only minor similarities: Egan’s harp used gut strings instead of wire, and its body was made in sections to make it lighter. The Improved Harp also had a hand-operated disc with ring stops that changed the pitch of the strings, like the pedals on a pedal harp. The new Irish harps were decorated with symbols like shamrocks and wolfhounds in green or gold.

In the 1890s, a similar new harp became popular in Scotland as part of a Gaelic cultural revival.

The Celtic Revival, which began at the end of the 19th century, helped restore the making of new Irish harps. Harpists and competitions were supported by groups like Feis Ceoil and Oireachtas na Gaeilge, inspired by Welsh festivals called eisteddfod. However, by the 1890s, there were no Irish makers of the Irish harp. A historian and harp collector named Reverend James O’Laverty started a campaign in the press to create a local harp-making business. He convinced a furniture maker named James McFall to become a luthier. O’Laverty taught McFall and shared his collection for study. Later, he helped McFall access instruments in Dublin and Belfast museums. McFall made a new model called the "Tara," which had a bowed pillar and tall head, but also a curved back inspired by Egan’s designs. It used gut strings and had ring stops that made it fully chromatic, like a pedal harp. It was decorated with designs from the Irish Decorative Art Association, based on manuscripts like the Book of Kells and wood engravings on the pillar and soundboard. Other models McFall made included the "Bardic," a smaller harp with gut strings, and the "Ministrel," a hand-held wire-strung harp. His harps were sent to schools in Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. Despite many musicians focusing on Irish music, the new Irish harps were often used to play Western classical pieces.

There is renewed interest in the wire-strung harp, or clàrsach, with replicas being made and research into ancient playing methods. A key event in the revival of the Celtic harp is the Edinburgh International Harp Festival, held yearly since 1982, which includes performances and workshops.

In Wales, the national harp revival focused on the triple harp. Harps were seen as an important symbol of Welsh identity and were linked to eisteddfod festivals, especially the tradition of singing to harp accompaniment (invented in the 19th century). Lady Llanover, a supporter of Welsh arts, invited musicians to play triple harps at events. The Cymreigyddion Society hired Bassett Jones (1809–1869) as its official harp maker. Jones studied surviving triple harps made by John Richards (1171–1789) to restart production of the instrument, which had stopped earlier. Jones created a lightweight triple harp that was given out at competitions sponsored by Lady Llanover. These harps were decorated with national symbols, though Jones also included designs to please the Crown, such as oak leaves, a Welsh leek, and a crown on a harp made for the Prince of Wales in the 1840s. Some of Jones’s harps had conical backs, like those on pedal harps, instead of stave-back designs.

Harpist John Thomas claimed the triple harp was a Welsh invention, even though it had Italian origins (Italian triple harps were no longer played by the 17th century). He used a pedal harp in his own music but stayed connected to Wales.

By the late 1800s, the triple harp was declining again, except among the rural Kale, the Romani people of Wales. A Romani harpist named Nansi Richards helped revive the triple harp by sharing traditional tunes and techniques, such as the echo effect created by plucking outer strings in unison, as heard in "The Bells of Aberdovey."

In the 1950s, a carpenter and pianist named Georges Cochevelou in Brittany successfully reconstructed the Celtic harp. His son, Alan Stivell (born Cochevelou), continues to play the instrument as of 2026.