This lecture by David Greene regarding Táin Bó Cúailnge relates the story's origins, history, and its many versions, providing a sense of this story's national and international appeal.
People who deal with early Irish literature, usually refer to Táin Bó Cúailnge simply as 'the Táin'. This is partly a handy abbreviation, but it is also the usage in Irish literature and it tells us something about the story; it is the original Táin, and the other stories whose titles begin with Táin Bó are all either later stories or old ones which have been re-worked to bring them into relationship with the Táin as remscéla—preliminary stories. ...
And why was this black bull of Cooley so badly wanted? Well, one of the versions of the Táin—not the oldest—gives us a nice rational interpretation......
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