roscad

roscad, with rosc, from which it derives, comes from the verbal root sech- (‘speak, utter’), and is used of legal maxims and aphorisms quoted in early Irish legal texts. It is also used to refer to an early form of Irish metrics. The roscad utterances are composed in a form of structured diction, or rhymeless verse. Roscad preceded the rhyming, syllabic verse which came into use in the 7th cent. and thereafter dominated Irish poetry until the 17th. Because of its esoteric aura it is sometimes used of extempore and mantic chants.