We know that the old Irish Aonach began as funeral games when the heroes of a battle were buried, and that horse-racing was a feature of these games; that the games tended to become annual events at which courts of justice were held and laws enacted embodying the traditional customs of the clan or sept or petty kingdom; that at them marriages were solemnised and goods exchanged and bartered.
wiː nˈoʊ ðætðɪ ˈoʊld ˈaɪɹɪʃ ˈeɪənˌæk bɪɡˈæn æz fjˈuːnɚɹəl ɡˈeɪmz wɛn ðə hˈiəɹoʊz əvə bˈæɾəl wɜː bˈɛɹid, ænd ðæt hˈɔːɹsɹˈeɪsɪŋ wʌzɐ fˈiːtʃɚɹ ʌv ðiːz ɡˈeɪmz; ðætðə ɡˈeɪmz tˈɛndᵻd tə bɪkˌʌm ˈænjuːəl ᵻvˈɛnts æt wˌɪtʃ kˈoːɹts ʌv dʒˈʌstɪs wɜː hˈɛld ænd lˈɔːz ɛnˈæktᵻd ɛmbˈɑːdiɪŋ ðə tɹɐdˈɪʃənəl kˈʌstəmz ʌvðə klˈæn ɔːɹ sˈɛpt ɔːɹ pˈɛɾi kˈɪŋdəm; ðæt æt ðˌɛm mˈæɹɪdʒᵻz wɜː sˈɑːlɪmnˌaɪzd ænd ɡˈʊdz ɛkstʃˈeɪndʒd ænd bˈɑːɹɾɚd.