It was to distinguish him from that Áed and from others that Áed mac Diarmato received his cognomen, "Áed of Slane", referring to the Hill of Slane, a prehistoric site near the Hill of Tara, which lay within his lands. Some sources omit Áed from the list of kings, including the earliest, that found in the "Baile Chuind Chétchathaig", a work of dynastic propaganda compiled in the reign of Áed's grandson Fínsnechta Fledach. His omission from this is believed to be a transcription error, and it is very likely that he was High King.