Celtic Myth & legend

Irish Goddess Banba (Banbha)

La Druidesse by Alexandre Cabanel (1823 - 1889)

Banba’s Crown is the northernmost point on the Irish mainland located at Malin Head, Inishowen, County Donegal (Irish: Cionn Mhálanna, Inis Eoghain, Contae Dhún na nGall). Its name pays homage to the goddess Banba or Banbha. According to Irish legend, Banba was one of the three goddesses who protected Ireland along with her sisters, Ériu and Fódla. They are members of the Tuatha Dé Danann, Celtic pre-Christian gods with supernatural ability.

According to the Lebor Gabála Érenn, first compiled in the 11th century AD and intended to be a history of Ireland. The Milesians, who are the final race to settle in Ireland, came into contention with the Tuatha Dé Danann. On their way to Tara, the ancient ceremonial site and seat of power, the Milesians are met on three mountains by Banba, Fódla and Ériu. Each goddess asks for the land to be named after her. This is agreed to by Amergin, who is said to have been a bard and judge for the Milesians. As a result they give permission for Amergin and his people to settle in Ireland.

Teeval, Princess of the Ocean (Teeval, Ben-Phrinse Ny Marrey) - Manx Fairy Tale

Mermaid and Sea by Robert Anning Bell (1863–1933) credit Victoria Art Gallery

IN the old days Culain, the smith of the gods, was living in the Isle of Mann. It was the time when Conchubar was at the court of the King of Ulster, and had nothing but the sword in his hand. He was a fine handsome young man, and he had made up his mind to make himself a king. So he went one day to the Druid of Clogher to ask him what he had best do.
(Ayns ny shenn laghyn va Culain, gaaue ny jeeghyn, cummal ayns Mannin. Ec y traa shen va Conchubar ec cooyrt Ree Ullee, as cha row red erbee echey agh y cliwe v’ ayns e laue. V’eh ny ghooinney aeg, braew as bwaagh, as va’n aigney echey slane soit er jannoo eh hene ny ree. Myr shen, laa dy row, hie eh dys Druaight Chlogher dy vriaght jeh cre lhisagh eh jannoo).

‘Go thy way,’ said the Druid, ‘to the Isle of Mann. There thou wilt find the great smith Culain. Get him to make thee a sword and a spear and a shield, and with these thou shalt win the kingdom of Ulster.’
(‘Immee royd,’ dooyrt yn Druaight ‘dys Mannin. Ayns shen yiow oo yn gaaue mooar Culain. Cur ersyn jannoo cliwe as shleiy as scape dhyts, as lhieusyn cossynee oo reeriaght Ullee.’)

Conchubar went away, and hired a boat and put out to sea. He landed in Mann and made straight for Culain’s smithy. It was night when he got there, and the red glow of the furnace shone out into the dark. He could hear from inside the smithy the roar of the bellows and the clanging of the hammer on the anvil. When he came near, a great dog, as large as a calf, began to bay and to growl like thunder, and brought his master out.
(Hie Conchubar ersooyl as ren eh failley baatey as hie eh roish er y cheayn. Haink eh er thalloo ayns Mannin as hie eh çhelleeragh lesh keirdee Chulain. Va’n oie ayn tra raink eh, as va bree jiarg yn ‘urnish ry akin soilshean sy dorraghys. Cheayll eh voish çheu sthie y cheirdee garveig ny builg-heidee as clingal yn oard er yn ingan. Tra haink eh faggys da, ghow moddey mooar, cho mooar as lheiy, toshiaght er gullarnee as gyrnal gollrish taarnagh, as hug eh lesh e vainshtyr magh.)  

Niamh Cinn-Óir and the Land of Tír na nÓg

Niamh, illustrated by Beatrice Elvery in Heroes of the Dawn (1914)

The Fenian Cycle or Fianna Cycle (Irish: an Fhiannaíocht) in early Irish literature focuses on the exploits of the band of warriors known as the Fianna and their leader Fionn mac Cumhaill. Fionn mac Cumhaill is a hero in Irish as well as Scottish and Manx mythology. Much of the Fianna Cycle or Fenian Cycle is narrated by Fionn's son, the poet Oisín. The Fenian cycle remains an important part of Irish folklore passed down in oral tradition over many centuries.

A well known story from the Fenian Cycle is The Interrogation of the Old Men (Irish Agallamh Na Seanórach) probably compiled and written from older sources and oral tradition by a single author in about 1200. Other earlier tales were recorded in manuscripts and include The Book of the Dun Cow (c. 1100) and The Book of Leinster (c. 1160). The Fenian cycle is a key part of Irish folklore and contains many popular folk tales. Over the years a number of variations of the stories have been told and written.

‘Fairy Well’ and and the Captured Scottish Piper

The handsome drover, 1904–1904 painting by Heywood Hardy ((25 November 1842 – 20 January 1933)

In local folklore throughout the Celtic lands there are many stories of the little people, wee folk or fairies. They are often associated with particular locations and there are many 'fairy hills', 'fairy mounds', 'fairy glens', 'fairy wells' and 'fairy bridges'. One such place is the Fairy Well in the Parish of Logie. It is sometimes known as the Highlander’s Well and located not far from the base of Dumyat (Scottish Gaelic: Dùn Mhèad) which is a hill at the western end of the Ochil Hills (Scottish Gaelic: Monadh Ochail) in central Scotland.

Highland drovers would sometimes stop here to allow their cattle to drink on the way to market. Local folklore has it that one of the wee folk (fairy) called Blue Jacket used to guard the well. One summer's day a Highland drover and piper from the Braes of Rannoch came to the Fairy Well with his Highland cattle. He fell asleep beside the Well only to be awoken shortly after by Blue Jacket. The fairy asked where he had come from and the drover told him Rannoch Moor. Blue Jacket then informed him that he was the guardian of the spring he had drunk from.

Irish Ghost Story: The White Lady of Castleknock

View of Castleknock Castle ruins 1791

The sites on which the remains of Ireland’s many medieval strongholds can be seen today, are often built on the location of former forts. In a number of cases the existence of these former fortresses are only remembered in local folklore. Many excavations have given substance to this local knowledge, when it is revealed that later castles are built on previous Iron and Bronze Age forts. This is perhaps not so surprising given they are located on naturally strategic points from which to control the surrounding land. So many sensible historians and archaeologists are wise to listen carefully to the verbal tradition of stories handed down from generation to generation. Because within these tales, embellished over the years, there is often more than a grain of truth.

Ancient Irish Standing Stone and Death of Cúchulainn

Cuchulain in Battle, illustration by J. C. Leyendecker in T. W. Rolleston's Myths & Legends of the Celtic Race, 1911.

There is an ancient standing stone in a field not far from the village of Knockbridge (Irish: Droichead an Chnoic)  known locally as ‘The Field of Slaughter'.  It stands at 3 m (10 ft) tall and 1.3 m (over 4 ft) wide and is thought to date to the Bronze Age (2,400 - 500 BC). This menhir is said to have been originally erected to mark the grave of a past great warrior and is called Clochafarmore (Irish: Cloch an Fhir Mhóir). Sometimes this standing stone is referred to as Cúchulainn's Stone and legend has it that it is the site where another great Irish hero and warrior, Cúchulainn, met his end.
 

Cú Chulainn or Cúchulainn is said to be the son of Lugh, a god in Irish mythology and member of the pre-Christian Gaelic pantheon the Tuatha Dé Danann. The Tuatha Dé Danann form a significant feature in Irish, Scottish and Manx mythology who had supernatural ability and were of great importance to the belief systems of the Gaelic people. In the Ulster Cycle, one of the four great cycles of Irish mythology,  Lugh fathered Cú Chulainn with the mortal maiden Deichtine who was the sister of Conchobar mac Nessa the king of Ulster. Cúchulainn is the principal character of the epic Irish saga the Táin Bó Cuailgne commonly known as The Cattle Raid of Cooley or The Táin which is traditionally set in the 1st century AD.

Scottish Island of Fraoch Eilean Legendary Place of the Death of a Celtic Hero

Loch Awe painting by Alexander Nasmyth (1758 - 1840)

Fraoch Eilean is a small island at the northern end of Loch Awe (Scottish Gaelic: Loch Obha), a freshwater loch in the Scottish Highlands (Scottish Gaelic: a’ Ghàidhealtachd). It is one of a number of islands within the loch. The island of Fraoch Eilean has a particular legend attached to it and has a name that links it with an ancient Celtic hero known as Fraoch or Fráech.

He appears in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. The Ulster Cycle (Irish: an Rúraíocht) is  one of the four great cycles of Irish mythology and is a body of medieval Irish heroic legends and sagas. It is thought the stories take place around or before the 1st century AD.

Manx Castle Haunted By The Phantom Hound "Moddey Dhoo"

Moddey Dhoo courtesy of Visit Isle of Man

Throughout the Celtic lands there are many stories of ghosts. Usually the disembodied soul  or spirit of a person, but these tales of the unexpected can also be about various other animals. One of which is that of the Moddey Dhoo which is the Manx Gaelic name for Black Dog. A phantom black hound that reputedly haunts the ruins of Peel Castle (Manx: Cashtal Purt ny h-Inshey) on the west coast of the Isle of Man (Manx: Mannin). One famous story about the Moddey Dhoo involved the soldiers who in the past were responsible for guarding and securing the  castle.

Fairy Folk Of The Cairngorms

Rothiemurchus forest Loch-an-Eilein and Cairngorms from Ord-Ban-Hill. Courtesy of Cairngorms National Park website.

Cairngorms National Park (Scottish Gaelic: Pàirc Nàiseanta a' Mhonaidh Ruaidh) is a national park in northeast Scotland and covers the Cairngorms range of mountains, and surrounding hills. It is an area of outstanding natural beauty with mountains, forest paths, rivers, lochs and locations known for their abundance of wildlife. It is also, along with the rest of Scotland and indeed other parts of the Celtic world, rich in folklore.

 ‘A Fairy Ring’ by Walter Jenks Morgan, RBA, RBSA (1847-1924).

Celts had and continue to hold a great respect for the environment. Reflected in the folklore and mythology often attached to particular geographic locations. Celtic beliefs perceived the presence of the supernatural in every mountain, river, coastal feature, spring, loch, marsh, tree and rock formation. Within this tradition there is a strong link to animism and shapeshifting in Celtic mythology. There are also many stories about the little people and fairies. A belief, still widely held in some places, that humans and other creatures share their land with mystical non-human entities, rarely seen, but through custom treated with caution and respect. Not least because the little people are not always viewed as benevolent and can be quite sinister and dangerous.

Celtic God Lugh and Gaelic Festival of Lughnasadh

Tuatha Dé Danann

The name of the month of August in all three Gaelic languages is derived from the Celtic god Lugh (also known as Lug and in Modern Irish: Lú). In Modern Irish August is called Lúnasa, in Scottish Gaelic: Lùnastal, and in Manx: Luanistyn. At the beginning of the month Lughnasadh is celebrated. It is one of the four Gaelic seasonal festivals, along with Samhain, Imbolc and Beltane. The festival of Lughnasadh (also known as Lughnasad), is, like the month itself, named after the god Lugh. Traditionally held on the first day of August it was widely observed throughout Ireland (Éire), Scotland (Alba) and the Isle of Man (Mannin). Clearly Lughnasadh was regarded as an important pre-Christian festival and is mentioned in some of the earliest Irish literature.

August was seen as a time that marked the beginning of the harvest season. The Celtic year appears to have been driven mainly by agrarian concerns. The festival day is called  Lá Lúnasa (Day of Lúnasa) in Irish or either Laa Luanistyn or Laa Luanys in Manx. There were a number of traditions associated with Lughnasadh in times gone by including ritual ceremonies, feasts and athletic competitions. These festivities were said to have been originated by Lugh himself and to have celebrated his deeds and those of members of his family, in particular his mother. Some festivals continue to be held specifically in celebration of Lughnasadh and others, including the Puck Fair, held in early August in the town of Killorglin, County Kerry (Irish: Cill Orglan, Contae Chiarraí) is believed to be a survival of a Lughnasadh festival.

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