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Celtic Myths and Legends

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Celtic Myths and Legends by Peter Berresford Ellis

Although the discarded body parts would sometimes wash up on nearby beaches and the mysterious disappearance of people was of great concern to local people, the existence of the clandestine clan remained unknown. Shetland, also known as the Shetland Islands lie some miles km northeast of Scotland. They form part of the division between the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the North Sea to the east.

Legends of Celtic Mythology

Humans have lived in Shetland since the Mesolithic period and there are over 5, archaeological sites all told. One such at West Voe on the south coast of Mainland, which is the largest island, has been dated to — BC. During a period of Viking expansion, Shetland was eventually colonised by the Norse during the late 8th and 9th centuries.

Shetland remained under Norwegian influences until Shetland become part of Scotland in the 15th century. Isle of Man Mannin is located in the north Irish Sea. The Point of Ayre Manx: Kione ny h-Ayrey is the northernmost point of the Isle of Man and is just 26 kilometres 16 mi south of Burrow Head in south-west Scotland. The island comprises square miles square kilometres and it measures approx. The cultural influences for the island originate from the indigenous Celtic peoples.

The Vikings arrived in the Island around AD and a fusion of cultures took place which is still evident in the archaeology, language, place-names and Parliamentary traditions of the island. The Manx nation has a rich cultural heritage and folklore. The Celtic myths, legends, traditional beliefs, customs, and stories of the Isle of Man Mannin have been passed from generation to generation, much of it through oral tradition.

The importance of folklore to a nation should not be underestimated. It encompasses the traditions common to that culture and shared by its people. Many entities exist in Manx mythology. Creatures that can rise from the rivers and the sea, emerge from cavernous depths and spring out of rocks. Variations of stories featuring each of these mysterious beings have been told on the Isle of Man for many centuries.

Not least of which feature the Ben Varrey, the Manx name for a Mermaid and there is also a male equivalent the Dooinney Marrey. One such tale of the Ben Varrey and her love of apples is told by Kathleen Killip - Stories from the Isle of Man. Across the Celtic world there are myths and legends about strange creatures that emerge from the sea. Some are benign, many are malevolent and there are others who live a parallel existence with humankind, but whose paths rarely cross.

Many of these entities live in hidden kingdoms and palaces under the seas. At times they are associated with islands that humans cannot see and the sunken cities that are said to exist beneath the waves off our Celtic coasts. One such island is the magical vanishing island of Hildaland in the seas around Orkney, the group of islands situated off the north coast of Scotland.

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Transceltic - Home of the Celtic nations. You are here Home. Visit us on Facebook facebook. And on Twitter twitter. Classical writers preserve a few fragments of legends or myths that may possibly be Celtic. According to the Syrian rhetorician Lucian , Ogmios was supposed to lead a band of men chained by their ears to his tongue as a symbol of the strength of his eloquence. The first-century Roman poet Lucan mentions the gods Taranis , Teutates and Esus , but there is little Celtic evidence that these were important deities. The Gundestrup cauldron has been also interpreted mythically. Along with dedications giving us god names, there are also deity representations to which no name has yet been attached.

Among these are images of a three-headed or three-faced god, a squatting god, a god with a snake, a god with a wheel, and a horseman with a kneeling giant. The distribution of some of the images has been mapped and shows a pattern of central concentration of an image along with a wide scatter indicating these images were most likely attached to specific tribes and were distributed from some central point of tribal concentration outward along lines of trade.

The image of the three-headed god has a central concentration among the Belgae, between the Oise, Marne and Moselle rivers. The horseman with kneeling giant is centered on either side of the Rhine.

These examples seem to indicate regional preferences of a common image stock. In this he names the five principal gods worshiped in Gaul according to the practice of his time , he gives the names of the closest equivalent Roman gods and describes their roles. Mercury was the most venerated of all the deities and numerous representations of him were to be discovered.

Mercury was seen as the originator of all the arts and is often taken to refer to Lugus for this reason , the supporter of adventurers and of traders, and the mightiest power concerning trade and profit. Among these divinities the Celts are described as holding roughly equal views as did other populations: Apollo dispels sickness, Minerva encourages skills, Jupiter governs the skies, and Mars influences warfare. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Early Irish History and Mythology. Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies.

Everyday Life of the Pagan Celts. Dictionary of the Celts. Les dieux de la Gaule. Celtic Mythology and Religion. Topics in Celtic mythology. This was a great introduction to Celtic folklore and legends.

I had hoped to learn more about gods and goddesses, and in that, I was disappointed. The introduction—a long, dry, heavily researched analysis of the evolution of Celtic language and stories—took me a while to trudge through, but it was absolutely fascinating. It was especially interesting to see the vastly different portrayals of women in each culture.

In some, women were sent to distract noble men from their destinies, while in others, women were strong and noble heroes themselves. This is my type of book! I love the folklore that the Celts bring to the table. You actually get into the stories. The book reminded me of "The Mabinogion. If you're a writer, then you'll love this because you'll get loads of ideas.

It's a good bedside book. Oct 02, Yasmin rated it it was amazing. Amazing book really on the collection of myths and legends of Irish, Welsh, Scottish and Breton celts. A very enjoyable book and I would be very interested in reading more by Peter Berresford Ellis. May 07, Shelly rated it really liked it. Sep 29, Ali rated it really liked it Shelves: Nice read with entertaining stories. I loved the introduction on the development of language and Celtic culture.

I also really enjoyed the preface to each chapter which detailed the particular culture and it's own quirks and history. I also enjoyed reading lesser known tails, being Irish I am familiar with the Irish tales but not those from Brittany or the Isle of Man. Only negative was that the stories were repetitive but that is the nature of the stories themselves, rather than the fault of the Nice read with entertaining stories.

Only negative was that the stories were repetitive but that is the nature of the stories themselves, rather than the fault of the book I feel. Aug 17, Joshua Spotts rated it it was amazing. This is an excellent and well researched collection of re-told Celtic myths. This is a perfect read for someone who is interested in the Celtic legends but does not have time to sit down and do their research. Ellis is a top authority in Celtic legend so you can be sure these stories are authentic.

Celtic Mythology Today

The book is divided into each story as its own chapter. The stories have little or no connection with each other and therefore are easy to read and enjoy individually. Feb 15, J. Briggs rated it really liked it Shelves: This is an excellent resource of Celtic Mythology! It can be a bit much to read in content and the spacing is really tight all through the book.

My eyes had some trouble keeping track of where I was due to this design choice, but the short stories were well chosen and written. This includes a huge range of stories with a lot of important Celtic characters. A very good place to start or return to for an overview of important Celtic elements.

Celtic Myths and Legends by Peter Berresford Ellis

Jul 04, NeilWill rated it really liked it. They vary quite a bit in scope. Some are epic tales of ancient heroes, some are much more classic folk and fairy tales in which a humble or humble-appearing hero bests an evil wizard by following the instructions of random talking animals they come across.

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If I have learned anything from folktales it is that if a talking animal gives you advice, you should probably take it This is a collection of stories from the six Celtic language traditions; Irish, Scottish, Manx, Welsh, Cornish and Breton. If I have learned anything from folktales it is that if a talking animal gives you advice, you should probably take it, and at the very least give it serious consideration. A favourite of mine that I've blogged about before is the Quest for Olwen which takes the impossible task to marry the daughter to new depths. Tragic ones in fact; based on this tale I would assume the reason King Arthur failed is that too many of his best knights were killed trying to get his cousin Culhwch a bride.

This is probably for the best; better to present them as recorded than make them fit a scheme. Having said that, Ellis has often combined more than one version and smoothed the rough story edges in some cases. That makes for a smoother reading experience.

Celtic Myth & legend

For a good selection of Celtic myths, some more legendary than others. If all this talk of legendary heroes and weird places under the sea or under the hills turns you off. Nov 30, Jeremy Rios rated it liked it. Mostly pleasurable to read, if a bit repetitive by the end. Some of Beresford's writing habits become less endearing as the book progresses and it is quite long.

Also, almost all the stories he has selected blend together by the end--I wouldn't be able to tell you the differences between them if I tried. Still, as bedtime reading it was adequate and not without enjoyment. Peter Berresford Ellis writes in a detailed and informative way from beginning to end. It's a more tell, don't show type of book and that bored me at times but it gives exactly what I had expected of from the synopsis and title of the book.

I admit to finding it slow through the introduction, and thought a lot of it was extra and unnecessary, even though I really loved the knowledge on development in language and culture. It's definitely one of the few reads I know for sure I'll read again, it's left me wondering and wanting for more mythology and folktales than ever. He writes of the gods and goddesses, the monsters and creators of the Celtic lore. There is a preface of each chapter that further details the culture, their own traits and historical view, which I liked partially because some of these stories have a little repetition - but alas that's the nature of 'oral history'.

If you're into folklore and myths, you'll love this. If you're a writer in anything related to the above, you'll love this. If you're looking to debunk pagan history, you will most likely not love this.

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If you don't like legendary heroes, you will most likely not love this. Mar 25, Andreas rated it did not like it. The Celtic myths has peeked my interest for a long time, as it is an ancient people with hundreds of stories. So when I give it such a low rating one would assume that I hated the myths portrayed.