1.
Arawn Death-Lord
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The Chronicles of Prydain is a pentalogy of childrens high fantasy Bildungsroman novels by Lloyd Alexander. Henry Holt published one annually from 1964 to 1968, the second earned a 1966 Newbery Honor, the five novels follow the protagonist Taran from youth to maturity, most overtly in the fourth book, Taran Wanderer. Taran has the title Assistant Pig-Keeper at Caer Dallben but initially dreams of being a grand hero. His most important companions in adventure are Princess Eilonwy, a girl his age, Fflewddur Fflam, a bard and minor king, Gurgi, a wild man-beast, and Doli. Thematically the novels draw upon Welsh mythology, particularly the Mabinogion, appropriately, the authors note also reveals the geography is ultimately derived from Wales, though Alexander notes that Prydain is separate from Wales both in physical geography and history. Always interested in mythology, Alexander received army combat intelligence training in Wales during World War II and that exposed him to its castles, scenery, and language, which became part of the raw material for the Prydain books. Originally he planned to one or two – three at the very most. At one point he planned a trilogy with titles The Battle of the Trees, The Lion with the Steady Hand, and Little Gwion. In Welsh mythology the former features the sons of Don led by Gwydion against the forces of Arawn, later, a four-volume series would conclude with The High King. The editor felt that something was missing between third and fourth volumes, so Taran Wanderer was written one month after The Castle of Llyr was published, making it a five-volume series. The stories that are now collected in The Foundling and Other Tales of Prydain actually were published in three different volumes, two books and one short story collection. Most of these act as backstories which fill in gaps for minor characters, prydains geography, culture, and names are based on ancient Wales, especially the tales of the Mabinogion. Prydain is a magical land engaged in a series of battles with its neighbor, Annuvin and it is the setting for four of the five books in the series. Once ruled over by the evil Queen Achren, Prydain was liberated by the Sons of Don, the High King rules over all the land, seconded by his war leader, with many subject kings ruling the various territories of Prydain, called cantrevs. Only the Free Commots, a land of craftsmen who answer only to the High King, are outside any subject kings jurisdiction, underneath and within Prydain is the kingdom of the Fair Folk, a diminutive supernatural race that mostly keeps to its own affairs. The Fair Folk have no love for the Death-Lord Arawn, however, in addition to the races of men and Fair Folk, Prydain is home to the Sons of Don and their descendants. Other varieties of such as the undead Cauldron-Born, the monstrous birdlike Gwythaints. Having garnered a Newbery Medal and a Newbery Honor, Prydain is widely recognized as a contribution to childrens literature
2.
Welsh mythology
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Welsh mythology consists of both folk traditions developed in Wales, and traditions developed by the Celtic Britons elsewhere before the end of the first millennium. Like most predominately oral societies found in the prehistoric Britain, Welsh mythology and this oral record has been lost or altered as result of outside contact and invasion over the years. The only character to appear in every branch is Pryderi fab Pwyll, the king of Dyfed, who is born in the first Branch, is killed in the fourth, and is probably a reflex of the Celtic god Maponos. The only other recurring characters are Pryderis mother Rhiannon, associated with the peaceful British prince Manawydan and he manages to win her hand at the expense of Gwawl, to whom she is betrothed, and she bears him a son, but the child disappears soon after his birth. Rhiannon is accused of killing him and forced to carry guests on her back as punishment. The child has been taken by a monster, and is rescued by Teyrnon and his wife and they return him to his real parents, Rhiannon is released from her punishment, and the boy is renamed Pryderi. In the second branch, Branwen, sister of Brân the Blessed, king of Britain, is given in marriage to Matholwch, Matholwch and Branwen have a son, Gwern, but Matholwch proceeds to mistreat Branwen, beating her and making her a drudge. Branwen trains a starling to take a message to Bran, who goes to war against Matholwch and his army crosses the Irish Sea in ships, but Brân is so huge he wades across. The Irish offer to make peace, and build a big enough to entertain Bran, but inside they hang a hundred bags, telling Efnysien they contain flour. Efnysien kills the warriors by squeezing the bags, later, at the feast, Efnysien throws Gwern on the fire and fighting breaks out. Seeing that the Irish are using the cauldron to revive their dead, Efnysien hides among the corpses and destroys the cauldron, only seven men, all Britons, survive the battle, including Pryderi, Manawyddan and Bran, who is mortally wounded by a poisoned spear. Brân asks his companions to cut off his head and take it back to Britain, Branwen dies of grief on returning home. Five pregnant women survive to repopulate Ireland, Pryderi and Manawydan return to Dyfed, where Pryderi marries Cigfa and Manawydan marries Rhiannon. However, a mist descends on the land, leaving it empty, eventually they return to Dyfed and become hunters again. While hunting, a white boar leads them to a mysterious castle, Pryderi, against Manawydans advice, goes inside, but does not return. Rhiannon goes to investigate and finds him clinging to a bowl, the same fate befalls her, and the castle disappears. Manawydan and Cigfa return to England as shoemakers, but once again the locals drive them out and they sow three fields of wheat, but the first field is destroyed before it can be harvested. The next night the field is destroyed
3.
Annwn
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Annwn, Annwfn, or Annwfyn was the Otherworld in Welsh mythology. Ruled by Arawn, it was essentially a world of delights and eternal youth where disease was absent and it became identified with the Christian afterlife in paradise. Middle Welsh sources suggest that the term was recognised as meaning very deep in medieval times, the pronunciation of Modern Welsh Annwn is. In both Welsh and Irish mythologies, the Otherworld was believed to be located either on an island or underneath the earth. In the First Branch of the Mabinogi, it is implied that Annwn is a land within Dyfed, two other otherworldly feasts that occur in the Second Branch of the Mabinogi are located in Harlech in northwest Wales and on the island of Grassholm in southwest Pembrokeshire. Annwn plays a prominent role in the Four Branches of the Mabinogi. In the First Branch of the Mabinogi, entitled Pwyll, Prince of Dyfed, in recompense he exchanges places with Arawn for a year and defeats Arawns enemy Hafgan, while Arawn rules in his stead in Dyfed. During this year, Pwyll abstains from sleeping with Arawns wife, earning himself gratitude, on his return, Pwyll becomes known by the title Penn Annwn, Head of Annwn. The similarly mythological epic poem Cad Goddeu describes a battle between Gwynedd and the forces of Annwn, led again by Arawn. It is revealed that Amaethon, nephew to Math, king of Gwynedd, stole a bitch, a lapwing, the narrator of the poem is possibly intended to be Taliesin himself. The speaker relates how he journeyed with Arthur and three boatloads of men into Annwfn, but only seven returned. Annwfn is apparently referred to by names, including Mound Fortress, Four-Peaked Fortress. Within the Mound Forts walls Gweir, one of the Three Exalted Prisoners of Britain known from the Welsh Triads, is imprisoned in chains, the narrator then describes the cauldron of the Chief of Annwn, it is finished with pearl and will not boil a cowards food. Whatever tragedy ultimately killed all but seven of them is not clearly explained, the poem continues with an excoriation of little men and monks, who lack various forms of knowledge possessed by the poet. Over time, the role of king of Annwn was transferred to Gwyn ap Nudd, a hunter and psychopomp, the Christian Vita Collen tells of Saint Collen vanquishing Gwyn and his otherworldly court from Glastonbury Tor with the use of holy water. In Culhwch and Olwen, an early Welsh Arthurian tale, it is said that God gave Gwyn ap Nudd control over the demons lest this world be destroyed, tradition revolves around Gwyn leading his spectral hunts, the Cŵn Annwn, on his hunt for mortal souls. The Dark, a 2005 film directed by John Fawcett and based on the novel Sheep by Simon Maginn, involves the legend, Annwn is the name of a German medieval and pagan folk duo from North Rhine-Westphalia. The name was previously used by an unrelated Celtic Rock trio in Berkeley, California
4.
Psychopomp
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Psychopomps are creatures, spirits, angels, or deities in many religions whose responsibility is to escort newly deceased souls from Earth to the afterlife. Their role is not to judge the deceased, but simply to provide safe passage, when seen as birds, they are often seen in huge masses, waiting outside the home of the dying. Classical examples of a psychopomp are the ancient Egyptian god Anubis, the Greek ferryman Charon and deities Hermes and Hecate, the Roman god Mercury, the form of Shiva as Tarakeshwara in Hinduism performs a similar role, although leading the soul to moksha rather than an afterlife. In many beliefs, a spirit being taken to the underworld is violently ripped from its body. In the Persian tradition, Daena, the Zoroastrian Self-guide, appears as a young maiden to those who deserve to cross the Chinvat Bridge or a hideous old hag to those who don’t. In Judaism and Islam, Azrael plays the role of the angel of death who carries the soul up to the heavens, in Jungian psychology, the psychopomp is a mediator between the unconscious and conscious realms. It is symbolically personified in dreams as a man or woman. In many cultures, the shaman also fulfills the role of the psychopomp and this may include not only accompanying the soul of the dead, but also to help at birth, to introduce the newborn childs soul to the world. This also accounts for the title of midwife to the dying, or End of Life Doula. In Filipino culture, dead relations function as psychopomps, when the dying call out to specific dead persons, the spirits of the latter are supposedly visible to the former. The spirits, who wait at the foot of the deathbed, fetch the soul soon after death. Geoffrey Dennis, Abraham, Elijah, Lailah, Sandalphon, Encyclopedia of Jewish Myth, Magic, eliade, Mircea, Shamanism,1964, Chapters 6 and 7, Magical Cures, the Shaman as Psychopomp
5.
Gwyn ap Nudd
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Gwyn ap Nudd is a Welsh mythological figure, the king of the Tylwyth Teg or fair folk and ruler of the Welsh Otherworld, Annwn, and whose name means “white son of Nudd”. Gwyn is the son of Nudd and would thus be grandson to Beli Mawr and nephew of Arianrhod, Llefelys, Penarddun, Afallach, Gofannon, Nynniaw, Peibaw, and Caswallawn. Based on their shared patronymic, his siblings include Edern, a warrior who appears in a number of Arthurian texts, and Owain ap Nudd, who is mentioned briefly in Geraint and Enid. In Culhwch and Olwen, Gwyn is the lover of Creiddylad, the daughter of Lludd, Gwyn plays a prominent role in the early Arthurian tale Culhwch and Olwen in which he abducts his sister Creiddylad from her betrothed, Gwythyr ap Greidawl. In retaliation, Gwythyr raised a great host against Gwyn, leading to a battle between the two. Gwyn was victorious and, following the conflict, captured a number of Gwythyrs noblemen including Nwython, Gwyn would later murder Nwython, and force Cyledr to eat his fathers heart. As a result of his torture at Gwyns hands, Cyledr went mad, after the intervention of Arthur, Gwyn and Gwythr agreed to fight for Creiddylad every May Day until Judgement Day. The warrior who was victorious on this day would at last take the maiden. This fight may be an example of a putative contest between summer and winter as well as a variant of the putative Holly King myth proposed by Robert Graves. According to Culhwch and Olwen, Gwyn was placed over the brood of devils in Annwn, before he can win Olwens hand, Culhwch ap Cilydd must complete a number of seemingly impossible tasks given to him by Olwens father, the giant Ysbaddaden. One of these tasks is to retrieve the comb and scissors from the head of the vicious boar, as it is impossible to hunt the boar without Gwyns aid, he is called upon to join Arthur and his retinue against Twrch Trwyth. During the hunt, he is mounted on Du y Moroedd, both Gwyn and Gwythyr set out with Arthur to retrieve the blood of Orddu, witch of the uplands of hell. Gwyn appears prominently in the medieval poem The Dialogue of Gwyn ap Nudd and Gwyddno Garanhir, in this narrative, Gwyn, returning from battle, chances upon Gwyddno, king of Cantrer Gwaelod, and grants him his protection. His skill in combat is extolled in this poem, he is described as the hope of armies and hero of hosts and, in Welsh folklore, to hear the baying of Gwyns hounds was a portent of imminent death in the family. In The Dialogue, Gwyn is also accompanied by a hound, Gwyn apparently witnessed a conflict before Caer Vandwy, an otherworldy fortress mentioned in Preiddeu Annwfn. Over time, Gwyns role would diminish and, in folklore, he was regarded as the king of the Tylwyth Teg. He appears as a figure in Buchedd Collen, in which he. The celebrated fourteenth-century bard, Dafydd ap Gwilym refers to Gwyn in a number of texts, Gwyn is often associated with the Wild Hunt, in a role akin to Woden or Herne the Hunter
6.
Cardigan, Ceredigion
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Cardigan is a town in the county of Ceredigion in Wales. It lies on a reach of the River Teifi at the point where Ceredigion meets Pembrokeshire. It was the county town of the county of Cardiganshire and is the second largest town in present-day Ceredigion. The settlement at Cardigan was developed around the Norman castle built in the late 11th or early 12th century, the castle was the location of the first National Eisteddfod in 1176, it underwent restoration in 2014. The town became an important port in the 18th century, the population in 2001 was 4,203, reducing slightly to 4,184 at the 2011 Census. Modern Cardigan is a compact and busy town with most facilities for retail, education, health, worship, Cardigan is an anglicisation of the Welsh Ceredigion, the surrounding territory its Norman castle once controlled. Ceredig was supposedly one of the sons of Cunedda Wledig, who Welsh legend records invaded from the north to recover lands in Roman Britain from invading Irishmen in late antiquity. The nearest known Roman forts were at Loventium and Bremia at the mines near Llanio above the River Teifi on the Sarn Helen road. The present town grew up near the forts established to control the access of the Teifi. A castle was built by Roger de Montgomery in 1093 after a Norman army conquered Ceredigion, the town itself held out until 1164. Rhys ap Gruffydd fortified the town and was credited with the establishment of the castle near the bridge over the Teifi, in 1176, he instituted the first eisteddfod. Contestants came from all over the British Isles to compete for chairs in music, lord Rhys grandson Maelgwn razed the castle and sacked the town. In 1199 the town received its first charter and became an important trade centre, in 1227 a weekly market was established which continues to this day. Welsh rule over Cardigan continued, for periods under royal lordship. The town wall was built in the 1240s and the castle was rebuilt, St Marys Church was established as a Benedictine Priory and parish church in mediaeval times and survived the Dissolution of the Monasteries. The castle ceased being the centre of the county with the Act of Union in 1536. Until the 16th century, Cardigan had been a small, walled town with river traffic. A small Benedictine priory operated until the Reformation and the important abbey of St Dogmaels was also nearby
7.
Continental Celtic
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Continental Celtic is a geographic, not a linguistic, grouping of the ancient Celtic languages. The Continental Celtic languages were spoken by the known to Roman and Greek writers as Keltoi, Celtae, Galli. These languages were spoken in an arc stretching across from Iberia in the west to the Balkans, even though Breton is spoken in continental Europe, and has been since at least the 6th century AD, it is not considered one of the Continental Celtic languages. It is a Brittonic language closely related to Cornish and Welsh, whilst it has been suggested that there is a Gaulish substratum in the Vannetais dialect the historical and linguistic evidence shows otherwise. It is evidenced in a number of inscriptions as well as place names, Gaulish or Gallic was the main language spoken in greater Gaul. This is often considered to be divided into two dialects, Cisalpine and Transalpine and it is evidenced in a number of inscriptions as well as place names and tribal names in writings of classical authors. It may have been a substratum to Breton, as noted above, classical writers say that the language is similar to that of Gaul. There is also evidence of invasion and settlement of the Ankara area by Celts from Europe, noric, which is the name given sometimes to the Celtic dialects spoken in Central and Eastern Europe. It was spoken in Austria and Slovenia, only two texts are preserved but there are plenty of known personal names and toponyms. Celtiberian or Northeastern Hispano-Celtic is the given to the language in northeast Iberia. It is attested in some 200 inscriptions as well as place names and it is distinct from the Iberian language. Gallaecian also known as Gallaic or Northwestern Hispano-Celtic, attested in a corpus of Latin inscriptions containing isolated words. It was spoken in the north west of the Iberian Peninsula, the modern term Continental Celtic is used in contrast to Insular Celtic. Instead, the group called Continental Celtic is paraphyletic and the term refers simply to non-Insular Celtic languages, since little material has been preserved in any of the Continental Celtic languages, historical linguistic analysis based on the comparative method is difficult to perform. However, other researchers see the Brittonic languages and Gaulish as forming part of a sub-group of the Celtic languages known as P-Celtic, Continental languages are all P-Celtic except for Celtiberian, which is Q-Celtic, and have had a definite influence on all the Romance languages. Italo-Celtic Ball M and Fife J, the origins of the Insular Celtic conjunct and absolute verbal endings. Flexion und Wortbildung, Akten der V. Fachtagung der Indogermanischen Gesellschaft, the PIE stops and syllabic nasals in Celtic. In R. Beekes, A. Lubotsky, J. Weitenberg, rekonstruktion und relative Chronologie, Akten Der VIII
8.
Mabinogion
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The Mabinogion are the earliest prose literature of Britain. The stories were compiled in Middle Welsh in the 12th–13th centuries from oral traditions. The two main source manuscripts were created c, 1350–1410, as well as some earlier fragments. The title covers a collection of prose stories of widely different types. The highly sophisticated complexity of the Four Branches of the Mabinogi defy categorisation, the list is so diverse a leading scholar has challenged them as a true collection at all. Early scholars from the 18th century to the 1970s predominantly viewed the tales as fragmentary pre-Christian Celtic mythology and they are now seen as a sophisticated narrative tradition, both oral and written, with ancestral construction from oral storytelling, and overlay from Anglo-French influences. The first modern publications were English translations of several tales by William Owen Pughe in journals 1795,1821,1829, however it was Lady Charlotte Guest 1838–45 who first published the full collection, and bilingually in both Welsh and English. She is often assumed to be responsible for the name Mabinogion, indeed, as early as 1632 the lexicographer John Davies quotes a sentence from Math fab Mathonwy with the notation Mabin. in his Antiquae linguae Britannicae. The later Guest translation of 1877 in one volume, has been widely influential, the most recent translation is a compact version by Sioned Davies. John Bollard has published a series of volumes between with his own translation, with photography of the sites in the stories. The tales continue to inspire new fiction, dramatic retellings, visual artwork, the name first appears in 1795 in William Owen Pughes translation in the journal Cambrian Register, The Mabinogion, or Juvenile Amusements, being Ancient Welsh Romances. The name appears to have been current among Welsh scholars of the London-Welsh Societies and it was inherited as the title by the first publisher of the complete collection, Lady Charlotte Guest. The form mabynnogyon occurs once at the end of the first of the Four Branches of the Mabinogi in one manuscript and it is now generally agreed that this one instance was a mediaeval scribal error which assumed mabinogion was the plural of mabinogi. But mabinogi is already a Welsh plural, which occurs correctly at the end of the three branches. The word mabinogi itself is something of a puzzle, although derived from the Welsh mab. Eric P. Hamp of the school traditions in mythology, found a suggestive connection with Maponos the Divine Son. Mabinogi properly applies only to the Four Branches, which is a tightly organised quartet very likely by one author, each of these four tales ends with the colophon thus ends this branch of the Mabinogi, hence the name. Lady Charlotte Guests work was helped by the research and translation work of William Owen Pughe
9.
Pwyll
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Pwyll Pen Annwn is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology and literature, the lord of Dyfed, husband of Rhiannon and father of the hero Pryderi. He is the hero of Pwyll Pendefig Dyfed, the first branch of the Four Branches of the Mabinogi. Pwyll, Prince of Dyfed also carries many similarities to the Mabinogi Branwen and this tale is one of a group found in The Mabinogion, one of the earliest known efforts to form a collection of traditional Welsh tales. Such tales, which date back to circa 1325 C. E. were originally passed from person to person and generation to generation orally, indeed, many passages can only be truly captured by the speaking voice. While hunting in Glyn Cuch, Pwyll, prince of Dyfed becomes separated from his companions, Pwyll drives the hounds away and sets his own hounds to feast, earning the anger of Arawn, lord of the otherworldly kingdom of Annwn. In recompense, Pwyll agrees to trade places with Arawn for a year, at the end of the year, Pwyll engages in single combat against Hafgan, Arawns rival, and mortally wounds him with one blow and earns Arawn overlordship of all of Annwn. After Hafgans death, Pwyll and Arawn meet once again, revert to their old appearance and they become lasting friends because Pwyll slept chastely with Arawns wife for the duration of the year. As a result of Pwylls successful ruling of Annwn, he earns the title Pwyll Pen Annwfn, Pwyll, Pwyll sends his best horsemen after her, but she always remains ahead of them, though her horse never does more than amble. After three days, Pwyll, himself, rides out to meet her and when he cannot catch her and she tells him her name and that she has come seeking him because she would rather marry him than her fiance, Gwawl ap Clud. She tells him to come to her one year from that day, with his soldiers. A year after their meeting, Pwyll arrives as promised but accidentally and foolishly promises his beloved Rhiannon to Gwawl and this occurs when Gwawl enters the court extremely distraught and sues for a favor of the king. Gwawl plays to the nobility and generosity of Pwyll, as well as his rashness and passion, and Pwyll tells Gwawl that whatever it is that he should ask him, that he would give it to him. Gwawl of course asks for his fiance, Rhiannon, which Pwyll, due to his naive promise and it is decided that they should all come back to the kingdom in one years time for yet another wedding. Rhiannon devises a plan by which Pwyll might win her back from Gwawl, Pwyll enters the wedding festivities of Gwawl and Rhiannon dressed as a beggar and asks Gwawl for a bag full of food. Gwawl nobly consents but is tricked when Pwyll forces Gwawl inside the bag and he, Gwawl finally gives in so long as Pwyll will spare his life. Pwyll agrees and has managed to win back Rhiannon through the deceiving and dishonoring of Gwawl, the men of the land were worried that there would not be an heir to follow Pwyll and advised him to take a second wife. He set a date where this would happen, but before long Rhiannon gave birth to a boy, on the night of his birth, the boy was lost while under the care of six of Rhiannon’s ladies-in-waiting. Scared of the punishment, the ladies smear dogs blood onto a sleeping Rhiannon, claiming that she had committed infanticide, word traveled throughout the land and the nobles requested Pwyll to divorce his wife
10.
Dyfed
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Dyfed is a preserved county of Wales. It was created on 1 April 1974, as an amalgamation of the three pre-existing counties of Cardiganshire, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire and it was abolished twenty-two years later, on 1 April 1996, when the three original counties were reinstated, Cardiganshire being renamed Ceredigion the following day. The name Dyfed is retained for ceremonial and other purposes. It is a rural county in southwestern Wales with a coastline on the Irish Sea. Dyfed is a county of Wales. The choice of the name Dyfed was based on the name given to the region once settled by the Irish Déisi. Modern Dyfed was formed from the counties of Cardiganshire, Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire and was divided into the following local government districts. The county town and administrative headquarters of Dyfed was Carmarthen whilst the largest settlement was Llanelli, other significant centres of population included Haverfordwest, Milford Haven and Aberystwyth. The Independents gained a majority and retained this at subsequent elections, at the 1977 election, Plaid Cymru gained some ground although not to the extent that was seen in parts of the South Wales valleys in that year. The name Dyfed was retained for such purely ceremonial purposes as the Lord Lieutenancy, Dyfed has a long coast on the Irish Sea to the west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It is bounded by the counties of Gwynedd to the north. Cardiganshire, the northernmost part of Dyfed, has a coastal strip. Further south in Cardiganshire the land is mountainous, and the River Teifi forms the border with Carmarthenshire for part of its length. Carmarthenshire, the part of Dyfed, is mostly hilly, except for the river valleys. Fforest Fawr and Black Mountain extend into the east of Carmarthenshire, the highest point in Carmarthenshire is Fan Brycheiniog,2,631 feet, on the border with Powys. The River Towy is the largest river and drains into the Bristol Channel, as do the River Loughor, the River Gwendraeth, Carmarthenshire has a long coastline which is deeply cut by the estuaries of the Loughor, Gwendraeth, Tywi and Taf. The south coast has many fishing villages and sandy beaches and the part around Llanelli. Pembrokeshire, the part of Dyfed, juts out into the Irish Sea and has a long, much indented
11.
Pryderi
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Pryderi fab Pwyll is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology, the son of Pwyll and Rhiannon, and king of Dyfed after his fathers death. He is the character to appear in all Four Branches of the Mabinogi. Ifor Williams speculated that he was once the character of the Mabinogi as a whole. Pryderi is described by Jeffrey Gantz as bold and enterprising, and he goes on to say that his downfall, while pathetic, is not entirely undeserved. Pryderi was born in Arberth to Pwyll, Lord of Dyfed, on the night of his birth, he disappeared while in the care of six of Rhiannons ladies-in-waiting. To avoid the wrath, they smeared dogs blood onto a sleeping Rhiannon, claiming that she had committed infanticide. Teyrnon, Lord of Gwent Is Coed, had a mare who gave each year. Teyrnon watched his stables and saw a mysterious clawed beast coming to take the foal, Teyrnon cut off the beasts arm and he and his wife claimed the boy as their own and named him Gwri Wallt Euryn, for all the hair was as yellow as gold. The child grew to adulthood at a pace and, as he matured, his likeness to Pwyll grew more obvious and, eventually. The boy was eventually reconciled with Pwyll and Rhiannon and was renamed Pryderi, following his fathers death, Pryderi became ruler of the seven cantrefs of Dyfed and set about expanding his territories by conquering Ystrad Tywi and Ceredigion. He was occupied with this conquest until he chose to take a wife, eventually marrying Cigfa and he also succeeded in amalgamating the seven cantrefs of Morgannwg into his kingdom, although the conquest itself is not referenced in any texts. Branwen, sister of Brân the Blessed, king of Britain, is given in marriage to Matholwch, king of Ireland. After returning to Ireland Matholwch and Branwen have a son, Gwern, Branwen trains a starling to take a message to Bendigeidfrân, who raises a vast host and goes to war against Ireland. The British army crosses the Irish Sea in ships, but Bendigeidfrân is so huge he wades across, the Irish offer to make peace and build a house big enough to entertain Bendigeidfrân but hang a hundred bags inside, supposedly containing flour but actually containing armed warriors. Efnisien, suspecting a trick, reconnoitres the hall and kills the warriors by crushing their heads inside the bags, later, at the feast, Efnisien, again feeling insulted, throws Gwern on the fire and fighting breaks out. Seeing that the Irish are using the cauldron to revive their dead, Efnisien hides among the corpses and destroys the cauldron, Pryderi is one of only seven men to survive the violent battle. He and his companions are told by the mortally wounded Bendigeidfrân to cut off his head, the survivors stay in Harlech, where they are entertained by Bendigeidfrans head, which continues to speak. They later move on to Gwales where they live for eighty years without perceiving the passing of time, eventually, Heilyn ap Gwyn opens the door of the hall facing Cornwall and the sorrow of what had befallen them returns
12.
Kingdom of Dyfed
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The Kingdom of Dyfed is one of several Welsh petty kingdoms that emerged in 5th-century sub-Roman Britain in southwest Wales based on the former territory of the Demetae. In the year 360, a series of coordinated raids by the Irish, Anglo-Saxons. Dyfed eventually comprised at least seven cantrefi, Cemais, Deugleddyf, Emlyn, Cantref Gwarthaf, Pebidiog, Penfro and Rhos, during times of strength, the kingdom expanded to additionally cover the Ystrad Tywi, including Cydweli and Gwyr, and even bordered Brycheiniog. Dyfed lost the Ystrad Tywi region to Ceredigion, another petty kingdom, during the Age of the Saints, Dyfed may have had as many as seven bishops, called in Latin sacerdotes one for each cantref, their sees were called parochia. However, by the High Middle Ages the Diocese of St Davids emerged as one of only three episcopal dioceses in Wales, with St. Davids covering all of West Wales and part of Mid Wales. The precise nature of the relationship between King Alfred and the rulers in Wales remains unclear, whether a transitory alliance or a formal mediatisation of the Welsh rulers to the king of England. Historical attempts have been made to cast the relationship as one as a confederation of Christian unity on the isle of Britain, under the leadership of Alfred, however, there evolved a significant degree of coercion in the relationship, according to Davies. The recognition by Welsh rulers that the king of England had claims upon them would be a fact in the subsequent political history of Wales. In about 904, Dyfeds ruler, Llywarch ap Hyfaidd, died, Elen was married to Hywel Dda, ruler of neighbouring Seisyllwg and grandson of Rhodri the Great through his second son, Cadell ap Rhodri. Through his marriage to Elen, Hywel incorporated Dyfed into a realm to be known as Deheubarth, meaning the south part. However, both Powys and Gwynedd returned to their native dynasties on Hywels death in 950, hwyels grandson Maredudd ab Owain recreated the kingdom of his grandfather, but his rule was beset with increasing Viking raids during the latter part of the 10th century. Davids and killed Morganau, the bishop, Dyfed remained an integral province within Deheubarth until the Norman invasions of Wales between 1068-1100. In the Dyfed region, the cantrefi of Penfro, Rhos, Cemais, the Normans influenced the election of the Bishops of St. Davids, in Pebidiog, from 1115 onwards. The 1284 Statute of Rhuddlan established the English counties of Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire out of the formally known as Dyfed. It was not until 1974 that the name of the ancient kingdom was resurrected as an area of Wales. It was lost again with the reorganisation of county administration in 1996 and it does, however, survive in the names of some regional organisations, such as Dyfed–Powys Police. The Irish settlements in Wales, Myles Dillon, Celtica 12,1977, p. 1-11
13.
Kingdom of Gwynedd
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The Principality or Kingdom of Gwynedd was one of several successor states to the Roman Empire that emerged in sub-Roman Britain in the 5th century during the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain. Based in northwest Wales, the rulers of Gwynedd repeatedly rose to preeminence and were acclaimed as King of the Britons before losing their power in civil wars or invasions and that realm lasted until the conquest of Wales by Edward I in 1283. The sons of their leader, Cunedda, were said to have possessed the land between the rivers Dee and Teifi, the modern preserved county of Gwynedd and principal area of Gwynedd are both somewhat smaller. The 5th-century Cantiorix Inscription now in Penmachno church seems to be the earliest record of the name and it is in memory of a man named Cantiorix and the Latin inscription is Cantiorix hic iacit/Venedotis cives fuit/consobrinos Magli magistrati, Cantiorix lies here. He was a citizen of Gwynedd and a cousin of Maglos the magistrate, the use of terms such as citizen and magistrate maybe cited as evidence that Romano-British culture and institutions continued in Gwynedd long after the legions had withdrawn. As early as the 2nd century, there may have been an Irish presence in the region as Ptolemy marks the Llŷn Peninsula as the Promontory of the Gangani which is also a name he recorded in Ireland, the region became known as Venedotia in Latin. The name was attributed to a specific Irish colony on Anglesey. According to traditional pedigrees, Cuneddas grandfather was Padarn Beisrudd, Paternus of the red cloak, nennius recounts how Cunedda brought order to North Wales and after his death Gwynedd was divided among his sons, Dynod was awarded Dunoding, another son Ceredig received Ceredigion, and so forth. According to Professor John Davies, here is a determinedly Brythonic, nevertheless, there was generally quick abandonment of Roman political, social, and ecclesiastical practices and institutions within Gwynedd and elsewhere in Wales. These early petty kings or princelings adopted the title rhi in Welsh, later replaced by brenin, genealogical lists compiled around 960 bear out that a number of these early rulers claimed degrees of association with the old Roman order, but do not appear in the official royal lineages. It may be assumed that the stronger kings annexed the territories of their weaker neighbors, other evidence supports Nenniuss claim that a leader came to north Wales and brought the region a measure of stability, although an Irish Gaelic element remained until the mid-5th century. During that peace he established a mighty kingdom, after Cadwallon, Gwynedd appears to have held a pre-eminent position amongst the petty Cambrian states in the post-Roman period. The great-grandson of Cunedda, Maelgwn Hir Maelgwn the Tall, was one of the most famous leaders in Welsh history, there are several legends about his life concerning miracles performed either by him or in his presence. Maelgwn was curiously described as the dragon of the island by Gildas which was possibly a title, Maelgwn eventually died in 547 from the plague leaving a succession crisis in his wake. His son in law, Elidyr Mwynfawr of the Kingdom of Strathclyde, claimed the throne and invaded Gwynedd to displace Maelgwns son, Elidyr was killed in the attempt but his death was then avenged by his relatives who ravaged the coast of Arfon. Rhun counter-attacked and exacted the same penalty on the lands of his foes in what is now central Scotland, Rhun returned to Gwynedd and the rest of his reign was far less eventful. He was succeeded by his son, Beli ap Rhun in c, on the accession of Belis son Iago ap Beli in c. 599, the situation in Britain had deteriorated significantly, most of the area today called northern England and been overrun by the invading Angles of Deira and Bernicia who were in the process of forming the Kingdom of Northumbria
14.
Trickster
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Hansen that the term trickster was probably first used in this context by Daniel G. Brinton in 1885. Tricksters are archetypal characters who appear in the myths of different cultures. Lewis Hyde describes the trickster as a boundary-crosser, the trickster crosses both physical and often breaks societal rules. Tricksters. violate principles of social and natural order, playfully disrupting normal life, often, the bending/breaking of rules takes the form of tricks or thievery. Tricksters can be cunning or foolish or both, the trickster openly questions and mocks authority. They are usually male characters, and are fond of breaking rules, boasting, all cultures have tales of the trickster, a crafty creature who uses cunning to get food, steal precious possessions, or simply cause mischief. In some Greek myths Hermes plays the trickster and he is the patron of thieves and the inventor of lying, a gift he passed on to Autolycus, who in turn passed it on to Odysseus. In Slavic folktales, the trickster and the hero are often combined. Frequently the trickster figure exhibits gender and form variability, in Norse mythology the mischief-maker is Loki, who is also a shape shifter. Loki also exhibits gender variability, in one case even becoming pregnant and he becomes a mare who later gives birth to Odins eight-legged horse Sleipnir. Nevertheless, the Biblical narrative clearly takes Jacobs side and the reader is invited to laugh, in The Trickster and the Paranormal, G. P. Hansen lists Mercury in Roman mythology, and Eshu in Yoruba mythology as examples of the trickster archetype, in a wide variety of African language communities, the rabbit is the trickster. In West Africa, the spider is often the trickster, the trickster or clown is an example of a Jungian archetype. In modern literature the trickster survives as an archetype, not necessarily supernatural or divine. Often too, the trickster is distinct in a story by his acting as a sort of catalyst, in that his antics are the cause of other characters discomfiture, a once-famous example of this was the character Froggy the Gremlin on the early childrens television show Andys Gang. A cigar-puffing puppet, Froggy induced the adult humans around him to engage in ridiculous, in later folklore, the trickster/clown is incarnated as a clever, mischievous man or creature, who tries to survive the dangers and challenges of the world using trickery and deceit as a defense. He also is known for entertaining people as a clown does, for example, many typical fairy tales have the king who wants to find the best groom for his daughter by ordering several trials. No brave and valiant prince or knight manages to win them, until a poor, with the help of his wits and cleverness, instead of fighting, he evades or fools monsters and villains and dangers with unorthodox manners
15.
Gwydion
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He also appears prominently in the Welsh Triads, the Book of Taliesin and the Stanzas of the Graves. The name Gwydion may be interpreted as Born of Trees, Gilfaethwy, nephew to the Venedotian king, Math fab Mathonwy, becomes obsessed with his uncles virgin foot-holder, Goewin. His brother Gwydion conspires to start a war between the north and the south, to this end, Gwydion employs his magic powers to steal a number of otherworldly pigs from the Demetian king, Pryderi, who retaliates by marching on Gwynedd. During the war, while Math is distracted, the return home. Pryderi and his men north and fight a battle between Maenor Bennardd and Maenor Coed Alun, but are forced to retreat. He is pursued to Nant Call, where more of his men are slaughtered, and then to Dol Benmaen, to avoid further bloodshed, it is agreed that the outcome of the battle should be decided by single combat between Gwydion and Pryderi. The two contenders meet at a place called Y Velen Rhyd in Ardudwy, and because of strength and valour and magic and enchantment, Gwydion triumphs, the men of Dyfed retreat back to their own land, lamenting over the death of their lord. When Math hears of the assault on Goewin, he turns his nephews into a series of mated pairs of animals, Gwydion becomes a stag for a year, then a sow, Gilfaethwy becomes a hind deer, a boar and a she-wolf. Each year they produce an offspring which is sent to Math, after three years, Math releases his nephews from their punishment and begins the search for a new foot-holder. Gwydion suggests his sister Arianrhod, who is tested for virginity by Math. During the test, she gives birth to a boy with thick yellow hair whom Math names Dylan. Ashamed, Arianrhod runs to the door, but on her way out something small drops from her, some time later, he hears screams from within the chest, and opens it to discover a baby boy. Some scholars have suggested that in a form of the Fourth Branch. Some years later, Gwydion accompanies the boy to Caer Arianrhod, the furious Arianrhod, shamed by this reminder of her loss of virginity, places a tynged on the boy, that only she could give him a name. Gwydion however tricks his sister by disguising himself and the boy as cobblers and luring Arianrhod into going to them in person in order to have some shoes made for her. The boy throws a stone and strikes a wren between the tendon and the bone of its leg, causing Arianrhod to make the remark it is with a hand that the fair-haired one has hit it. At that Gwydion reveals himself, saying Lleu Llaw Gyffes, the one with the skillful hand, is his name now. Furious at this trickery, Arianrhod places another tynged on Lleu, he shall receive arms from no one but Arianrhod herself
16.
Hell
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Hell, in many mythological, folklore and religious traditions, is a place of torment and punishment in an afterlife. Religions with a divine history often depict hells as eternal destinations while Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations. Typically these traditions locate hell in another dimension or under the Earths surface, other afterlife destinations include Heaven, Purgatory, Paradise, and Limbo. Hell is sometimes portrayed as populated with demons who torment those dwelling there, many are ruled by a death god such as Nergal, Hades, Hel, Enma or Satan. Subsequently, the word was used to transfer a pagan concept to Christian theology, Some have theorized that English word hell is derived from Old Norse hel. However, this is unlikely as hel appears in Old English before the Viking invasions. Furthermore, the word has cognates in all the other Germanic languages and has a Proto-Germanic origin, Hell appears in several mythologies and religions. It is commonly inhabited by demons and the souls of dead people, a fable about hell which recurs in folklore across several cultures is the allegory of the long spoons. Hell is often depicted in art and literature, perhaps most famously in Dantes Divine Comedy, punishment in Hell typically corresponds to sins committed during life. In many religious cultures, including Christianity and Islam, Hell is often depicted as fiery, painful and harsh, despite these common depictions of Hell as a place of fire, some other traditions portray Hell as cold. Buddhist - and particularly Tibetan Buddhist - descriptions of hell feature a number of hot. Among Christian descriptions Dantes Inferno portrays the innermost circle of Hell as a lake of blood. At death a person faced judgment by a tribunal of forty-two divine judges, if they had led a life in conformance with the precepts of the Goddess Maat, who represented truth and right living, the person was welcomed into the Two Fields. If found guilty the person was thrown to a devourer and would be condemned to the lake of fire, the person taken by the devourer is subject first to terrifying punishment and then annihilated. These depictions of punishment may have influenced medieval perceptions of the inferno in hell via early Christian, purification for those considered justified appears in the descriptions of Flame Island, where humans experience the triumph over evil and rebirth. For the damned complete destruction into a state of non-being awaits but there is no suggestion of eternal torture, the weighing of the heart in Egyptian mythology can lead to annihilation. The Tale of Khaemwese describes the torment of a man, who lacked charity. Divine pardon at judgement always remained a concern for the Ancient Egyptians
17.
Robert Graves
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Robert von Ranke Graves was an English poet, novelist, critic and classicist. He produced more than 140 works, Irish literature deeply affected Graves White Goddess theories, specifically the genre aisling. He earned his living from writing, particularly historical novels such as I, Claudius, King Jesus, The Golden Fleece. He also was a prominent translator of Classical Latin and Ancient Greek texts, his versions of The Twelve Caesars and The Golden Ass remain popular, for their clarity, Graves was awarded the 1934 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for both I, Claudius and Claudius the God. Graves was born into a family in Wimbledon, then part of Surrey. Gravess mother was from a recently ennobled German family, the eldest daughter of Heinrich von Ranke, a professor of medicine at the University of Munich and she was also a greatniece of the German historian Leopold von Ranke. At school, Graves was enrolled as Robert von Ranke Graves and in Germany his books are published under that name but before and during the First World War, the name caused him difficulties. In August 1916 an officer who disliked him spread the rumour that he was a spy, the problem resurfaced in a minor way in the Second World War, when a suspicious rural policeman blocked his appointment to the Special Constabulary. Gravess eldest half-brother, Philip Perceval Graves, achieved note as a journalist and his brother, Charles Patrick Graves, was a writer. Among the masters his chief influence was George Mallory, who introduced him to contemporary literature, in his final year at Charterhouse, he won a classical exhibition to St Johns College, Oxford but did not take his place there until after the war. At the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914, Graves enlisted almost immediately and he published his first volume of poems, Over the Brazier, in 1916. He developed a reputation as a war poet and was one of the first to write realistic poems about experience of frontline conflict. In later years, he omitted his war poems from his collections, at the Battle of the Somme, he was so badly wounded by a shell-fragment through the lung that he was expected to die and was officially reported as having died of wounds. He gradually recovered and, apart from a spell back in France. One of Gravess friends at this time was the poet Siegfried Sassoon, in 1917, Sassoon rebelled against the conduct of the war by making a public antiwar statement. Graves feared Sassoon could face a court martial and intervened with the authorities, persuading them that Sassoon was suffering from shell shock. As a result, Sassoon was sent to Craiglockhart, a hospital in Edinburgh. Graves also suffered shell shock, or neurasthenia as it was then called, but he was never hospitalised for it, I thought of going back to France
18.
Lapwing
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Vanellinae are any of various crested plovers, family Charadriidae, noted for its slow, irregular wingbeat in flight and a shrill, wailing cry. They are a subfamily of medium-sized wading birds which includes the plovers. The Vanellinae are collectively called lapwings but also contain the ancient red-kneed dotterel, a lapwing can be thought of as a larger plover. In Europe, lapwing often refers specifically to the northern lapwing, for genera sometimes split from Vanellus, see there. While authorities generally agree that there about 25 species of Vanellinae, current consensus favors a more moderate position, but it is unclear which genera to split. The Handbook of Birds of the World provisionally lumps all Vanellinae into Vanellus except the Red-kneed Dotterel, many coloration details of the red-kneed dotterel also occur here and there among the living members of the main lapwing clade. Its legs were most likely black or the color of the bills base, the fossil record of the Vanellinae is scant and mostly recent in origin, no Neogene lapwings seem to be known. A mid-Oligocene – c.28 mya – fossil from Rupelmonde in Belgium has been assigned to Vanellus and its age ties in with the appearance of the first seemingly distinct Charadriinae at about the same time, and with the presence of more basal Charadriidae a few million years earlier. However, the assignment of fragmentary fossils to Charadriinae or Vanellinae is not easy, thus, it is very likely that the charadriid waders originate around the Eocene-Oligocene boundary – roughly 40–30 mya – but nothing more can be said at present. If the Belgian fossil is not a true lapwing, there are actually no Vanellinae fossils known before the Quaternary, apart from the prehistoric Vanellus, the extinct lapwing genus Viator has been described from fossils. Its remains were found in the tar pits of Talara in Peru, little is known of this rather large lapwing, it may actually belong in Vanellus. Interestingly, the remaining Charadrii are highset and/or chunky birds, even larger than a lot of the scolopacid waders. The evolutionary trend regarding the Charadriidae – which make up most of the diversity of the Charadrii – thus runs contrary to Copes Rule, a new species of Late Pleistocene lapwing from Rancho La Brea, California. DOI,10. 1650/0010-54221042.0. CO,2 HTML abstract and first page image Mlíkovský, cenozoic Birds of the World, Part 1, Europe. ISBN 80-901105-3-8 PDF fulltext Piersma, Theunis & Wiersma, Popko, in, del Hoyo, Josep, Elliott, Andrew & Sargatal, Jordi, Handbook of Birds of the World, 384–443, plates 35–39. ISBN 84-87334-20-2 Thomas, Gavin H. Wills, Matthew A. & Székely, a supertree approach to shorebird phylogeny. Doi,10. 1186/1471-2148-4-28 PMID15329156 PDF fulltext Supplementary Material
19.
Roe deer
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The European roe deer, also known as the western roe deer, chevreuil, or simply roe deer, is an Eurasian species of deer. The male of the species is referred to as a roebuck. The roe deer is small, reddish and grey-brown. The species is widespread in Europe, from the Mediterranean to Scandinavia and it is distinct from the somewhat larger Siberian roe deer. Scottish roe deer were introduced to the Lissadell Estate in Co, sligo in Ireland around 1870 by Sir Henry Gore-Booth, Bt. The Lissadell deer were noted for their occasional abnormal antlers and survived in that area for about 50 years before they died out. In England and Wales, roe have experienced an expansion in their range in the latter half of the 20th century. This increase in population also appears to be affecting woodland ecosystems, at the start of the 20th century, they were almost extinct in Southern England, but since then have hugely expanded their range for no apparent reason and possibly in some cases with human help. In 1884, roe were introduced from Württemberg in Germany into the Thetford Chase area, and these spread to populate most of Norfolk, Suffolk, and substantial parts of Cambridgeshire. At the same time, the population in Scotland and the Lake District had pushed further south beyond Yorkshire and Lancashire and into Derbyshire. Not being a species that needs large areas of woodland to survive, urban roe are now a feature of cities, notably Glasgow and Bristol. In Wales, they are common, but have been seen as far south west as Cardigan and as far north west as Bangor. German colonial administrators introduced roe deer to the island of Pohnpei in Micronesia and they are hunted by locals in very steep and heavily vegetated terrain. The meat is sold in markets and restaurants in Kolonia, the capital city of Pohnpei. Roe deer were introduced also to Australia, the roe deer is distinct from the somewhat larger Siberian roe deer found from the Ural Mountains to as far east as China and Siberia. It is known there are roe deer that live in the Red Forest near Chernobyl. The roe deer is a small deer, with a body length of 95–135 cm, a shoulder height of 65–75 cm. It has rather short, erect antlers and a body with a grey face
20.
Book of Taliesin
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The volume contains some of the oldest poems in Welsh, possibly but not certainly dating back to the sixth century and to a real poet called Taliesin. The manuscript, known as Peniarth MS2 and kept at the National Library of Wales, is incomplete and it was named Llyfr Taliessin in the seventeenth century by Edward Lhuyd and hence is known in English as The Book of Taliesin. It appears that some marks presumably awarded for poems – measuring their value – are extant in the margin of the Book of Taliesin. I have been a sword, narrow, variegated, I have been a tear in the air, I have been a word among letters, I have been a book in the origin. A few are attributed internally to other poets, a full discussion of the provenance of each poem is included in the definitive editions of the books contents poems by Marged Haycock. These are, Poems 2,3,4,5,6,8, the closing tag runs The precise dating of these poems remains uncertain. It seems impossible to prove, however, that any poem must go back to the sixth century linguistically, scholarly English translations of all these are available in Poems from the book of Taliesin and the modern anthology The Triumph Tree. Several of these contain internal claims to be the work of Taliesin, evans, J. Gwenogvryn, The Book of Taliesin Haycock, Marged, ed. Legendary Poems from the Book of Taliesin. The New Companion to the Literature of Wales, the Poems of Taliesin, ed. by Ifor Williams, trans. by J. E. Caerwyn Williams, Medieval and Modern Welsh Series,3 The book of Taliesin at the National Library of Wales. Gives access to images of Peniarth MS2. The book of Taliesin, from the 19th century translation by W. F
21.
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
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Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is a late 14th-century Middle English chivalric romance. It is one of the best known Arthurian stories, with its plot combining two types of motifs, the beheading game and the exchange of winnings. The Green Knight is interpreted by some as a representation of the Green Man of folklore and by others as an allusion to Christ. Written in stanzas of verse, each of which ends in a rhyming bob and wheel, it draws on Welsh, Irish. Gawain accepts and beheads him with his blow, at which the Green Knight stands up, picks up his head, and reminds Gawain of the appointed time. In his struggles to keep his bargain, Gawain demonstrates chivalry and loyalty until his honour is called into question by a test involving Lady Bertilak, the lady of the Green Knights castle. The poem survives in a manuscript, the Cotton Nero A. x. which also includes three religious narrative poems, Pearl, Purity and Patience. All are thought to have been written by the unknown author, dubbed the Pearl Poet or Gawain Poet. In Camelot on New Years Day, King Arthurs court is exchanging gifts, a gigantic figure, entirely green in appearance and riding a green horse, rides unexpectedly into the hall. He wears no armor but bears an axe in one hand, the splendid axe will belong to whoever takes him on. Arthur himself is prepared to accept the challenge when it no other knight will dare. The giant bends and bares his neck before him and Gawain neatly beheads him in one stroke, Gawain and Arthur admire the axe, hang it up as a trophy and encourage Guinevere to treat the whole matter lightly. As the date approaches, Sir Gawain sets off to find the Green Chapel, also present is an old and ugly lady, unnamed but treated with great honour by all. Gawain tells them of his New Years appointment at the Green Chapel, Bertilak laughs, explains that the Green Chapel is less than two miles away and proposes that Gawain rest at the castle till then. Before going hunting the next day Bertilak proposes a bargain, he will give Gawain whatever he catches on the condition that Gawain give him whatever he might gain during the day. After Bertilak leaves, Lady Bertilak visits Gawains bedroom and behaves seductively, when Bertilak returns and gives Gawain the deer he has killed, his guest gives a kiss to Bertilak without divulging its source. The next day the lady comes again, Gawain again courteously foils her advances and she comes once more on the third morning, this time offering Gawain a gold ring as a keepsake. He gently but steadfastly refuses but she pleads that he at least take her belt, a girdle of green and gold silk which, tempted, as he may otherwise die the next day, Gawain accepts it, and they exchange three kisses
22.
The Chronicles of Prydain
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The Chronicles of Prydain is a pentalogy of childrens high fantasy Bildungsroman novels by Lloyd Alexander. Henry Holt published one annually from 1964 to 1968, the second earned a 1966 Newbery Honor, the five novels follow the protagonist Taran from youth to maturity, most overtly in the fourth book, Taran Wanderer. Taran has the title Assistant Pig-Keeper at Caer Dallben but initially dreams of being a grand hero. His most important companions in adventure are Princess Eilonwy, a girl his age, Fflewddur Fflam, a bard and minor king, Gurgi, a wild man-beast, and Doli. Thematically the novels draw upon Welsh mythology, particularly the Mabinogion, appropriately, the authors note also reveals the geography is ultimately derived from Wales, though Alexander notes that Prydain is separate from Wales both in physical geography and history. Always interested in mythology, Alexander received army combat intelligence training in Wales during World War II and that exposed him to its castles, scenery, and language, which became part of the raw material for the Prydain books. Originally he planned to one or two – three at the very most. At one point he planned a trilogy with titles The Battle of the Trees, The Lion with the Steady Hand, and Little Gwion. In Welsh mythology the former features the sons of Don led by Gwydion against the forces of Arawn, later, a four-volume series would conclude with The High King. The editor felt that something was missing between third and fourth volumes, so Taran Wanderer was written one month after The Castle of Llyr was published, making it a five-volume series. The stories that are now collected in The Foundling and Other Tales of Prydain actually were published in three different volumes, two books and one short story collection. Most of these act as backstories which fill in gaps for minor characters, prydains geography, culture, and names are based on ancient Wales, especially the tales of the Mabinogion. Prydain is a magical land engaged in a series of battles with its neighbor, Annuvin and it is the setting for four of the five books in the series. Once ruled over by the evil Queen Achren, Prydain was liberated by the Sons of Don, the High King rules over all the land, seconded by his war leader, with many subject kings ruling the various territories of Prydain, called cantrevs. Only the Free Commots, a land of craftsmen who answer only to the High King, are outside any subject kings jurisdiction, underneath and within Prydain is the kingdom of the Fair Folk, a diminutive supernatural race that mostly keeps to its own affairs. The Fair Folk have no love for the Death-Lord Arawn, however, in addition to the races of men and Fair Folk, Prydain is home to the Sons of Don and their descendants. Other varieties of such as the undead Cauldron-Born, the monstrous birdlike Gwythaints. Having garnered a Newbery Medal and a Newbery Honor, Prydain is widely recognized as a contribution to childrens literature
23.
Aaron
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In the Hebrew Bible, Aaron was the elder brother of Moses and a Prophet of God. Islamic literature, which also considers Aaron a Prophet of God, knowledge of Aaron, along with his brother Moses, comes exclusively from religious texts, such as the Bible and Qur’an. The Hebrew Bible relates that, unlike Moses, who grew up in the Egyptian royal court, Aaron, when Moses first confronted the Egyptian king about the Israelites, Aaron served as his brothers spokesman to Pharaoh. Part of the Law that Moses received from God at Sinai granted Aaron the priesthood for himself and his male descendants, Aaron died before the Israelites crossed the North Jordan river and he was buried on Mount Hor. Aaron is also mentioned in the New Testament of the Bible, according to the Book of Exodus, Aaron first functioned as Moses assistant. Because Moses complained that he could not speak well, God appointed Aaron as Moses prophet, at the command of Moses, he let his rod turn into a snake. Then he stretched out his rod in order to bring on the first three plagues, after that, Moses tended to act and speak for himself. During the journey in the wilderness, Aaron was not always prominent or active, at the battle with Amalek, he was chosen with Hur to support the hand of Moses that held the rod of God. When the revelation was given to Moses at Mount Sinai, he headed the elders of Israel who accompanied Moses on the way to the summit, while Joshua went with Moses to the top, however, Aaron and Hur remained below to look after the people. From here on in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers, Joshua appears in the role of Moses assistant while Aaron functions instead as the first high priest. The books of Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers maintain that Aaron received from God a monopoly over the priesthood for himself, the family of Aaron had the exclusive right and responsibility to make offerings on the altar to the God of Israel. The rest of his tribe, the Levites, were given subordinate responsibilities within the sanctuary, Moses anointed and consecrated Aaron and his sons to the priesthood, and arrayed them in the robes of office. He also related to them Gods detailed instructions for performing their duties while the rest of the Israelites listened, Aaron and his successors as high priest were given control over the Urim and Thummim by which the will of God could be determined. God commissioned the Aaronide priests to distinguish the holy from the common and the clean from the unclean, the priests were also commissioned to bless the people. In this way, the institution of the Aaronide priesthood was established, in later books of the Old Testament, Aaron and his kin are not mentioned very often except in literature dating to the Babylonian Exile and later. The books of Judges, Samuel and Kings mention priests and Levites, the book of Ezekiel, which devotes much attention to priestly matters, calls the priestly upper class the Zadokites after one of King Davids priests. It does reflect a two-tier priesthood with the Levites in subordinate position, a two-tier hierarchy of Aaronides and Levites appears in Ezra, Nehemiah and Chronicles. As a result, many think that Aaronide families did not control the priesthood in pre-exilic Israel
24.
Moses
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Moses is a prophet in Abrahamic religions. Also called Moshe Rabbenu in Hebrew, he is the most important prophet in Judaism and he is also an important prophet in Christianity, Islam, the Baháí Faith as well as a number of other Abrahamic religions. Moses Hebrew mother, Jochebed, secretly hid him when the Pharaoh ordered all newborn Hebrew boys to be killed in order to reduce the population of the Israelites. Through the Pharaohs daughter, the child was adopted as a foundling from the Nile river and grew up with the Egyptian royal family. After killing an Egyptian slavemaster, Moses fled across the Red Sea to Midian, God sent Moses back to Egypt to demand the release of the Israelites from slavery. Moses said that he could not speak with assurance or eloquence, so God allowed Aaron, his brother, to become his spokesperson. After the Ten Plagues, Moses led the Exodus of the Israelites out of Egypt and across the Red Sea, after which they based themselves at Mount Sinai, after 40 years of wandering in the desert, Moses died within sight of the Promised Land on Mount Nebo. According to archaeologist William G. Rabbinical Judaism calculated a lifespan of Moses corresponding to 1391–1271 BCE, Jerome gives 1592 BCE, the Biblical account of Moses birth provides him with a folk etymology to explain the ostensible meaning of his name. He is said to have received it from the Pharaohs daughter and she named him Moses, saying, I drew him out of the water. This explanation links it to a verb mashah, meaning to draw out, the princess made a grammatical mistake which is prophetic of his future role in legend, as someone who will draw the people of Israel out of Egypt through the waters of the Red Sea. Abraham Yahuda, based on the spelling given in the Tanakh, argues that it combines water or seed and pond, expanse of water, the Hebrew etymology in the Biblical story may reflect an attempt to cancel out traces of Moses Egyptian origins. The Egyptian character of his name was recognized as such by ancient Jewish writers like Philo of Alexandria and Josephus. Philo linked Mōēsēs to the Egyptian word for water, while Josephus, in his Antiquities of the Jews, claimed that the element, -esês. Hizkuni suggested she either converted or took a tip from Jochebed, the Israelites had settled in the Land of Goshen in the time of Joseph and Jacob, but a new pharaoh arose who oppressed the children of Israel. At this time Moses was born to his father Amram, son of Kehath the Levite, who entered Egypt with Jacobs household, his mother was Jochebed, Moses had one older sister, Miriam, and one older brother, Aaron. One day after Moses had reached adulthood he killed an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew, Moses, in order to escape the Pharaohs death penalty, fled to Midian. There, on Mount Horeb, God revealed to Moses his name YHWH and commanded him to return to Egypt and bring his people out of bondage. Moses returned to carry out Gods command, but God caused the Pharaoh to refuse, from Egypt, Moses led the Israelites to biblical Mount Sinai, where he was given the Ten Commandments from God, written on stone tablets
25.
Gildas
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He is one of the best-documented figures of the Christian church in the British Isles during the sub-Roman period, and was renowned for his Biblical knowledge and literary style. In his later life, he emigrated to Brittany where he founded a monastery known as St. Gildas de Rhuys. Differing versions of the Life of Saint Gildas exist, but both agree that he was born in what is now Scotland on the banks of the River Clyde, and these works were written in the eleventh and twelfth centuries and are regarded by scholars as unhistorical. He is now thought to have his origins further south, in his own work, he claims to have been born the same year as the Battle of Mount Badon. He was educated at a center, possibly Cor Tewdws under St. Illtud. He became a teacher, converting many to Christianity and founding numerous churches and monasteries throughout Britain. He is thought to have made a pilgrimage to Rome before emigrating to Brittany, however, his life of solitude was short-lived, and pupils soon sought him out and begged him to teach them. He is thought to have died at Rhuys, and was buried there, the 9th century Rhuys Life is generally accepted as being more accurate. The First Life of St. Gildas was written by a monk at the monastery which Gildas founded in Rhuys. According to this tradition, Gildas is the son of Caunus, king of Alt Clut in the Hen Ogledd and he had four brothers, his brother Cuillum ascended to the throne on the death of his father, but the rest became monks in their own right. Gildas was sent as a child to the College of Theodosius in Glamorgan, under the care of St. Illtud and his master St. Illtud loved him tenderly and taught him with special zeal. He was supposed to be educated in arts and divine scripture, but elected to study only holy doctrine. After completing his studies under St. Illtud, Gildas went to Ireland where he was ordained as a priest and he returned to his native lands in northern Britain where he acted as a missionary, preaching to the pagan people and converting many of them to Christianity. He was then asked by Ainmericus, high king of Ireland, to order to the church in Ireland. Gildas obeyed the summons and travelled all over the island, converting the inhabitants, building churches. He then travelled to Rome and Ravenna where he performed many miracles, intending to return to Britain, he instead settled on the Isle of Houat off Brittany where he led a solitary, austere life. At around this time, he preached to Nonnita, the mother of Saint David. He was eventually sought out by those who wished to study under him and he built an oratory on the bank of the River Blavetum, today known as St. Gildas de Rhuys
26.
Christian
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A Christian is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christian derives from the Koine Greek word Christós, a translation of the Biblical Hebrew term mashiach, while there are diverse interpretations of Christianity which sometimes conflict, they are united in believing that Jesus has a unique significance. The term Christian is also used as an adjective to describe anything associated with Christianity, or in a sense all that is noble, and good. According to a 2011 Pew Research Center survey, there were 2.2 billion Christians around the world in 2010, by 2050, the Christian population is expected to exceed 3 billion. According to a 2012 Pew Research Center survey Christianity will remain the worlds largest religion in 2050, about half of all Christians worldwide are Catholic, while more than a third are Protestant. Orthodox communions comprise 12% of the worlds Christians, other Christian groups make up the remainder. Christians make up the majority of the population in 158 countries and territories,280 million Christian live as a minority. In the Greek Septuagint, christos was used to translate the Hebrew מָשִׁיחַ, in other European languages, equivalent words to Christian are likewise derived from the Greek, such as Chrétien in French and Cristiano in Spanish. The second mention of the term follows in Acts 26,28, where Herod Agrippa II replied to Paul the Apostle, Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian. The third and final New Testament reference to the term is in 1 Peter 4,16, which believers, Yet if as a Christian, let him not be ashamed. The city of Antioch, where someone gave them the name Christians, had a reputation for coming up with such nicknames, in the Annals he relates that by vulgar appellation commonly called Christians and identifies Christians as Neros scapegoats for the Great Fire of Rome. Another term for Christians which appears in the New Testament is Nazarenes which is used by the Jewish lawyer Tertullus in Acts 24, the Hebrew equivalent of Nazarenes, Notzrim, occurs in the Babylonian Talmud, and is still the modern Israeli Hebrew term for Christian. A wide range of beliefs and practices is found across the world among those who call themselves Christian, denominations and sects disagree on a common definition of Christianity. Most Baptists and fundamentalists, for example, would not acknowledge Mormonism or Christian Science as Christian, in fact, the nearly 77 percent of Americans who self-identify as Christian are a diverse pluribus of Christianities that are far from any collective unity. The identification of Jesus as the Messiah is not accepted by Judaism, the term for a Christian in Hebrew is נוּצְרי, a Talmudic term originally derived from the fact that Jesus came from the Galilean village of Nazareth, today in northern Israel. Adherents of Messianic Judaism are referred to in modern Hebrew as יְהוּדִים מָשִׁיחַיים, the term Nasara rose to prominence in July 2014, after the Fall of Mosul to the terrorist organization Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. The nun or ن— the first letter of Nasara—was spray-painted on the property of Christians ejected from the city, where there is a distinction, Nasrani refers to people from a Christian culture and Masihi is used by Christians themselves for those with a religious faith in Jesus. In some countries Nasrani tends to be used generically for non-Muslim Western foreigners, another Arabic word sometimes used for Christians, particularly in a political context, is Ṣalībī from ṣalīb which refers to Crusaders and has negative connotations
27.
Martyr
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A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, refusing to renounce, or refusing to advocate a belief or cause as demanded by an external party. This refusal to comply with the presented demands results in the punishment or execution of the martyr by the oppressor, originally applied only to those who suffered for their religious beliefs, the term is now often used in connection with people imprisoned or killed for espousing a political cause. Most martyrs are considered holy or are respected by their followers, becoming symbols of exceptional leadership, Martyrs play significant roles in religions. Similarly, martyrs have had effects in secular life, including specific figures such as Socrates, as well as in politics. In its original meaning, the martyr, meaning witness, was used in the secular sphere as well as in the New Testament of the Bible. The term, in this sense, entered the English language as a loanword. The death of a martyr or the value attributed to it is called martyrdom, the early Christians who first began to use the term martyr in its new sense saw Jesus as the first and greatest martyr, on account of his crucifixion. The early Christians appear to have seen Jesus as the archetypal martyr, the word martyr is used in English to describe a wide variety of people. However, the table presents a general outline of common features present in stereotypical martyrdoms. Examples of this are found in the Mahabharata, during the great war which commenced, even Arjuna was brought down with doubts, e. g. attachment, sorrow, fear. This is where Krishna instructs Arjuna how to carry out his duty as a righteous warrior, Martyrdom in Judaism is one of the main examples of Kiddush Hashem, meaning sanctification of Gods name through public dedication to Jewish practice. Religious martyrdom is considered one of the significant contributions of Hellenistic Judaism to Western Civilization. Frend, Judaism was itself a religion of martyrdom and it was this Jewish psychology of martyrdom that inspired Christian martyrdom. In Christianity, a martyr, in accordance with the meaning of the original Greek martys in the New Testament, is one who brings a testimony, in particular, the testimony is that of the Christian Gospel, or more generally, the Word of God. A Christian witness is a biblical witness whether or not death follows, however, over time many Christian testimonies were rejected, and the witnesses put to death, and the word martyr developed its present sense. Where death ensues, the follow the example of Jesus in offering up their lives for truth. The concept of Jesus as a martyr has recently received greater attention, analyses of the Gospel passion narratives have led many scholars to conclude that they are martyrdom accounts in terms of genre and style. Several scholars have concluded that Paul the Apostle understood Jesus death as a martyrdom
28.
Caerleon
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The city of Chester was also historically called Caerleon. For the champion racehorse, see Caerleon II Caerleon is a town and community, situated on the River Usk in the northern outskirts of the city of Newport. Caerleon is a site of importance, being the location of a notable Roman legionary fortress, Isca Augusta. The Wales National Roman Legion Museum and Roman Baths Museum are in Caerleon close to the remains of Isca Augusta, Caerleon is a site of considerable archaeological importance as the location of a Roman legionary fortress or castra. It was the headquarters for Legio II Augusta from about 75 to 300 AD, the Romans called the site Isca after the River Usk. The name Caerleon may derive from the Welsh for fortress of the legion, substantial excavated Roman remains can be seen, including the military amphitheatre, thermae and barracks occupied by the Roman Legion. In August 2011 the remains of a Roman harbour were discovered in Caerleon, according to Gildas, followed by Bede, Roman Caerleon was the site of two early Christian martyrdoms, those of Julius and Aaron. Recent finds suggest Roman occupation of some kind as late as AD380, Roman remains have also been discovered at The Mynde, itself a distinctive historical site. During the Middle Ages, after the Romans had left Britain, the parish church, St Cadocs was founded on the site of the legionary headquarters building probably sometime in the 6th century. A Norman-style motte and bailey castle was built outside the eastern corner of the old Roman fort, probably by the Welsh Lord of Caerleon and it was held in 1086 by Turstin FitzRolf, standard bearer to William the Conqueror at Hastings. From the apparent banishment of Turstin by William II, it was held from 1088 by Wynebald de Ballon, battles raged between the Welsh and Normans and in 1171 Iorwerth ab Owain and his two sons destroyed the town of Caerleon and burned the Castle. Caerleon was an important market and port and presumably became a borough by 1171, both castle and borough were seized by William Marshal in 1217 and Caerleon castle was rebuilt in stone. The remains of many of the old Roman buildings stood to some height until this time and were demolished for their building materials. During the Welsh Revolt in 1402 Rhys Gethin, General for Owain Glyndŵr, took Caerleon Castle together with those of Newport, Cardiff, Llandaff, Abergavenny, Caerphilly, the Tower is a Grade II* listed building. Across the Afon Lwyd from Caerleon, in the region of Penrhos Farm, are two English Civil War forts, in 1648 Oliver Cromwells troops camped overnight on Christchurch Hill, overlooking Newport, before their attack on Newport Castle the next day. The old wooden Caerleon Bridge was destroyed in a storm in 1779, until the Victorian development of the downstream docks at Newport Docks, Caerleon acted as the major port on the River Usk. The wharf was located on the bank, to the west of todays river bridge which marked the limit of navigability for masted ships. A tinplate works and mills were established on the outskirts of the town, in Ponthir, around this time, a plaque on the Mynde wall in High Street references the Newport Rising of 1839 in which John Frost of Newport was a prominent figure in the Chartist movement
29.
Diocletian
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Diocletian, born Diocles, was a Roman emperor from 284 to 305. Born to a family of low status in the Roman province of Dalmatia, after the deaths of Carus and his son Numerian on campaign in Persia, Diocletian was proclaimed emperor. The title was claimed by Carus other surviving son, Carinus. Diocletians reign stabilized the empire and marks the end of the Crisis of the Third Century and he appointed fellow officer Maximian as Augustus, co-emperor, in 286. Diocletian delegated further on 1 March 293, appointing Galerius and Constantius as Caesars, under this tetrarchy, or rule of four, each emperor would rule over a quarter-division of the empire. Diocletian secured the borders and purged it of all threats to his power. He defeated the Sarmatians and Carpi during several campaigns between 285 and 299, the Alamanni in 288, and usurpers in Egypt between 297 and 298, Galerius, aided by Diocletian, campaigned successfully against Sassanid Persia, the empires traditional enemy. In 299 he sacked their capital, Ctesiphon, Diocletian led the subsequent negotiations and achieved a lasting and favorable peace. He established new centres in Nicomedia, Mediolanum, Antioch. Building on third-century trends towards absolutism, he styled himself an autocrat, elevating himself above the masses with imposing forms of court ceremonies. Bureaucratic and military growth, constant campaigning, and construction increased the states expenditures. From at least 297 on, imperial taxation was standardized, made more equitable, not all of Diocletians plans were successful, the Edict on Maximum Prices, his attempt to curb inflation via price controls, was counterproductive and quickly ignored. Weakened by illness, Diocletian left the office on 1 May 305. He lived out his retirement in his palace on the Dalmatian coast and his palace eventually became the core of the modern-day city of Split in Croatia. Diocletian was born near Salona in Dalmatia, some time around 244 and his parents gave him the Greek name Diocles, or possibly Diocles Valerius. The modern historian Timothy Barnes takes his official birthday,22 December, other historians are not so certain. Diocles parents were of low status, and writers critical of him claimed that his father was a scribe or a freedman of the senator Anullinus, the first forty years of his life are mostly obscure. The Byzantine chronicler Joannes Zonaras states that he was Dux Moesiae, the often-unreliable Historia Augusta states that he served in Gaul, but this account is not corroborated by other sources and is ignored by modern historians of the period
30.
Cernunnos
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Cernunnos is the conventional name given in Celtic studies to depictions of the horned god of Celtic polytheism. Cernunnos was a Celtic god of fertility, life, animals, wealth, the name itself is only attested once, on the 1st-century Pillar of the Boatmen, but he appears all over Gaul, and among the Celtiberians. Not much is known about the god from literary sources, and details about his name, speculative interpretations identify him as a god of nature, life or fertility. The theonym ernunnos appears on the Pillar of the Boatmen, a Gallo-Roman monument dating to the early 1st century CE, both antlers have torcs hanging from them. The name has been compared to a divine epithet Carnonos in a Celtic inscription written in Greek characters at Montagnac, a Gallo-Latin adjective carnuātus, horned, is also found. The Proto-Celtic form of the theonym is reconstructed as either *Cerno-on-os or *Carno-on-os, the augmentative -on- is characteristic of theonyms, as in Maponos, Epona, Matronae, and Sirona. Maier states that the etymology of Cernunnos is unknown, as the Celtic word for horn has an a, Gaulish karnon horn is cognate with Latin cornu and Germanic *hurnaz, English horn, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *k̑r̥no-. The etymon karn- horn appears in both Gaulish and Galatian branches of Continental Celtic, the root also appears in the names of Celtic polities, most prominent among them the Carnutes, meaning something like the Horned Ones, and in several personal names found in inscriptions. The name Cernunnos occurs only on the Pillar of the Boatmen, the distinctive stone pillar is an important monument of Gallo-Roman religion. Its low reliefs depict and label by name several Roman deities such as Jupiter, Vulcan, and Castor and Pollux, along with Gallic deities such as Esus, Smertrios and this inscription read Deo Ceruninco, to the God Cerunincos, assumed to be the same deity. The Gaulish inscription from Montagnac reads αλλετνος καρνονου αλσοεας, with the last word possibly a place based on Alisia. The god labelled ernunnos on the Pillar of the Boatmen is depicted with stags antlers in their stage of annual growth. Both antlers have torcs hanging from them, the lower part of the relief is lost, but the dimensions suggest that the god was sitting cross-legged, providing a direct parallel to the antlered figure on the Gundestrup cauldron. In spite of the name Cernunnos being attested nowhere else, it is used in Celtological literature as describing all comparable depictions of horned/antlered deities. The god may have symbolised the fecundity of the stag-inhabited forest, other examples of Cernunnos images include a petroglyph in Val Camonica in Cisalpine Gaul. The antlered human figure has been dated as early as the 7th century BCE or as late as the 4th, an antlered child appears on a relief from Vendeuvres, flanked by serpents and holding a purse and a torc. The best known image appears on the Gundestrup cauldron found on Jutland, dating to the 1st century BCE, the horns are taken to represent aggressive power, genetic vigor and fecundity. Divine representations of the Cernunnos type are exceptions to the view that the Celts only began to picture their gods in human form after the Roman conquest of Gaul
31.
Celtic mythology
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Celtic mythology is the mythology of Celtic polytheism, the religion of the Iron Age Celts. Like other Iron Age Europeans, the early Celts maintained a polytheistic mythology and it is mostly through contemporary Roman and Christian sources that their mythology has been preserved. The Celtic peoples who maintained either their political or linguistic identities left vestigial remnants of their ancestral mythologies, however, from what has survived of Celtic mythology, it is possible to discern commonalities which hint at a more unified pantheon than is often given credit. Indeed, many Gaelic myths were first recorded by Christian monks, the oldest body of myths stemming from the Heroic Age is found only from the early medieval period of Ireland. As Christianity began to take over, the gods and goddesses were slowly eliminated as such from the culture, the Tuatha Dé represent the functions of human society such as kingship, crafts and war, while the Fomorians represent chaos and wild nature. The leader of the gods for the Irish pantheon appears to have been the Dagda, the Dagda was the figure on which male humans and other gods were based because he embodied ideal Irish traits. Celtic gods were considered to be a clan due to their lack of specialization. Irish tales depict the Dagda as a figure of power, armed with a club, in Dorset there is a famous outline of an ithyphallic giant known as the Cerne Abbas Giant with a club cut into the chalky soil. While this was produced in relatively modern times, it was long thought to be a representation of the Dagda. In Gaul, it is speculated that the Dagda is associated with Sucellus, the Morrígan was a tripartite battle goddess of the Celts of Ancient Ireland. She was known as the Morrígan, but the different sections she was divided into were also referred to as Nemain, Macha and she is most commonly known for her involvement in the Táin Bó Cúailnge. The god appearing most frequently in the tales is Lugh, the most famous of these are the cities of Lugdunum, Lugdunum Batavorum and Lucus Augusti. Lug is described in the Celtic myths as the last to be added to the list of deities, in Ireland a festival called the Lughnasadh was held in his honour. Other important goddesses include Brigid, the Dagdas daughter, Aibell, Áine, Macha, notable is Epona, the horse goddess, celebrated with horse races at the summer festival. Significant Irish gods include Nuada Airgetlám, the first king of the Tuatha Dé Danann, Goibniu, the smith and brewer, Dian Cecht, the patron of healing, less is known about the pre-Christian mythologies of Britain than those of Ireland. Important reflexes of British mythology appear in the Four Branches of the Mabinogi, especially in the names of characters, such as Rhiannon, Teyrnon. The children of Llŷr in the Second and Third Branches, and the children of Dôn in the Fourth Branch are major figures, indeed, though there is much in common with Irish myth, there may have been no unified British mythological tradition per se. Whatever its ultimate origins, the material has been put to good use in the service of literary masterpieces that address the cultural concerns of Wales in the early
32.
Math fab Mathonwy (branch)
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Math fab Mathonwy, Math, the son of Mathonwy is a legendary tale from medieval Welsh literature and the final of the four branches of the Mabinogi. The chief characters of the tale are Math, king of Gwynedd, his nephew Gwydion, a magician, warrior and trickster, along with the other branches, the tale can be found the medieval Red Book of Hergest and White Book of Rhydderch. His brother Gwydion conspires to start a war between the north and the south, so as give the brothers the opportunity to rape Goewin while Math is distracted. To this end, Gwydion employs his magic powers to steal a number of pigs from the Demetian king, Pryderi. Meanwhile, Gwydion and Gilfaethwy attack and rape Goewin, Pryderi and his men march north and fight a battle between Maenor Bennardd and Maenor Coed Alun, but are forced to retreat. He is pursued to Nant Call, where more of his men are slaughtered, and then to Dol Benmaen, to avoid further bloodshed, it is agreed that the outcome of the battle should be decided by single combat between Gwydion and Pryderi. The two contenders meet at a place called Y Velen Rhyd in Ardudwy, and because of strength and valour and magic and enchantment, Gwydion triumphs, the men of Dyfed retreat back to their own land, lamenting over the death of their lord. When Math hears of the assault on Goewin, he turns his nephews into a series of mated pairs of animals, Gwydion becomes a stag for a year, then a sow, Gilfaethwy becomes a hind deer, a boar and a she-wolf. Each year they produce an offspring which is sent to Math, after three years, Math releases his nephews from their punishment and begins the search for a new foot-holder. Gwydion suggests his sister Arianrhod, who is tested for virginity by Math. During the test, she gives birth to a boy with thick yellow hair whom Math names Dylan. Ashamed, Arianrhod runs to the door, but on her way out something small drops from her, some time later, he hears screams from within the chest, and opens it to discover a baby boy. Some scholars have suggested that in a form of the Fourth Branch. Some years later, Gwydion accompanies the boy to Caer Arianrhod, the furious Arianrhod, shamed by this reminder of her loss of virginity, places a tynged on the boy, that only she could give him a name. Gwydion however tricks his sister by disguising himself and the boy as cobblers and luring Arianrhod into going to them in person in order to have some shoes made for her. The boy throws a stone and strikes a wren between the tendon and the bone of its leg, causing Arianrhod to make the remark it is with a hand that the fair-haired one has hit it. At that Gwydion reveals himself, saying Lleu Llaw Gyffes, the one with the skillful hand, is his name now. Furious at this trickery, Arianrhod places another tynged on Lleu, he shall receive arms from no one but Arianrhod herself
33.
Culhwch and Olwen
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Culhwch and Olwen is a Welsh tale that survives in only two manuscripts about a hero connected with Arthur and his warriors, a complete version in the Red Book of Hergest, ca. 1400, and a version in the White Book of Rhydderch. It is the longest of the surviving Welsh prose tales, certain linguistic evidence indicates it took its present form by the 11th century, making it perhaps the earliest Arthurian tale and one of Wales earliest extant prose texts. The title is an invention and does not occur in early manuscripts. Lady Charlotte Guest included this tale among those she collected under the title The Mabinogion, Culhwchs father, King Cilydd son of Celyddon, loses his wife Goleuddydd after a difficult childbirth. When he remarries, the young Culhwch rejects his stepmothers attempt to pair him with his new stepsister, offended, the new queen puts a curse on him so that he can marry no one besides the beautiful Olwen, daughter of the giant Ysbaddaden Pencawr. Though he has never seen her, Culhwch becomes infatuated with her, the young man immediately sets off to seek his kinsman. Arthur agrees to help, and sends six of his finest warriors to join Culhwch in his search for Olwen, the group meets some relatives of Culhwchs that know Olwen and agree to arrange a meeting. Fortunately for Culhwch, the completion of only a few of these tasks is recorded, the story is on one level a typical folktale, in which a young hero sets out to wed a giants daughter, and many of the accompanying motifs reinforce this. However, for most of the narrative the title characters go unmentioned, Culhwch and Olwen is much more than a simple folktale. In fact, the majority of the writing is taken up by two lists and the adventures of King Arthur and his men. The first of these occurs when Arthur welcomes his young kinsman to his court and offers to give him whatever he wishes. Culhwch, of course, asks that Arthur help him get Olwen, included in the list are names taken from Irish legend, hagiography, and sometimes actual history. The second list includes the tasks Culhwch must complete before Ysbaddaden will allow him to marry Olwen, only a fraction are recounted, but several that are disclosed, are of great significance. A version of the longest episode, the hunt for the boar Twrch Trwyth, is referenced in Historia Brittonum, the British painter/poet David Jones wrote a poem called The Hunt based on the tale of Culwhch ac Olwen. A fragment of a work, The Hunt takes place during the pursuit of the boar Twrch Trwyth by Arthur. In 1988 Gwyn Thomas released a retelling of the story, Culhwch ac Olwen, Culhwch ac Olwen won the annual Tir na n-Og Award for Welsh language nonfiction in 1989. A shadow play adaptation of Culhwch and Olwen toured schools in Ceredigion during 2003, the show was created by Jim Williams and was supported by Theatr Felinfach
