Loki
Loki is a god in Norse mythology. Loki is in some sources the son of Fárbauti and Laufey, the brother of Helblindi and Býleistr. By the jötunn Angrboða, Loki is the father of Hel, the wolf Fenrir, the world serpent Jörmungandr. By his wife Sigyn, Loki is the father of Narfi and/or Nari. By the stallion Svaðilfari, Loki is the mother—giving birth in the form of a mare—to the eight-legged horse Sleipnir. In addition, Loki is referred to as the father of Váli in Prose Edda, though this source refers to Odin as the father of Váli twice, Váli is found mentioned as a Son of Loki only once. Loki's relation with the gods varies by source. Loki is a shape shifter and in separate incidents he appears in the form of a salmon, a mare, a fly, an elderly woman named Þökk. Loki's positive relations with the gods end with his role in engineering the death of the god Baldr and Loki is bound by Váli with the entrails of one of his sons. In both the Poetic Edda and the Prose Edda, the goddess Skaði is responsible for placing a serpent above him while he is bound.
The serpent drips venom from above him. With the onset of Ragnarök, Loki is foretold to slip free from his bonds and to fight against the gods among the forces of the jötnar, at which time he will encounter the god Heimdallr and the two will slay each other. Loki is referred to in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources. Loki may be depicted on the Snaptun Stone, the Kirkby Stephen Stone, the Gosforth Cross. Loki's origins and role in Norse mythology, which some scholars have described as that of a trickster god, have been much debated by scholars. Loki is referenced in a variety of media in modern popular culture; the etymology of the name Loki has been extensively debated. The name has at times been associated with the Old Norse word logi, but there seems not to be a sound linguistic basis for this. Rather, the Scandinavian variants of the name point to an origin in the Germanic root *luk-, which denoted things to do with loops; this corresponds with usages such as the Swedish lokkanät and Faroese Lokkanet and Faroese lokki~grindalokki~grindalokkur.
Some Eastern Swedish traditions referring to the same figure use forms in n- like Nokk, but this corresponds to the *luk- etymology insofar as those dialects used a different root, Germanic *hnuk-, in contexts where western varieties used *luk-: "nokke corresponds to nøkkel" "as loki~lokke to lykil". While it has been suggested that this association with closing could point to Loki's apocalyptic role at Ragnarök, "there is quite a bit of evidence that Loki in premodern society was thought to be the causer of knots/tangles/loops, or himself a knot/tangle/loop. Hence, it is natural that Loki is the inventor of the fishnet, which consists of loops and knots, that the word loki is a term for makers of cobwebs: spiders and the like." Though not prominent in the oldest sources, this identity as a "tangler" may be the etymological meaning of Loki's name. In various poems from the Poetic Edda, sections of the Prose Edda Loki is alternatively referred to as Loptr, considered derived from Old Norse lopt meaning "air", therefore points to an association with the air.
The name Hveðrungr is used in reference to Loki, occurring in names for Hel and in reference to Fenrir. In the Poetic Edda, Loki appears in the poems Völuspá, Lokasenna, Þrymskviða, Reginsmál, Baldrs draumar, Hyndluljóð. In stanza 35 of the Poetic Edda poem Völuspá, a völva tells Odin that, among many other things, she sees Sigyn sitting unhappily with her bound husband, under a "grove of hot springs". In stanza 51, during the events of Ragnarök, Loki appears free from his bonds and is referred to as the "brother of Býleistr": A ship journeys from the east, Muspell's people are coming, over the waves, Loki steers There are the monstrous brood with all the raveners, The brother of Byleist is in company with them. In stanza 54, after consuming Odin and being killed by Odin's son Víðarr, Fenrir is described as "Loki's kinsman"; the poem Lokasenna centers around Loki flyting with other gods. The poem begins with a prose introduction detailing that Ægir, a figure associated with the sea, is hosting a feast in his hall for a number of the gods and elves.
There, the gods praise Ægir's servers Eldir. Loki "could not bear to hear that," and kills the servant Fimafeng. In response, the gods grab their shields, shrieking at Loki, chase
Elin Fflur
Elin Fflur Llewelyn Harvey, known professionally as Elin Fflur, is a Welsh singer and songwriter from Wales. Fflur is well known in Welsh-language media since she won the Cân i Gymru contest in 2002. Fflur's musical roots began with her mother Nest Llewelyn Jones, the lead vocalist of the Welsh-folk band Bran in their early, prog-rock releases. Just as Fflur would do 24 years Bran became known for winning Cân i Gymru in 1978. Fflur took inspiration from her father's favourite artists, who included Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen and her personal favourite, Janis Ian. In her teens, Fflur wrote her own rock songs, describing herself as "rebellious". Fflur began taking part in local Eisteddfodau from the age of 3 and became a familiar name in National Eisteddfodau thereafter, she studied criminology for a year at Bangor University. Fflur participated in Cân i Gymru in the 33rd edition of the competition, she won the competition with the song "Harbwr Diogel" composed by Arfon Wyn – the same composer who wrote the 1979 winning song "Ni Welaf yr Haf" for Fflur's mother and band Pererin.
Fflur had success in the bands Y Moniars. Her younger brother Gwion Llyr Llewelyn is a musician. Fflur works behind the scenes and as a presenter on S4C, the Welsh-language television channel on the music roadshow Nodyn, but more on the evening magazine programme Heno. In 2018 Fflur took part in an S4C documentary, Chdi, Fi ac IVF, which followed the attempts she and her husband, Jason Harvey, had gone through to conceive a baby using IVF. Along with Trystan Ellis-Morris, Fflur co-presents Cân i Gymru each year on S4C. Dim Gair – Sain, 2003...her debut album, which topped the charts on Radio Cymru. Cysgodion – 2004 Hafana – 2008 Y Goreuon – 2010 Lleuad Llawn – 2014 Ysbryd Efnisien – 7 August 2006 Official website in Welsh and English Elin Fflur biography from BBC Wales Elin Fflur on Twitter
Harlech
Harlech is a seaside resort and community in Gwynedd within the historic boundaries of Merionethshire in north-west Wales. It lies within the Snowdonia National Park. Of a population of 1,447, 51 per cent habitually speak the Welsh language, its best-known landmark, Harlech Castle, was begun in 1283 by Edward I of England, captured by Owain Glyndŵr, served as a stronghold for Henry Tudor. It was built next to the sea, but coastline changes mean it now lies on a cliff face, about half a mile inland; the town has developed housing estates in the low town area and hillside housing in the high town around the shopping street and castle. The two are linked by a steep, winding road called "Twtil"; the exact derivation of the name "Harlech" is unclear. Some older sources claim that it derives from Arddlech, i.e. ardd + llech, referring to the prominent crag on which the castle stands. More recent sources tend to go for a simpler derivation from the two Welsh words llech; as late as the 19th century some texts referred to "Harddlech" and "Harddlech Castle".
This name appears in the mid-19th century translation of the Mabinogion: "And one afternoon he was at Harddlech in Ardudwy, at a court of his. And they were seated upon the rock of Harddlech overlooking the sea." Contemporary documents from the time of the Mabinogion do not mention Harlech, referring only to Llywelyn building his castle "at Ardudwy". An electoral ward in the same name exists; this stretches to include Talsarnau Community. The population of the ward taken at the 2011 census was 1,997; the town's railway station is served by the Cambrian Coast Line. It contains Ffordd Pen Llech, a street which descends the rock spur to the north of the castle, has the steepest signed gradient on a public road in the United Kingdom. Ysgol Ardudwy is the county secondary school for children between the ages of 11–16. Ysgol Tanycastell is the town's primary school for children aged 3–11; the town was until 2017 the home of Wales's only long-term adult residential college, Coleg Harlech known as the "college of second chance".
The premises remain in use as part of Adult Learning Wales - Addysg Oedolion Cymru. Theatr Harlech is located on the Coleg Harlech campus and stages a varied selection of plays and films throughout the year. Other attractions in Harlech include its beach backed with sand dunes and the famous Royal Saint David's Golf Club, which hosted its fifth British Ladies Amateur in 2009; the Rhinogydd range of mountains rises to the east. A World War II-era fighter aircraft was found on Harlech beach in 2007; the discovery of the Lockheed P-38 Lightning has been described as "one of the most important WWII finds in recent history". The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery is not divulging the precise location of the U. S. Army Air Forces plane, known as the Maid of Harlech, but hope to salvage the wreck. Harlech has a Scout hut. A residential street in Harlech, Ffordd Pen Llech, may be recognized by the Guinness World Records as the steepest residential street in the world. In the second branch of the Mabinogi, Harlech is the seat of Bendigeidfran, Branwen's brother and king of the Isle of the Mighty.
The song Men of Harlech is traditionally said to describe events during the seven-year siege of the castle in 1461–1468. ITV Wales & West was known as HTV/Harlech Television. In birth order: Owain Glyndŵr, Welsh Rebellion leader and the last Welshman to claim the title Prince of Wales Ellis Wynne, Welsh-language author Alfred Perceval Graves, poet and songwriter, he and a large family, including his son the poet Robert Graves, spent summers at a large house, "Erinfa", north-east of Harlech. George Davison, photographer Margaret More, was born here. Elinor Lyon, children's writer, she retired here in 1975 with her schoolteacher husband. David Gwilym Morris Roberts, civil engineer, was born here. Morfa Harlech sand dunes Harlech Castle St. David's Hotel Lord Harlech HTV - Harlech Television Harlech Tourism Association Coleg Harlech Theatr Harlech Royal Saint David's Golf Club Aerial photograph of Harlech geograph.co.uk - photos of Harlech and surrounding area
Celtic mythology
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 religious structure. For Celts in close contact with Ancient Rome, such as the Gauls and Celtiberians, their mythology did not survive the Roman Empire, their subsequent conversion to Christianity and the loss of their Celtic languages, it is through contemporary Roman and Christian sources that their mythology has been preserved. The Celtic peoples who maintained either political or linguistic identities left vestigial remnants of their ancestral mythologies that were put into written form during the Middle Ages. Although the Celtic world at its height covered much of western and central Europe, it was not politically unified nor was there any substantial central source of cultural influence or homogeneity. Inscriptions of more than three hundred deities equated with their Roman counterparts, have survived, but of these most appear to have been genii locorum, local or tribal gods, few were worshiped.
However, from what has survived of Celtic mythology, it is possible to discern commonalities which hint at a more unified pantheon than is given credit. The nature and functions of these ancient gods can be deduced from their names, the location of their inscriptions, their iconography, the Roman gods they are equated with, similar figures from bodies of Celtic mythology. Celtic mythology is found in a number of distinct, if related, subgroups corresponding to the branches of the Celtic languages: Ancient Celtic religion mythology in Goidelic languages, represented chiefly by Irish mythology Mythological Cycle Ulster Cycle Fenian Cycle Cycles of the Kings mythology in Brittonic languages Welsh mythology Cornish mythology Breton mythology As a result of the scarcity of surviving materials bearing written Gaulish, it is surmised that the most of the Celtic writings were destroyed by the Romans, although a written form of Gaulish using Greek and North Italic alphabets was used. Julius Caesar attests to the literacy of the Gauls, but wrote that their priests, the druids, were forbidden to use writing to record certain verses of religious significance while noting that the Helvetii had a written census.
Rome introduced a more widespread habit of public inscriptions, broke the power of the druids in the areas it conquered. Although early Gaels in Ireland and parts of modern Wales used the Ogham script to record short inscriptions, more sophisticated literacy was not introduced to Celtic areas that had not been conquered by Rome until the advent of Christianity. Indeed, many Gaelic myths were first recorded by Christian monks, albeit without most of their original religious meanings; 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 eliminated as such from the culture. What has survived includes material dealing with the Tuatha Dé Danann and the Fomorians, which forms the basis for the text Cath Maige Tuired "The Battle of Mag Tuireadh", as well as portions of the history-focused Lebor Gabála Érenn; the Tuatha Dé represent the functions of human society such as kingship 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 and unknown origins; the particular character of the Dagda was as a figure of burlesque lampoonery in Irish mythology, some authors conclude that he was trusted to be benevolent enough to tolerate jokes at his own expense. 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 modern times, it was long thought to be a representation of the Dagda; this has been called into question by recent studies which show that there may have been a representation of what looks like a large drapery hanging from the horizontal arm of the figure, leading to suspicion that this figure represents Hercules, with the skin of the Nemean lion over his arm and carrying the club he used to kill it.
In Gaul, it is speculated that the Dagda is associated with Sucellus, the striker, equipped with a hammer and cup. 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 referred to as Nemain and Badb, with each representing different aspects of combat. She is most known for her involvement in the Táin Bó Cúailnge
Mabinogion
The Mabinogion are the earliest prose stories of the literature of Britain. The stories were compiled in Middle Welsh in the 12th–13th centuries from earlier oral traditions; the two main source manuscripts were created c. 1350–1410, as well as a few earlier fragments. These stories offer drama, romance, tragedy and humour, were created by various narrators over time; the title covers a collection of eleven prose stories of different types. There is a classic hero quest, "Culhwch and Olwen"; the sophisticated complexity of the Four Branches of the Mabinogi defies categorisation. The stories are so diverse that it has been argued that they are not a true collection. Scholars from the 18th century to the 1970s predominantly viewed the tales as fragmentary pre-Christian Celtic mythology, or in terms of international folklore. There are traces of mythology, folklore components, but since the 1970s an understanding of the integrity of the tales has developed, with investigation of their plot structures and language styles.
They are now seen as a sophisticated narrative tradition, both oral and written, with ancestral construction from oral storytelling, overlay from Anglo-French influences. The first modern publications were English translations by William Owen Pughe of several tales in journals in 1795, 1821, 1829; however it was Lady Charlotte Guest in 1838–45 who first published the full collection, bilingually in Welsh and English. She is assumed to be responsible for the name "Mabinogion", but this was in standard use since the 18th century. 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... dictionarium duplex, article "Hob". The Guest translation of 1877 in one volume has been influential and remains read today; the most recent translation is a compact version by Sioned Davies. John Bollard has published a series of volumes with his own translation, with copious photography of the sites in the stories.
The tales continue to inspire new fiction, dramatic retellings, visual artwork, research. The name first appears in 1795 in William Owen Pughe's translation of Pwyll in the journal Cambrian Register under the title "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 the regional eisteddfodau in Wales. 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. It is now agreed that this one instance was a mediaeval scribal error which assumed'mabinogion' was the plural of'mabinogi,', a Welsh plural occurring at the end of the remaining three branches; the word mabinogi itself is something of a puzzle, although derived from the Welsh mab, which means "son, young person". Eric P. Hamp of the earlier school traditions in mythology, found a suggestive connection with Maponos "the Divine Son", a Gaulish deity.
Mabinogi properly applies only to the Four Branches, a organised quartet likely by one author, where the other seven are so diverse. Each of these four tales ends with the colophon "thus ends this branch of the Mabinogi", hence the name. Lady Charlotte Guest's work was helped by the earlier research and translation work of William Owen Pughe; the first part of Charlotte Guest's translation of the Mabinogion appeared in 1838, it was completed in seven parts in 1845. A three-volume edition followed in 1846, a revised edition in 1877, her version of the Mabinogion remained standard until the 1948 translation by Gwyn Jones and Thomas Jones, praised for its combination of literal accuracy and elegant literary style. Several more, listed below, have since appeared. Dates for the tales in the Mabinogion have been much debated, a range from 1050 to 1225 being proposed, with the consensus being that they are to be dated to the late 11th and 12th centuries; the stories of the Mabinogion appear in either or both of two medieval Welsh manuscripts, the White Book of Rhydderch or Llyfr Gwyn Rhydderch, written circa 1350, the Red Book of Hergest or Llyfr Goch Hergest, written about 1382–1410, though texts or fragments of some of the tales have been preserved in earlier 13th century and manuscripts.
Scholars agree that the tales are older than the existing manuscripts, but disagree over just how much older. It is clear, thus the tale of Culhwch ac Olwen, with its primitive warlord Arthur and his court based at Celliwig, is accepted to precede the Arthurian romances which show the influence of Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae and the romances of Chrétien de Troyes.. Those following R. S. Loomis would date it before 1100, see it as providing important evidence for the development of Arthurian legend, with links to Nennius and early Welsh poetry.. By contrast, The Dream of Rhonabwy is set in the reign of the historical Madog ap Maredudd, must therefore either be contemporary with or postdate his reign, being early 13thC. Much debate has been focused on the dating of the Four Bran
Ataraxia (band)
Ataraxia is an Italian neoclassical dark wave band who combine modern technology with archaic instrumentation over various media, founded by Francesca Nicoli and Michele Urbano in November, 1985. In the first five years there were many musicians in the band, until Francesca Nicoli, Vittorio Vandelli, Giovanni Pagliari became the basic line-up until today, they say they have dedicated their lives to art, to explore the nobleness of centuries in many possible ways. They define themselves as "craftsmen of the sound" because they create an unusual mix of sacred and profane and experimental, contemporary and early music, using acoustic and electric instruments as well, always with such language which fits best to the actual work. Francesca Nicoli - vocal, recorder Vittorio Vandelli - guitars, vocal Giovanni Pagliari - keys, vocal Riccardo Spaggiari - percussion, vocal Michele Urbano - bass Donato - guitar Lorenzo Busi - actor and dancer Livio Bedeschi - photographer and graphic designer Nicolas Ramain - speech and guitar in the song "Strange Lights" Francesco Banchini - clarinet, percussion, vocal Prophetia Nosce te ipsum Arazzi Sub ignissima luna Simphonia sine nomine Ad perpetuam rei memoriam Il fantasma dell'opera La malédiction d'ondine The Moon Sang on the April Chair Il fantasma dell'opera Concerto N.6: A baroque plaisanterie Historiae Lost Atlantis Suenos Mon seul désir Saphir Paris spleen Kremastra nera Llyr Spasms Wind at Mount Elo Ena Deep Blue Firmament Synchronicity Embraced Os cavaleiros do templo Strange lights Orlando "Des paroles blanches" Arcana eco Nosce te ipsum Would the Winged Light Climb?
Concerto No. 6. - A baroque plaisanterie Os cavaleiros do tempolo Spirito ancestrale Official Website Ataraxia discography at MusicBrainz Ataraxia discography at Discogs Gor info page at website of its label Prikosvenie interview with the band
Irish mythology
The mythology of pre-Christian Ireland did not survive the conversion to Christianity. However, much of it was preserved in medieval Irish literature, though it was shorn of its religious meanings; this literature represents the most extensive and best preserved of all the branches of Celtic mythology. Although many of the manuscripts have not survived and much more material was never committed to writing, there is enough remaining to enable the identification of distinct, if overlapping, cycles: the Mythological Cycle, the Ulster Cycle, the Fenian Cycle and the Historical Cycle. There are a number of extant mythological texts that do not fit into any of the cycles. Additionally, there are a large number of recorded folk tales that, while not mythological, feature personages from one or more of these four cycles. Today some of the best known tales are of Tír na nÓg, Fionn MacCumhaill, Na Fianna, The Aos Sí / Aes Sídhe, Sétanta, The Tuatha Dé Danann, the Children of Lir, Táin Bó Cúailnge & the Salmon of Knowledge.
Depending on the sources, the importance of gods and goddesses in Irish mythology varies. The geographical tales, emphasize the importance of female divinities while the historical tradition focuses on the colonizers, inventors, or male warriors with the female characters only intervening in episodes. Goddesses are linked to a place and they seem to draw their power from that place, they are maternal deities caring for the earth itself as well as children. They are connected to poetry, smith craft, healing. Many appear to be prophetic when foretelling death as well as transformational. Zoomorphism is an important feature for many Irish deities. Badb Catha, the Raven of Battle, introduces zoomorphism to celtic deities of both sexes. Male deities are less zoomorphic than the female deities in the Irish tradition, but there are still some instances of shapeshifting among gods. There is a presence in Irish Mythology of the Triad referred to as the "power of three," which expresses the extreme potency of a deity rather than dividing the power.
It is an attribute more pronounced among female deities. Dagda is called by two other names, Lug has two brothers, there is the Three Gods of Skill There is a lack of a goddess of love equivalent to Aphrodite or Venus due to the predominance of the maternal element in the culture of the Celts. There are multiple categories of goddesses in Irish Mythology: the Mother Goddess, Seasonal Goddess, Warrior Goddess are a few; some of these goddesses are considered to be all one goddess while other stories treat them as separate. Among the mother goddesses is Anu the goddess of Danu. Additionally, Brigit is a mother goddess, sometimes considered one goddess and sometimes considered the three sisters Brigit, she is the mother goddess that watches over childbirth. She brings abundance. Brigit can be categorized as a seasonal goddess and one can win her favor by burying a fowl alive at the meeting of three waters as a form of sacrifice, she survives as Saint Brigit in the Christian faith and some modern folklore makes her midwife to the Blessed Virgin.
The function of these goddesses involves the entire cycle of life from birth through adolescence and the fertility. They are protecting forces that provide the necessities of life within the home and are envisioned as being the earth itself, their importance have led some scholars to propose a matrilineal social organization and others highlight this argument as being feminist propaganda and deny all indications of importance. These goddesses are the patronesses of feasts, they appear during great feasts of Ireland and they bring abundance. The main goddesses are the Machas: Carman, Tea, but there are other seasonal goddesses. Warrior Goddesses are linked with warrior women because there is historical evidence of women leading their tribes into battle. Oftentimes, warrior goddesses are depicted in a trio; this trio can change to include different goddesses. They reign over the battlefield without having to physically be involved, they do not need to strike a blow because they control the events while the male deities are depicted as being in the battles.
This aspect leads to the discussion of women as the gods of slaughter. Scholars note that the female deities govern the natural event while the male deities govern the social event; the main goddesses of war are Morrigan and Bodb. The Irish Gods are divided into four main groups. Group one encompasses the older gods of Britain; the second group is the main focus of much of the mythology and surrounds the native Irish gods with their homes in burial mounds. The third group are the gods that dwell in the sea and the fourth group includes stories of the Otherworld; the gods that appear most are Dagda and Lug. Some scholars have argued that the stories of these gods align with the Greek gods. Druids were held in high esteem by the community as religious leaders, their functions and origins are debated which some attribute to the fact that there was no written tradition. This lack of documentary evidence is said to be because the practices become common property and this makes the student relax their diligence.
They are figures in Irish Mythology and study astronomy. Heroes in Irish mythology can be found in two distinct groups. There is the hero outside of the tribe; the first group encompasses all, subject to man and his works must belong to the tribe and live under its laws. Within the tribe, heroes are of the race of humans and gods
