14
votes
Accepted
Was there any figure considered to be evil in iron age Celtic paganism religion of England?
Keep in mind that we're reaching deep behind the shrouds of history. Little is known for certain of religious practices this far back; thus, a great deal of speculation and reconstruction is necessary ...
- 7,877
10
votes
Are all Celtic Gods (Irish, Welsh, Scottish, and British) considered part of the same pantheon?
Celtic refers to any of the peoples who spoke Celtic languages, and this includes France, parts of Germany and Austria, and northern Italy. The peoples of Ireland and Britain are called Insular Celts, ...
- 5,920
9
votes
Accepted
Revenants in mythology of the British Isles?
I'm not aware of a story that could possibly be a basis for the white walkers, but it could be argued that a zombie story exists in the second branch of the Mabinogi, the tale of Branwen ferch Llŷr. A ...
- 17.1k
8
votes
Accepted
How are Norse and Celtic mythology related?
How are Norse and Celtic mythology related? In a few different ways, I suppose.
Because they are the mythologies of similar human societies.
An example: the “Green Man” isn’t exclusively Celtic, ...
- 581
6
votes
Revenants in mythology of the British Isles?
Abhartach (Ireland)
Irish folklore speaks of Abhartach, a dwarf who rose from the dead multiple times after being slain. In The Origin and History of Irish Names of Places (c. 1871), Patrick Weston ...
- 7,133
6
votes
How does the Devil come to be horned?
I have a theory that could possibly explain this.
In Ezekiel 28:12-14, the king of Tyre (who is commonly believed to be Satan) is described as a cherub. In Ezekiel 1, the prophet Ezekiel saw 4 living ...
5
votes
Was there any figure considered to be evil in iron age Celtic paganism religion of England?
Your question is difficult to answer definitely because of several factors: what we know about the concepts and beliefs of iron age Europe is a patchwork of evidence, archaeology, contemporary ...
4
votes
Accepted
Who was Scathach and Aoife?
1) Who is Scáthach?
Scáthach is the warrior woman who varyingly lives in the 'east of the world' who Cú Chulainn is sent to train with:
Then Domnall said that Cuchulind would not have profession ...
4
votes
Accepted
Which Celtic god is the equivalent of the Roman Dis Pater?
The two most common candidates are Cernunnos and Sucellos. Anne Ross in her book Pagan Celtic Religion, and Phyllis Fray Bober in her paper on Cernunnos both suggest that the god, who has connections ...
- 5,920
4
votes
Accepted
Why isn’t Lúgh Lámhfhada considered a sun-god?
Basically, there was a Victorian mania for identifying mythological figures as sun gods, they massively overdid it, and there has been a reaction against that. Scholars are, on the whole, much more ...
3
votes
Ancient celtic-iberian deity roughly named "Pecosuosucivo"
This name doesn't seem Celtic. It could be derived from vulgar Latin based on:
Pecus (guard) suos (acc. plural oneself) succentīvus ([those]around)
or
Pecus (guard) suos (acc. plural oneself) su (...
- 5,388
3
votes
Why did druidesses vow perpetual virginity?
Perhaps an answer can be found from a different group of Celtic people, the Welsh:
Math fab Mathonwy was a king of Gwynedd who needed to rest his feet in the lap of a virgin unless he was at war, or ...
- 984
3
votes
What's a good source on Fairies online?
You can find a lot of sources on Internet Sacred Text Archive ...
You have to scroll down to approximately 7/8 and you can find all the fairy texts you need. Or ctrl-f fairies.
- 6,718
3
votes
Why are mermaids naked?
A number of reasons: mermaids are part of nature, not culture, Classical depictions of marine deities and other spirits show them naked, and because mermaids are supposed to be sexy.
- 5,920
2
votes
How are Norse and Celtic mythology related?
Actually, the ancient people of northern Europe are all related (for all intents and purposes shall be referred to as Nords); as are those of the south (the pre-migration civilisation/culture known as ...
- 21
2
votes
What's a good source on Fairies online?
Katherine Mary Brigg's The Vanishing People: Fairy Lore and Legends, is a good source, as well as Evan-Wentz's The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries and Robert Kirk's The Secret Commonwealth. They're ...
- 5,920
2
votes
Who was Scathach and Aoife?
I recall that Scathach taught martial arts to Cú Chulainn on the Isle of Skye.
Wikipedia confirms this:
Scáthach (Scottish Gaelic: Sgàthach an Eilean Sgitheanach), or Sgathaich, is a figure in the ...
- 319
2
votes
Was there any figure considered to be evil in iron age Celtic paganism religion of England?
There's maybe one source from all of the surviving literature that may express a pre-Christian British myth with an 'evil' deity, from Plutarch's De Defectu Oraculorum, Vol V:
18 1 Demetrius said ...
2
votes
Accepted
Where did the idea come from that fairies must tell the truth?
Great question. The short answer is that the development of faeries being literally unable to lie is a more modern take1. There's no question faeries could be deceptive in earlier traditions, but ...
- 464
2
votes
Accepted
Are there recommended collection/translations of Irish mythology/folklore?
Let me start my answer by saying that Irish mythology is a complete mess, not in the sense of the myths per se, but of the sources. The division in the four major cycles is a convenient cataloguing ...
- 2,073
1
vote
Is there any folklore reference to fairies being divided into Summer and Winter Courts?
I think it is explicitly spelt out in Pwyll Lord of Dyfed if you speak welsh. Arawn's rivals name is Hafgan. Haf is welsh for summer.
- 111
1
vote
Accepted
Was Nuada Airgetlám accompanied by dogs?
As far as my studies have found what you have found is all there is. The association is strictly based on the common understanding that Nuada is the post-christian Irish descendent of the Celtic god ...
- 176
1
vote
Where did the idea come from that fairies must tell the truth?
Is there any surviving older source that records fairies or other beings as unable to lie, or even just keeping to a strict code of honesty?
Yes! there's a lot of research in this field. You would be ...
- 415
1
vote
Ancient celtic-iberian deity roughly named "Pecosuosucivo"
The highest deity in the male trias in various Indo-European mythologies has a similar name :
Slavic Perun (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perun)
Baltic Perkunas (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perk%C5%...
- 211
1
vote
How can a human invite or summon a fairy lover?
Not sure if this qualifies, but the Grimms included a text they called “The Hand with the Knife” as #8 in the first ed. of the Kinder und Hausmärchen (KHM). It was translated by Jacob Grimm from the ...
- 581
1
vote
What did Cuchulainn's warp spasm look like?
It has been equated by many to the Viking Berserkers who became like mad beasts, biting on their shield rims, howling madly and impervious to sounds even though they went into battle unarmed and even ...
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