|
Llŷr
Llŷr ( (); meaning 'half-speech' or 'half-language') is a figure in Welsh mythology, probably originally a deity, probably derived from Irish Ler ('the Sea'), father of ''Manannán mac Lir''. Other than his progeny and odd tidbits, his identity remains obscure. Llŷr appears as the father of Brân, Brânwen and Manawydan by Penarddun in the ''Branwen, Daughter of Llyr'', the Second Branch of the '' Mabinogi''.: "Bendigeidfran son of Llŷr was crowned king. His two brothers on the mother's side (Nisien and Efnisien) were sons of Euroswydd by his mother Penarddun." The Welsh Triads states that Llŷr was imprisoned by Euroswydd, and presumably, Penarddun subsequently married Euroswydd, giving birth by Euroswydd to her two younger sons, Nisien and Efnisien, as stated in the Second Branch. William Shakespeare's play ''King Lear'' is based on material taken secondhand (through Raphael Holinshed) from Geoffrey of Monmouth's mythical king King Leir, who has often been conn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Welsh Mythology
Welsh mythology (also commonly known as ''Y Chwedlau'', meaning "The Legends") consists of both folk traditions developed in Wales, and traditions developed by the Celtic Britons elsewhere before the end of the first millennium. As in most of the predominantly oral societies Celtic mythology and history were recorded orally by specialists such as druids (). This oral record has been lost or altered as a result of outside contact and invasion over the years. Much of this altered mythology and history is preserved in Medieval Welsh literature, medieval Welsh manuscripts, which include the Red Book of Hergest, the White Book of Rhydderch, the Book of Aneirin and the Book of Taliesin. Other works connected to Welsh mythology include the ninth-century Latin historical compilation ''Historia Brittonum'' ("History of the Britons") and Geoffrey of Monmouth's twelfth-century Latin chronicle ''Historia Regum Britanniae'' ("History of the Kings of Britain"), as well as later Welsh folklore, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brân The Blessed
Brân the Blessed ( or ''Brân Fendigaidd'', literally "Blessed Crow") is a giant and king of Britain in Welsh mythology. He appears in several of the Welsh Triads, but his most significant role is in the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, '' Branwen ferch Llŷr''. He is a son of Llŷr and Penarddun, and the brother of Brânwen, Manawydan, Nisien and Efnysien. The name "Brân" in Welsh is usually translated as crow or raven. Role in the ''Mabinogion'' The Irish king Matholwch sails to Harlech to speak with Brân the Blessed, high king of the Island of the Mighty and to ask for the hand of his sister Branwen in marriage, thus forging an alliance between the two islands. Brân agrees to Matholwch's request, but the celebrations are cut short when Efnysien, a half-brother of Brân and Branwen, brutally mutilates Matholwch's horses, angry that his permission was not sought in regard to the marriage. Matholwch is deeply offended until Brân offers him compensation in th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Four Branches Of The Mabinogi
The ''Four Branches of the Mabinogi'' or are the earliest prose stories in the literature of Great Britain, Britain. Originally written in Wales in Middle Welsh, but widely available in translations, the is generally agreed to be a single work in four parts, or "branches." The interrelated tales can be read as mythology, political themes, romances, or magical fantasies. The tales are popular today in book format, as storytelling or theatre performances; they appear in recordings and on film, and continue to inspire reinterpretations in artwork and modern fiction, such as the ''New Stories of the Mabinogion'' series and ''The Assembly of the Severed Head'' by Hugh Lupton. Overview The are known as the ''Four Branches of the'' , or in Welsh. The tales were compiled from oral tradition in the 11th century. They survived in private family libraries via medieval manuscripts, of which two main versions and some fragments continue to survive today. Early modern scholarship of the saw ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manawydan
Manawydan fab Llŷr is a figure of Welsh mythology, the son of Llŷr and the brother of Brân the Blessed and Brânwen. The first element in his name is cognate with the stem of the name of the Irish sea god Manannán mac Lir, and likely originated from the same Celtic deity as Manannán. Unlike Manannán, however, no surviving material connects him with the sea in any way except for his patronymic (''llŷr'' is an old Welsh word for ''sea''). Manawydan's most important appearances occur in the Second and Third Branches of the Mabinogi (the latter of which is named for him), but he is also referenced frequently in medieval poetry and the Welsh Triads. The Mabinogi Second Branch Manawydan is an important character in the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, the ''Mabinogi of Brânwen, Daughter of Llŷr''. In this tale, Manawydan serves as advisor to his brother Brân the Blessed, the King of Britain. He sits beside Brân at the feast celebrating the wedding of their sister Brânw ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Branwen
Branwen, Daughter of Llŷr is a major character in the medieval Welsh story known as the Second Branch of the ''Mabinogi'', which is sometimes called the "Mabinogi of Branwen" after her. Branwen is a daughter of Llŷr and Penarddun. She is married to Matholwch, King of Ireland, but the marriage does not bring peace. Her story The story opens with Branwen's brother, Brân the Blessed, giant and King of Britain, sitting on a rock by the sea at Harlech and seeing the vessels of Matholwch, King of Ireland, approaching. Matholwch has come to ask for the hand of Branwen in marriage. Brân agrees to this, and a feast is held to celebrate the betrothal. During the feast, Efnysien, a half-brother of Branwen and Brân, arrives at the stables and asks of the nature of the celebration. On being told, he is furious that his half sister has been given in marriage without his consent, and flying into a rage he mutilates the horses belonging to the Irish. Matholwch is deeply offended, but c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mabinogion
The ''Mabinogion'' () is a collection of the earliest Welsh prose stories, compiled in Middle Welsh in the 12th–13th centuries from earlier oral traditions. There are two main source manuscripts, created –1410, as well as a few earlier fragments. Often included in the broader mythologies described as the Matter of Britain, the Mabinogion consists of eleven stories of widely different types, offering drama, philosophy, romance, tragedy, fantasy and humour. Strictly speaking, the Four Branches of the Mabinogi are the main sequence of related tales, but seven others include a classic hero quest, "Culhwch and Olwen"; a historic legend, complete with glimpses of a far off age, in "Lludd and Llefelys"; and other tales portraying a very different King Arthur from the later popular versions. The stories were created and amended by various narrators over a very long period of time, and scholars beginning from the 18th century predominantly viewed the tales as fragmentary pre-Christi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Penarddun
Penarddun is a figure in Welsh mythology, the wife of Llŷr. The Second Branch of the ''Mabinogi'' names Bran, Branwen, and Manawydan as her children by Llŷr, and ascribes to her two additional sons by Euroswydd: Nisien, a good man, and Efnysien, a conniving troublemaker. The Welsh Triads call Llŷr one of the Three Exalted Prisoners of Britain for his captivity at Euroswydd's hands; this likely refers to a lost tradition of the birth of Penarddun's younger sons. The ''Mabinogi'' names Penarddun as a daughter of the ancestor Beli Mawr was an ancestor figure in Middle Welsh literature and genealogies. He is the father of Cassivellaunus, Arianrhod, Lludd Llaw Eraint, Llefelys, and Afallach. In certain medieval genealogies, he is listed as the son or husband of Anna, cousi ..., but the genealogy is confused; it is possible she was meant to be his sister rather than daughter. The name Penarddun can be translated as "Chief Beauty" or "Most Fair" ( Welsh ''pen'' "head, chi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Efnisien
Efnisien fab Euroswydd (also spelled Efnissien or Efnysien) is a sadistic anti-hero in Welsh mythology, appearing prominently in the tale of ''Branwen ferch Llŷr'', the second branch of the Mabinogi. Described by Will Parker as "a study in the psychopathic personality" and an "embodiment of the forces of anti-social disruption," he is the catalyst of the tale's ultimate tragedy, and is largely responsible for the destruction of both Ireland and the Island of the Mighty. He is the son of Euroswydd and Penarddun, twin brother to Nisien, and half-brother to Brân the Blessed, Manawydan, and Branwen. The Welsh Triads call Llŷr one of the Three Exalted Prisoners of Britain for his captivity at Euroswydd's hands; this is likely to a lost tradition of the birth of Penarddun's younger sons. Role in Welsh tradition The Irish king Matholwch sails to Harlech to speak with Brân the Blessed high king of the Island of the Mighty and to ask for the hand of his sister Branwen in marria ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manannán Mac Lir
or , also known as ('son of the Sea'), is a Water deity, sea god, warrior, and king of the Tír na nÓg, otherworld in Irish mythology, Gaelic (Irish, Manx, and Scottish) mythology who is one of the . He is seen as a ruler and guardian of the Celtic Otherworld, otherworld, and his dominion is referred by such names as (or , 'Isle of Apple Trees'), ('Plain of Delights'), or ('Land of Promise'). He is described as over-king of the surviving Tuatha Dé after the advent of humans (Milesians (Irish), Milesians), and uses the mist of invisibility () to cloak the whereabouts of his home as well as the dwellings of the others. In modern tales, he is said to own a self-navigating boat named ('Wave-sweeper'), a horse which can course over water as well as land, and a deadly strength-sapping sword named , though the list does not end there. appears also in Scottish mythology, Scottish and Culture of the Isle of Man, Manx legend, where he is known as ('little Manannan, son of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Euroswydd
Euroswydd is a figure in Welsh mythology, the father of Nisien and Efnysien by Penarddun, daughter of Beli Mawr. In the Second Branch of the ''Mabinogi'' Penarddun is married to Llŷr, by whom her children are Brân, Branwen, and Manawydan. The circumstances of Nisien and Efnysien's conception are not described, but one of the Welsh Triads The Welsh Triads (, "Triads of the Island of Britain") are a group of related texts in medieval manuscripts which preserve fragments of Welsh folklore, mythology and traditional history in groups of three. The triad is a rhetorical form whereby o ... mentions that Euroswydd had held Llŷr captive as one of the Three Exalted Prisoners of the Island of Britain; it is likely the traditions are connected. It is possible he is the aging King in the Manx tale Y Chadee and father of Eshyn and Ny-Eshyn oddly familiar sounding names of a Good son (Eshyn) and a Bad son (Ny-Eshyn) which parallel what is said about Nisien and Efnisien in the tale of Bra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Matholwch
Matholwch, King of Ireland, is a character in the Second Branch of the '' Mabinogi'', the tale of Branwen ferch Llŷr. The story opens with Bendigeidfran (Bran the Blessed), giant and king of Britain, sitting on a rock by the sea at Harlech and seeing the vessels of Matholwch approaching. Matholwch has come to ask for the hand of Bendigeidfran's sister Branwen in marriage. Bendigeidfran agrees to this, and a feast is held to celebrate the betrothal. While the feast is going on, Efnisien, a half-brother of Branwen and Bendigeidfran, arrives and asks why there were celebrations. On being told, he is furious that his half-sister has been given in marriage without his consent and vents his spleen by mutilating Matholwch's horses. Matholwch is deeply offended but is conciliated by Bran who gives him , a magical cauldron known as the cauldron of rebirth, which can bring the dead to life. Once they are married, Matholwch treats Branwen cruelly and she is forced to work in the kitch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Raphael Holinshed
Raphael Holinshed (; before 24 April 1582) was an English chronicler, who was most famous for his work on ''The Chronicles of England, Scotlande, and Irelande'', commonly known as ''Holinshed's Chronicles''. It was the "first complete printed history of England composed as a continuous narrative". The ''Holinshed Chronicles'' was a major influence on many Renaissance writers, such as Shakespeare, Spenser, Daniel and Marlowe. Biography Little is known about Holinshed's life and for the most part his early years are primarily a matter of speculation. Holinshed was most likely born to Ralph Holinshed of Cophurst in Sutton Downes, Cheshire. The date of his birth is unknown. Holinshed is assumed to have received an education from student records from Christ's College in Cambridge, which show a student under the name Holinshed attending the college from 1544 to 1545. In his later years, he lived in London where he worked as a translator for the printer Reginald Wolfe. Wolfe gave ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
