Books on irish mythology

I would prefer it be specifically for irish myths, but ill settle for celtic in general. Unless i wasted decades and thousands of dollars on books by academics new and old, this book is rubbish. Irelands ancient societies, the druids and the celtics, believed in the power of magic and many of these beliefs spread to modern day legends told again and again across the country. Maine mac darthacht owner of a cloak fastened by eight stones. Celtic mythology and irish legends books and activities for. If you want a more or less exhaustive volume of irish mythology, this book is a good choice. Cu chulainn was the most prominent of hero of ulster and his story is told largely in within the ulster cycle of irish mythology. Theres a ridiculous number of introductory books on celtic mythology out there. Fiction or nonfiction books on irish mythology or folklore by irish writers. Celtic mythology and irish legends books and activities. Sep 24, 2019 irish mythology is a branch of celtic mythology detailing the legends and histories of ancient ireland. Someone has linked to this thread from another place on reddit.

This already difficult quest is further complicated by the fact that most of these books have extremely generic titles like celtic myths and legends or celtic. The greeks used gods, heroes, and monsters to describe supernatural events and other events answers didnt yet exist forscience at the. Heres a list of 100 free mythology and folklore ebooks i. Joe barrett heinrich himmler the ss gestapo his life and career audiobook duration. Within the irish imagination are four perhaps five complete worlds to immerse yourself in, with their own inspiring heroes, awesome villains and compelling stories that weave together in a separate and connected way. Maeve was a decisive and forceful leader who ruled over connaught during the. As i havent grown up in ireland but intend to live here for a while, id like to get to know some of the mythology. Im all for celebrating irish culture, learning irish historymyths, or recognizing the strugglestriumphsstories of irish americans, but i hate all of the leprechaun kitsch. Please only separate the subject of a cultures mythology into a separate book if it has a reasonable amount of content. Celtic mythology encompasses the collections of brittonic, scottish, and irish ancient beliefs and practices passed down by oral tradition. As an irish american mythologyreligion major, i have a lovehate relationship with st.

All manner of havoc and disaster starts because queen medb and king ailill of connach. Can anyone recommend a really good collection of irish fairy tales, legends and mythology. Patricks day books also includes celtic mythology and folklore. The geographical tales, dindshenchas, emphasize the importance of female divinities and powerful ancestors, while the historical tradition focuses on the colonizers, inventors, or male warriors with the female characters only intervening in episodes. Reviewed in irish central 2019 wonder of irelands ancient beasts and monsters explored in new book. Irelands immortals tells the story of one of the worlds great mythologies.

Of the three books i own concentrating on celtic myth, one is completely storytelling and is great fun, one is far more. Something analogous to edith hamiltons book on greek mythology. By submitting a story to the irish imbas books celtic mythology short story competition the author acknowledges that, free of any fees or royalty payments, their short story and biography. Its difficult to find accurate sources to tell the true story of greek mythology and the family of myths passed down for thousands of yearsweve collected the best sources for you below. Jan 19, 2017 irish mythology is fascinating, dramatic and full of war, romance, magic and mystery.

Oct, 2019 when youre seeking a departure and or an awakening, read these 20 mythology books, from classic greek titles to japanese, russian, irish, and african stories. Greek mythology is a dense and fascinating topic for study. Macha goddess associated with war, battle, horses and sovereignty. Fenian cycle mythology stories many of the irish legends are made up of stories about adventures, great battles, voyages, invasions and gods but today we categories them into 4 main cycles. Celtic mythology hardcover january 1, 1970 by proinsias maccana author visit amazons proinsias maccana page.

Irish imbas celtic mythology short story competition irish. Delve into these tales of war, destruction, love, and rebirth, and superstition now. Irish mythology is fascinating, dramatic and full of war, romance, magic and mystery. Just about every book on the celts that was published after the.

A visual dictionary with entries and more than 600 fine art images. This already difficult quest is further complicated by the fact that most of these books have extremely generic titles like celtic myths and legends or celtic mythology. Although these legends are the foundational mythology of ireland, this body of lore is generally underrepresented in books of irish myth. This is a lively, emminently readable, comprehensive tome of celtic mythology. One of my favorites is the tain bo cuailgne toyne bo coolinya, roughly, also known as the book of the dun cow or, more literally, the cattle raid of cooley. Reviewed in connacht tribune 2018 mark puts mythical irish beasts at centre of story. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. Stories of warriors with all the knowledge of the world, fairies playing pranks on farm owners and leprechauns hiding their gold at the. The great irish hero cu chulainn is to irish mythology, what achilles is to greek mythology. Among these, irish mythology is the best preserved, owing to the christian monks that entered the tales into the written. Celtic mythology collection 2016 this collection by a new wave of contemporary authors sighle meehan, sheelagh russell brown, marc mcentegart, coral atkinson and marie gethins hauls celtic stories out of the dusty shadows and with succinct mythological analysis places them back into the light.

Irish imbas books was established in 2014 by irish author brian osullivan and family. The first account of the gods of irish myth to take in the whole sweep of irish literature in both the nations languages, the book describes how irelands pagan divinities were transformed into literary characters in the medieval christian era. Irelands long history is riddled with ancient mythology and folklore. Website for irish and celtic literature, mythology, and folklore, including fairy tales, mythological hero tales, and study resources. Eventually, i plan to write about irish mythology, but to do so, i first wanted to do my utmost to fill in the gaps of my knowledge and make sure i could do these wonderful stories justice. Celtic myths and legends by peter berresford ellis. The mythological cycle, the finn cycle, the ulster cycle and the historical cycle. The 10 best celtic mythology books norse mythology for smart. Apr 29, 2018 joe barrett heinrich himmler the ss gestapo his life and career audiobook duration. Irish mythology, folk tales and history is separated into four cycles the mythological cycle, the ulster cycle, the fenian cycle and the historical cycle. As with greek mythology, when a section obtains enough content for it to be considered material for a book, it will be distended into a separate book that will only be linked to from here. From fionn mac cumhaill to the children of lir, enjoy the top ten stories from irish mythology. Translated and edited by lady gregory, founder of the abbey theatre, this collection appears, as it claims, to be complete.

Mostly we do this through stories but also through associated learnings for modernday audiences. Celtic mythology, fantasy, and historical fiction books set in ancient ireland score a book s total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book. The tales are, in the main, related in four cycles which sometimes are intertwined, the mythological cycle, the ulster cycle, the fenian cycle and the historical cycle. Ie is an irish based online bookstore offering a wide diverse range of books, new releases, bestsellers, bargains and rare books, with worldwide delivery. Hounded by kevin hearne, daughter of the forest by juliet marillier, hexed by kevin hearne, the mabinogion by anonymou. An explanation of the celtic cycles irish mythology in irish myths, the fictional history of ireland can be divided into three periods. Literature irish writers online irish playography study ireland. Figuring out which ones are the best can be a daunting task.

Maeve the sexual goddess of irish mythology who slay cuchulainn to say that queen maeve of connaught is a legendary figure in irish mythology is a dramatic understatement. Reviewed in galway advertiser 2018 theres more to mythical ireland than leprechauns. The legends of ancient greece, rome and the norse and celtic worlds. They are, after all, my own ancestral heritage, and i wanted to approach the mythology with respect and humility. When youre seeking a departure and or an awakening, read these 20 mythology books, from classic greek titles to japanese, russian, irish, and african stories. This is actually two great books in one tome gods and fighting men and. Something that names the major deities and figures, highlights the major stories, discusses mythological creatures, etc. For those who see parallels between sasquatch and folklore heres a list of 100 free mythology and folklore ebooks i madei thought you all might be interested.

Celtic mythology and irish legends books, irish, celtic. Mar 17, 2011 irelands long history is riddled with ancient mythology and folklore. A lucky list of celtic mythology and irish legends for children a list of the best irish folktales and fairy tales for kids. I would prefer it be specifically for irish myths, but ill. The 10 best celtic mythology books norse mythology for. Aug 15, 2016 10 books about mythology for readers who want to dive into ancient myths. Riordans sources for the mythology used in his books must largely be surmised from isolated comments on the subject during various interviews, as he has never released a list of any kind.

We research and explore ancient irish cultural knowledge and concepts and transfer them into a form thats more accessible and relevant for contemporary times. These cycles define important events in irish history, from the invasions of ireland by the various celtic tribes, to the division of the country into the five gaelic provinces of ulster. It has inspired much of modern irish art and forms a big part of the irish identity, but for the most part it remains either a random collection of old stories from school days, or a complicated web of characters, cycles and historical contexts. There are also other sources such as the book of hy maine, the great book of lecan, the yellow book of lecan and also the book of ballymote. I got inspiration for this story from feeling alone for the past couple of days and combined it with irish mythology. Fairy tales and stories of enchantment from ireland, scotland, brittany, and wales irish books, mythology books, adult fairy tales, celtic gifts by kate forrester aug 30, 2016 4. Celtic mythology collection 2016 this collection by a new wave of contemporary authors sighle meehan, sheelagh russell brown, marc mcentegart, coral atkinson and marie gethins hauls celtic stories out of the dusty shadows and with succinct mythological analysis. Badb war goddess who caused fear and confusion among soldiers, often taking the form of a crow. Mar 02, 2020 four cycles of irish mythology topics. Cuchulain of muirthemne covers the ulster cycle, the great legends of northern ireland, in the time of cuchulain. The three main manuscript sources for irish mythology are the late 11thearly 12th century lebor na huidre book of the dun cow which is in the library of the royal irish academy, the early 12th century book of leinster in the library of trinity college, dublin, and the bodleian library, ms rawlinson b 502 rawl. For the reader whos looking for an entertaining introduction to celtic mythology that.

Both brave warriors were undefeatable in battle and both were demigods. Irish imbas celtic mythology short story competition. Maeve the sexual goddess of irish mythology who slay. Its still just a story, like all of my other stores. Irish mythology is a branch of celtic mythology which details the origin stories and deities, kings, and heroes of ancient ireland. I didnt use any movies, books or series for inspiration, just the mythological creatures from irish folk tales and myths, the story is my original work. Were very strong on delivering content thats entertaining but also culturally authentic. May 22, 2015 from fionn mac cumhaill to the children of lir, enjoy the top ten stories from irish mythology. It is as if in each cycle a discrete world is brought in to being with its own heroic archetypes, its own compendium of stories, and a resulting set of values and beliefs.