The Encyclopedia of Celtic Mythology and Folklore (Facts on File Library of Religion and Mythology) by Patricia Monaghan Ph.D.

by Patricia Monaghan

It's bad when an author's socio-political motivations mar potentially decent scholarship. Case-in-point is the term Dub (Dubh, Dubhlinn, Dubhlin) - a term meaning 'black', 'dark'. Instead of indicating both, the author chose to define the term solely as 'dark'. Of course I questioned, why? Examining a number of references to places and characters, particularly characters, that normally are designated as 'Black' in Irish mythology and history, have now been transformed to 'dark' by the author instead. I then queried, could this be in response to the on-going discussion of the presence of 'Black' people that permeate Irish history and mythology, and an attempt to transform them instead to 'dark' White people? Also, Dubh-linn (Dublin), is now, according to the author 'Dark-pool' instead of Black-pool. What ever the case, consider another encyclopedia or dictionary on Celtic (Irish) mythology and history, in addition to this one, else run the risk of being left in the 'dark' on certain matters. See, as a better reference, Dictionary of Celtic Mythology - James Mackillop.

Genres: Mythology, Reference, Folklore, Paganism, History, Nonfiction, Religion

Paperback

First published December 1, 2003

About the author

Patricia Monaghan was a poet, a writer, a spiritual activist, and an influential figure in the contemporary women's spirituality movement.

Reviews

[ece ✿ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Didn't read all of it but had to read the most of it.

[Cass Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is no other encyclopedia in my vast collection that has more highlights, notes, and use than this one. As a writer who has set a world and story around Celtic lore, this book was a must have. Rarely do I not find a category or name I'm seeking and rarely do I not find some nugget that sends me down a rabbit hole of even more research. Love this resource.

[Lia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Broad collection of Celtic mythical/folklore figures, places, tales. Entries are cross-referenced. Again, the only thing that would make a book like this more user-friendly, since it does include an index, would be a sub-division of the entries by specific culture.

[Brittany Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Serves its purpose of being an encyclopedia, but I was hoping for something a little easier to tie narratives, myths, etc. Which this book does not do for beginner students of the subject.

[Ronel Janse van Vuuren · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent overview with various references for everything Celtic.

A must-have for authors infusing their stories with Celtic faeries and folklore.

[Shannon Lorraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this Encyclopedia. It is a world of knowledge towards Celtic history and information. Many of the creature and their story's, as told by my grandmother, are inside and I get to hear and learn about them on much more knowledgeable grounds.
The information is endless and I even learnt a few things, I had missed through my Grandmothers skittish approach to storytelling, about the stories I grew up with.

Such an interesting read. I recommend it to anyone who loves a little fairy-tale and who loves a little History.

[Gwen Tolios · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome detail

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great introduction to how we know what we do about Celtic mythology, and many of the more substantial entries have sources listed right after the entry. That's what I like to see in a reference book!