Myths and Legends of the Celts

by James MacKillop

Myths and Legends of the Celts is a fascinating and wide-ranging introduction to the mythology of the peoples who inhabited the northwestern fringes of Europe—from Britain and the Isle of Man to Gaul and Brittany. Drawing on recent historical and archeological research, as well as literary and oral sources, the guide looks at the gods and goddesses of Celtic myth; at the nature of Celtic religion, with its rituals of sun and moon worship; and at the druids who served society as judges, diviners, and philosophers. It also examines the many Celtic deities who were linked with animals and such natural phenomena as rivers and caves, or who later became associated with local Christian saints. And it explores in detail the rich variety of Celtic from early legends of King Arthur to the stories of the Welsh Mabinogi, and from tales of heroes including Cúchulainn, Fionn mac Cumhaill, and the warrior queen Medb, to tales of shadowy otherworlds—the homes of spirits and fairies. What emerges is a wonderfully diverse and fertile tradition of myth-making that has captured the imagination of countless generations, introduced and explained here with compelling insight.

Genres: Mythology, Nonfiction, History, Irish Literature, Religion, Folklore, Spirituality

416 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Marko Vasić · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is sheer revelation and mitigation of the tantalising endeavour to untangle quite tangled postulates of Celtic mythology. It is an excellent assembly of both scholarly and mythological explanations, complex and deep, sustained with extensive critical scrutiny. Quite dense with details and notes, yet remarkably comprehensive. Absolute reader's companion. MacKillop explained and scholarly criticised all postulates of both Irish and Welsh mythology, mentioning all pivotal terms and symbols which explanations are mostly omitted in classical mythological manuscripts, succouring thus their better understanding. Moreover, the author admonishes the reader of updated data existence in order to be aware of, comparing them with obsolete but well known and still popular, enclosed in many previously published editions. Yet, a slight pitfall is whether first to read the collections of the myths translated from Irish and Welsh by Lady Augusta Gregory and Lady Charlotte Guest respectively, or firstly to scrutinise this remarkable textbook and critique. I daresay that mutual reading of both myths and this book will be of the uttermost help. The list of selected and cited bibliography is remarkable. In addition, all personal and landscape names mentioned in this book are listed on almost fifty pages, with enclosed both Irish and Anglicised pronunciation, which, for me, as a non-native speaker, is of great importance, being aware of the frequent mispronunciation.

[Maria Hill AKA MH Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great overview of Celtic (predominantly Irish), paganism, mythology, and legend.

I shall be coming back to this as a good reference text as I continue with my readings on the subject.

[Benjamin Fasching-Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is not so much an introduction as a kind of a reference work. I read it from front to back, and it took a while before I realized that the reason each entry assumes some prior knowledge is because it is meant to be a kind of handbook. There is plenty here about how different scholars have interpreted certain figures, and that information usually prefaces the story summaries. Most helpful is a glossary with pronunciation guide in the back. I think a better place to start reading about Fionn mac Cumhaill, Cú Chulainn, Mad Sweeney, Dierdre, Rhiannon, and the rest of the Celtic gang is probably in the kids' section. Or maybe one of the books listed in MacKillop's bibliography, another great reason to have this title.

[Tom Fordham · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent study and recounting of the Celtic myths. MacKillop's primary focus is on the Irish cycles but his inclusion of the other Celtic nations in the British Isles and Europe towards the end of the book was fascinating. I had read a few myths from Ireland beforehand so I had some understanding but MacKillop has helped expand my knowledge and helped spur me on in my Scottish Gaelic studies.

[Abby · Rating 4 out of 5]

@JSTOR @BC why couldn’t you have pointed me in this direction when I was writing about Celtic festivals

[Isabella Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

such an informative read!!

[Simon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written by an academic for popular readership, this is one of the best books on the subject. MacKillop discusses recent historical and archaeological research as well as original source material. Though the Celts were spread across much of Europe, most of the book relates to Ireland where most of the original source material is extant. MacKillop also explains the process of mythologising, including how modern Druids reinvented Celtic mythology.

[Joshua McCune · Rating 4 out of 5]

As others have noted, there are two main ways to access this book: either as a cover-to-cover introduction into Celtic myths and legends (as I did), or as a reference guide. Simply, both work very well, but I wonder whether MacKillop, in writing this, intended both. In any case, I do have to give much credit to the helpful guide at the back - plenty of detail and reference points!

James MacKillop’s work ‘Myths and Legends of the Celts’ is a decently sized, and clearly defined, non-fiction introduction into Celts, the folklore, Myths and Legends (with particular influence from the Mabinogi, Táin Bó Cuailnge, and the Lebor Gabála). Separating the book into reasonably well organised sections (though I at times felt that some sections could have done with some re-tweaking), MacKillop provides us with evidential context, narrative summaries and tales, and finishes off with an almost half-hearted inclusion of Welsh, Cornish, Breton and Manx mythologies. The book is primarily well-written and though, at the beginning, it may feel as though prior knowledge is assumed about Cúchulainn, Fionn mac Cúmhaill and the other such mythical figures who are introduced without much explanation, there is a helpful guide at the back. Alluding to other writers before him, namely Geoffrey Keating throughout, James MacKillop does succeed in presenting a generally unbiased overview of the figures, with clear knowledge and specialism on the Irish mythological cycles, and illustrates the events without being too fantastical.

My main gripe about the book (though this doesn’t detract majorly, to be clear) is - and this is partly the writing style, partly the organisation - that it can sometimes be difficult to follow when MacKillop is discussing academic and historiographical debates and assertions, and when he’s narrating the stories. Sure, the reader soon works it out, but in doing so, misses half the story. This complication is fairly regular throughout the book and, as I note, is by no means overly problematic - but if you, as I did, decide to read this cover to cover, it is definitely worth taking heed that at seemingly random points, the narrative will begin.

Altogether, a great way to introduce yourself to the Myths and Legends of the Celts (though particularly Irish mythology), or indeed to build upon existing knowledge, and a book I’d certainly recommend for anyone wanting a brief overview.

[Leona]

Myths and Legends of the Celts was the second non-fiction book I read in January and was a fascinating read. I didn't know too much about the legends of this time except for the odd story of Cu Chulainn, Fionn MacCumhaill and Queen Maeve but this book goes into so much more detail. The book is split into three sections starting off with the context of the Celts, the remnants of Celtic religion, sacred kingship in early Ireland, goddesses and warrior queens and saints, calendar feasts and the other world. I absolutely loved the chapter of the goddesses and warrior queens the most it was so interesting. Part two of the book looks specifically at Irish Myths, the Fenian cycles of myths, the Irish mythological cycle, the Ulster cycle and the cycles of kings. Part three looks at Welsh and oral myths and the links of British and Welsh traditions. The book also explores the links that the mythological world has across Europe including comparing the Celts to the Greeks and Romans. An extremely detailed book that is full of wealth of knowledge in this topic. I would definitely recommend picking it up if you have an interest in this history.

[Djordje · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pick up this book only after you finished reading mythological texts - specifically mythological period, Ulster and Fenian cycles. There you can find of the best and detailed explanation of the Ulster cycle, especially "The Tain".
Regarding the position of women, much has been said in this book. The triple function of female deities is explained through the roles of godesses, warrior queen and saint.
One of my favorite parts of Celtic mythology is contrast between women's ugliness and beauty and how this is reflected in the texts.
At the end of the book, a small section is dedicated to the Mabinogion, the Welsh branch of Celtic mythology. The scope of the author research focuses on the first four tales, where Welsh mythology is expressed at its finest.

[Annyliis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Raamatu sisu oli kindlasti silmaringi avardav. Samas läksid mõtted tihti rändama muid radu. Ei tea kas selles nüüd just raamat ise süüdi. Võimalik, et lihtsalt selline aeg, kui mõtted oleksid ka mõne teise raamatu puhul rändama läinud. See selleks. Raamat on huvitav! Selles kahtlust pole. Ja väga põhjalikult kirja pandud.

[Sydney · Rating 3 out of 5]

At times a bit dense, but very informative and I like the comparisons.

[Oliver Fitzpatrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Comprehensive but not an introductory text, so it is a hard cover-to-cover read without prior familiarity

[Dymphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 'Myths and Legends of the Celts', James MacKillop gives the reader a wonderful overview of the Celtic myths and legends.

The book first starts with providing the context of the many myths included. This section alone is worth buying the book. Many concepts pass, well researched. Some information I already knew, but some came as a surpise.

Don't expect it to be the full texts, instead, the author summerizes the original text. Instead, it gives you an overview of the many tales the Irish and Welsh mythology contains.

Other folklore is lightly touched in this book; only the last chapter deals with tales of other parts of the celtic world. This is because there arent many tales known of these areas.

One downside is that the author uses old sources. Many sources come from the 1800's or early 1900's, which is a shame, because in this way, the author lacks new research on the celtic mythology.

[Elentarri · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent introduction to Celtic traditions and mythology for the beginner and a useful reference book for the more advanced reader. Somewhat scholarly with no airy-fairy new-age fluff. This book includes summaries of the majority of the myths and legends and places them in context. This is not a children's story book or a novelization of the myths, but rather a discussion of celts in general and their myths/legends in particular.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

On the academic side, this seems to be pretty rigorous and free of the woo-woo mysticism surrounding the Celtic myths and legends. That said, it assumes a pretty vast knowledge of said stories and legends, referencing them as if you know what he's talking about. And while that may be great if you know what he's talking about, it's fairly useless if you don't.

[Maya · Rating 5 out of 5]

For the full review please see my website: Myths and Legends of the Celts

[Ashleigh Oldfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best 'handbook' for Celtic myths and legends that I have found to date. It gives an A-Z guide to all the people in the stories, and gives a brief explanation of their tale.

[Constance Lapsati · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating archaelogical and historical studie and as the introduction says:
I am finding the Celts !!!!!

[Blithe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent index of Celtic beliefs. It's extremely dense though, don't expect to fly through it unless you don't care about absorbing the information.