Irish Trees: Myths, Legends & Folklore

by Niall Mac Coitir

Name the five Great Trees of Ireland? What trees are most often found beside holy wells or cemeteries? Which tree gave the Red Branch Knights of Ulster their name? Ireland was once so heavily wooded it was said a squirrel could travel from Cork to Killarney without touching the ground. So it is no surprise that, in ancient Ireland, mythology and folklore were a part of the people's general knowledge about trees. Many of the myths and legends and much of the folklore associated with native trees persists to this day and are gathered together in this book.

Genres: Nonfiction, Nature, Ireland, Mythology, Folklore, History, Plants

343 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[Ashley]

I liked parts of this but I'd be hesitant to recommend it to beginners. First and foremost, the mythology was completely all over the place. "Celtic" gods is an inaccurate descriptor because "Celtic" refers to a wide range of cultures, and this book was conflating Irish, Gaulish, and other deities. It also referred to Irish deities of aspects of each other - such as Donn being an aspect of An Dagda (who in turn was an aspect of... Jupiter?). Donn and An Dagda aren't even members of the same race. From Lebor Gabála Érenn, An Dagda is a member of the Tuatha Dé Danann, and Donn is a member of the Milesians who conquered Ireland after the Tuatha Dé Danann. In fact, he was fated never to step foot on Ireland. It also uses conventions such as "Celtic god of..." and "Irish god of..." when these are not applicable to Irish deities, who have many complex, multi-faceted aspects (I'm thinking specifically of the repeated reference to Aonghus as the "Celtic god of love." Aonghus is Gaelic.)

The information on folk practices was fascinating, but it bounced back and forth a lot where in one sentence you'd be learning about Irish, then the next Welsh, then back to Irish, then Scottish, so it made me a little dizzy. On top of that, it references Robert Graves who is... a nutter and Peter Beresford Ellis whose scholarship tends to be questionable.

Definitely going to save this for my own reference, but if you're looking for mythology, you should start by reading the source material yourself for sure.

[Conni Dawson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I honestly struggled through this book and didn't finish the last few pages. the writing is dense and unpolished, the payout is painful, there are a lot of assertions that feel very stretched especially in the last section about ogham and honestly it wasn't enjoyable to read.

[Shane · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book that weaves together science with Irish myth and folklore, presenting trees as collaborators and not just utilities. The book documents the (native) trees of Ireland and their status in relation to the Ogham alphabet and to the calendar used in pre-history in Ireland. All of this is accompanied by brilliant illustrations by Grania Langrishe.

Some of the sections on individual trees are repetitive. As a result of the similarities in many of the myths or associated folklore, the trees become confused with one another (and with different times, where one might have changed meaning after Christianity, for example). Still, this is thoroughly researched and includes Mac Coitir's theories on the tree link to the Ogham alphabet, a thorough and well justified series of statements.

[David Cowpar · Rating 4 out of 5]

So Fascinating

The wisdom of the past, often almost lost to us, is so fascinating to rediscover, reassess, and reimplement. This book on the place of trees in Irish life, history, the calendar and folklore, is one such fascinating rediscovery of ancient knowledge. A recommended read for sure.

[Liam Wurtz · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as good as the bird book but the vibes based metaphysical speculation at the end was better in this one.

[Gwyndyllyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is another compilation of tree lore. Very central to both Druidism and Ogham.

[Lilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

*review to come when I can find the time to write one*

[Maya · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 please read my review at Celtic Scholar's Reviews and Opinions

[Peter Gavin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read