Glossary in G (Celtic)

Here is a glossary of mythology Celtic : Gargan, Gallisenae, Geis, Glam dicinn, Gofannon, Goibniu, Gradlon, Grainne, Grannos, Gwawl, Gwenwed, Gwern, Gwydyon, Gwynn ap Nudd, Gwyon Bach

Celtic Glossary

Gargan is the avatar of the god Lug. His belief would have been maintained after the Christianization of the descendants of the peoples celts. He would be the son of the goddess Belisama who, remaining a virgin, would have been impregnated by the divine spirit of the god Belen.

Big eater, womanizer, brawler, a little simpleton but with a big heart, he led a life of wandering. In some of its aspects, it is reminiscent of the Dagda Irish,
or the giant Gargantua immortalized by Rabelais son of Gallamelle and Grandgosier.

The giant Gargan is associated by the Gallic in the fight against the Roman invaders. It would have been preserved, even among Christianized populations, as a symbol of resistance. He would thus have lent a strong hand against the English during the Hundred Years War.

The monks who had set out to definitively Christianise Western Europe fought against this survival from another age and associated it with Satan. The Benedictines thus decked out the pagans in the High Middle Ages with the nickname of Gargantuates, “those of Gargan”.

In Breton Celtic mythology, the Gallisenae (or Gallizenae) are the mythical druidesses of the island of Sein (Sena) off the coast of Armorica. The first mention of their existence dates back to Artemidorus (125 – 27 BC). According to Pomponius Mela (geographer of the 1st century AD), they are nine and have taken a vow of virginity. They have the gift of prophecy, the power to calm winds and storms and to take the animal form they desire.

The Geis (plural: geasa) is a magic incantation pronounced by the druid (the file in Ireland). If the word has no literal translation, it has the meaning of obligation and prohibition, the reference to taboo is not relevant because it is not an Indo-European notion. Based on the power of the Word, it must be oral.

The geis is of divine origin, only members of the priestly class can put it into practice by means of their magic. This constraint is not necessarily negative, it can have a positive connotation, but the literature generally only reports cases of violation. It essentially concerns the warrior class, and its representative in the person of the king, without there being any dispute, rarely members of the producer class (craftsmen, farmers, breeders) and never the Druids or women.

This religious procedure includes three phases over the span of a man's existence:

1. The Druid pronounces the incantation at the birth of the future warrior or during his military apprenticeship. It is a single geis or more frequently several geisa which constitute a set of prohibitions and obligations. It concerns all aspects of the individual's life and if there is no violation, there are no consequences.
2. During his existence the king or the warrior finds himself under the obligation to infringe the prohibitions concerning him, under penalty of losing his honor, it is the announcement of his imminent death. It should be noted that two contradictory geisa are always fatal.
3. The violation of the prescription causes the violent death of the warrior.

The incantation has the force of law, both religious and social, it is a means for the priestly class to compel the warriors to fulfill their obligations. Only a druid has the power to raise a geis. This practice should not be confused with Destiny (fatum) nor with the challenge of heroes.

There is only one known case of a collective geis in the story of the "Cooley Raid" (Táin Bó Cúailnge) where the warriors of Ulster are not allowed to speak before the king and where the latter does not can speak before his druids (see Sualtam).

The glam dicinn, in Irish Celtic mythology, is a supreme curse, uttered by a specialized druid, a file (see article bard). It is a form of satire that instantly causes three boils to erupt on the face of the subject. These boils represent 'Shame', 'Blame' and 'Ugliness' respectively. The victim is excluded from social life, and doomed to death. The satire is in the form of a scream, and if perfect, death can be immediate.

One of the best-known examples is that of the infamous Druid Aithirne Ailgesach who shames Luaine, the fiancée of King Conchobar MacNessa, to death because she does not want to sleep with him.

Gofannon is a god of Welsh Celtic mythology, he is the son of the goddess Don. His name means blacksmith, he is the equivalent Welsh the Irish god Goibniu or the Roman god Vulcan, belonging to the third artisan function, according to the tripartite ideology of the Indo-Europeans defined by Georges Dumézil (see also Tuatha Dé Danann, Classes and functions). Gofannon appears in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi, on the death of Dylan Eil Ton and in a poem from the " Book de Taliesin” in which he is mentioned as a magician.

Gofannon forges weapons that are sure and fatal for whoever receives it, and he brews a beer that makes his drinkers immortal.

Gobniu (or Goibhniu) is the blacksmith-god of the Tuatha Dé Danann, he belongs to the artisan class and therefore falls under the third function which is production. Chief of the metallurgical craftsmen, he is responsible for the manufacture of magic weapons for the gods, the heroes and the druids. Using his magic hammer, he can craft a perfect sword or javelin in three swings. During the "Second Battle of Mag Tured" (Cath Maighe Tuireadh), he was wounded by the spear of Ruadan, son of Brigit and the Formori Bres, but a bath in the Fountain of Health healed him. His brothers are Credne and Luchta.

He is also, in Sidh, that is to say the Celtic Other World, the brewer of beer and the servant of the other gods at the Feast of Immortality, the fled Goibnenn. His Welsh equivalent is Gofannon.

Gradlon, 'king' of Cornwall born 330 AD, probably a governor. Legendary character called Gradlon the Great (Gradlon Meur) in Brittany and Urban elsewhere. Eldest son of Conan Meriadec by his second wife, Saint Darerca.

In his pagan youth, Gradlon fell deeply in love with a beautiful fairy (a bansidh in Irish lore). Unfortunately, he offends the mysterious creature by converting to Christianity and seeking the advice of Saint Guénolé. The fairy leaves Gradlon crossing a torrential river and warning him not to follow her. The brave Breton pursues her, plunging into the swirling waters. The fairy, forced to save the life of her former lover, hated him no less because this rescue was proof that her love was not dead.

During a hunt, separated from his entourage, he got lost in the great forest of Menez-Hom. Almost dead from exhaustion and hunger, he stumbled upon the hermitage of Saint Corentin (now Plomodiern). Saint Corentin has a marvelous fish, half of which he cuts to eat every day and which he finds whole every morning. The saint, sharing his daily meal with the king, restored him to health. As a reward for his hospitality, Gradlon made Saint Corentin the first bishop of Cornwall.

The king's first fairy love returned many years later to possess the spirit of Gradlon's daughter, Dahut, who was responsible for the disappearance of the town of Ys.

Gradlon made Corispotium (variant: Corisopitum), then called Quimper, his new capital, his equestrian statue can also be seen between the towers of the cathedral. On the death of Gradlon, his son Solomon I succeeded him, then his grandson, Aldrien.

Grainne (Grainné or in Irish Gráinne) is the daughter of Cormac Mac Airt in Celtic mythology. She is a faithless queen and lover of Diarmuid.

Widowed, the old king Fionn mac Cumhail does not intend to end his days alone and he asks for the hand of the daughter of the great king of Ireland, Gráinne. This is not to the lady's taste. To turn him away, she demands a difficult test: the king must bring her back a pair of each animal species living in Ireland.

But that's without counting on the hunting skills of the king's nephew. The beauty only has to comply and get married. Shortly after, on the occasion of a banquet at Tara, she pours out a soporific drink to the guests, to which all succumb, except Diarmuid and Oisin, Fionn's own son. She tries to seduce Diarmuid who defends himself. But when he realizes that when the king wakes up, he will find himself alone with the queen, he agrees to flee with her. It will be his loss. The two young people hide away for sixteen years, pursued by Fionn's hatred and desire for revenge.

After sixteen years on the run, Cormac and Fionn accepted their marriage but Diarmuid was mortally wounded by a bewitched boar during a hunting party. Fionn who had witnessed the scene refused to help the dying Diarmuid.

Gráinne blamed Fionn for her lover's death and swore revenge through her four sons, but the cunning old king wooed her until she agreed to marry him.

Grannos (Latinized in Grannus) is, in Gallic Celtic mythology, a sun god comparable to Belenos, of which he is perhaps only a nickname or a representation. Like Borvo, he is a healing god, he is considered an equivalence of the god Greek Apollo, in the Gallo-Roman era. His consort is Sirona. His cult seems to have been confined to the region of Aix-la-Chapelle (Germany). The relationship is sometimes made with Mac Greine, nicknamed "son of the Sun", in Irish Celtic mythology.

Gwawl is, in Welsh Celtic mythology, the spoilsport of the marriage of Pwyll and Rhiannon. The wedding of King Pwyll and the Goddess is about to be celebrated when an intruder arrives, Gwawl, who asks for the hand of the beautiful Rhiannon.

King Pwyll, trapped, cannot refuse. The marriage of Gwawl and the Goddess is set at one year. Pwyll is determined to take back his dearest possession and he ruminates on his revenge. On the wedding day, here he is disguised as a beggar and equipped with a magic bag given by the Goddess. No one manages to fill this bag with food: it is necessary that Gwawl, the new king, tramples them with the foot to arrive there. As soon as Gwawl enters the bag, Pwyll tightens the cord and his rival finds himself caught. He will have to return Rhiannon.

Gwenved is the "White World" in Neo-Druidism.

A circle of bliss and bliss, it is the culmination of the cycle of incarnations symbolized by Abred. Also known as the paradise of the unconscious, only good men can reach the white world. In a dynamic philosophy like that of the Druids, it seems paradoxical to have a fixed state of “bliss”. The interpretation seems somewhat tinged with “Judeo-Christianity”. In the Celtic cross, this circle is the smallest (diameter 9), in the center of the cross.

In Celtic mythology Wales, Gwern appears notably in “The Mabinogi of Branwen”. He was born of the union of Matholwch, King of Ireland and Branwen, daughter of Llyr and sister of Bran the Blessed. This marriage had been decided, without the agreement of Evnissyen, the half-brother of the young woman, who will never stop taking revenge. The royal couple arrives in Ireland where Branwen gives birth to a boy: Gwern. Then, Matholwch gets tired of his wife, strips her of her title of queen and makes her work in the kitchens of the castle. Secretly, she raises a starling and sends it to her brother, a message attached to the leg. Bran the Blessed undertakes a military expedition, during which Evnissyen throws the child into the fire. He died at the age of three.

Gwynn ap Nudd, in Welsh Celtic mythology, is one of the rulers of Annwvyn, the Otherworld of the Celts. He is the son of Nudd and the brother of Yder and Bebhinn. Its name comes from the Celtic vindos which means "white, loyal, bright". He is sometimes likened to the Irishman Finn Mac Cumaill, whose grandfather Nuada, king of the Tuatha Dé Danann, is the equivalent of Nudd.

He has a psychopomp role since one of his functions is to guide the souls of the dead to the Annwvyn, accompanied by a pack of fantastic dogs.

In the Arthurian tale Kulhwch and Olwen, Creiddylad, daughter of Lludd Llaw Ereund, the fairest daughter in all the Britains, flees with Gwythyr, son of Greidawl. But before they could consummate their union, Gwynn kidnaps the young girl. The lover raises an army, but the kidnapper is victorious and takes many warriors prisoner. These nobles are released only on the intervention of King Arthur, he also decides that Creiddylad will remain with his father, without the two suitors being able to approach him. Since this story, every year, at the Calends of May, Gwynn and Gwythyr fight for Creiddylad, it will last until the Last Judgment. At this time, the winner of the fight will win the damsel.

Gwynn ap Nudd takes part in Arthur's mythical hunt against the boar Twrch Trwyth.

Gwion Bach is the first life of the bard Taliesin.

He is the guide of a blind man who is responsible for watching a cauldron, in which Keridwen prepares a mixture of which three drops must be given to his son, the hideous Morvran (nicknamed Avangddu, that is to say the black monster), the gifts of prophecy and divination. As the magic drops spring, Gwion Bach pushes the child and receives the magic gifts. In order to evade Keridwen's revenge, he flees, taking on the appearance of a hare. This is the story of the different metamorphoses: a blue salmon, a dog, a deer, a deer, a terminal, a rope, an axe, etc. In the pursuit, Keridwen transforms as many times. In a barn, he turns into a grain of wheat, Keridwen takes on the appearance of a black hen, she swallows the grain of wheat and gives birth to Gwion Bach. Unable to bring herself to kill him, she installs the child in a coracle and abandons him on the sea.

Elffin, son of Gwyddno Garanhir, participates in a miraculous catch every November 1, but instead of salmon he only harvests a coracle. He cuts the leather cords and a white forehead (tal-iesin) appears. It was Gwion Bach who wandered the sea for 40 years. This is the birth of Taliesin.