Celtic Studies

Rather than being one distinct people, the Celts were populations of Indo-Europeans who shared a related language some similar cultural traits due to related origins. In spite of these similarities the Celts evolved into distinct populations and there is little evidence that the Celtic peoples considered themselves to be a single unified culture. To put this in modern context, the United States, England, and Australia are similarly connected but very few would argue they are a single culture or population.

There is also a common misunderstanding is that “Celtic” refers primarily to Ireland, and sometimes Scotland, or that Celts refer to an extinct population. At the height of Celtic civilization, around 400 B.C.E., Celtic peoples controlled most of mainland Europe. Their territories stretched from modern day Spain into Turkey, and as far north as Scotland. Some of the cultural patterns of the Celts were adopted into later civilizations as the Celtic peoples were assimilated into later populations.

There are six Celtic nations in existence today: Brittany, Cornwall, Ireland, Isle of Man, Scotland, and Wales. Variations of Gaelic, the shared family of languages of the Celtic peoples, are still spoken in areas outside the official Celtic nations in parts of the Iberian Peninsula in Spain.

Cycles of Irish Mythology

Mythological Cycle

The Mythological Cycle holds the vestiges of pre-Christian religious practice. Though the surviving stories were collected by Christian scribes who cautioned that the Tuatha Dé Danann were powerful but not gods, they are none the less close renditions of Ireland’s pagan deities.

The Battle of Mag Leana & The Courtship of Momera

 Cath Mhuighe Leana and Tochmarc Momera is the story the events that happened when Mug Neit banished the kings of Munster and made war on Conn. The text ends with the courtship of Toidhlech to Momera, the daughter of the king of Spain.

The Three Sorrows

 This is a triad of some of the most significant stories in early Irish folklore. It consists of the Doom Children of Lir, the Fate of the Sons of Usna, and the Lamentations of the Sons of Turann.

The Book of Invasions

The primary text about this cycle is usually as Lebor Gabala Erenn, or The Book of the Invasions of Ireland, so named because it describes the six mythical invasions of Ireland. There is not surviving complete copy of the Book of Invasions, however many manuscripts contain sections of the text. In the early 1900s a scholar by the name of Robert Macalister attempted to reconstruct the book of invasions and address many of the inconsistencies between the various renditions. This resulted in a five-volume set that is the most complete accounting of the work to date.

Vol. 1 Vol. 2 Vol. 3 Vol. 4 Vol. 5

Murphy Index

 In 2008 Michael Murphy completed an index of all of Macalister’s work on the Book of Invasion. It is provided here as an academic resource.

Ulster Cycle

The Ulster Cycle centers around Cú Chulainn’s fight against Medb, the sorceress queen of Connacht.

The Cattle Raid of Cualnge

 The Táin Bó Cúailnge is the main story of the Ulster cycle and the national epic of Ireland. It tells the story of Connacht Queen Medb and King Ailill attempt to steal a prized bull, and hero Cú Chulainn’s fight against their treachery.

The Cú Chulainn Saga

 This book assembles the various Cú Chulainn stories into a chronological order. Though the Táin is included in the text, it is only one part of the saga that begins before the birth of Cú Chulainn and ends with his ghostly afterlife. Translations were made from a great many manuscripts, and the book itself represents the work of some of the most important Irish folklorists of the time.

Death Tales of the Ulster Heros

 This book includes translations of some of the death tales not included in the first two works.

Heroic Romances of Ireland

This collection compares versions of stories from the Ulster Cycle, and includes some translations not covered in previous texts.

Volume 1 Volume 2

Fianna Cycle

The Mythological Cycle holds the vestiges of pre-Christian religious practice. Though the surviving stories were collected by Christian scribes who cautioned that the Tuatha Dé Danann were powerful but not gods, they are none the less close renditions of Ireland’s pagan deities.

Kings' Cycle

The Mythological Cycle holds the vestiges of pre-Christian religious practice. Though the surviving stories were collected by Christian scribes who cautioned that the Tuatha Dé Danann were powerful but not gods, they are none the less close renditions of Ireland’s pagan deities.