What Irish Mythology Female Deal With Animals And Land

The mythologies in nowadays-day France comprehend the mythology of the Gauls, Franks, Normans, Bretons, and other peoples living in French republic, those aboriginal stories about divine or heroic beings that these particular cultures believed to be truthful and that often utilise supernatural events or characters to explain the nature of the universe and humanity. French myth has been primarily influenced by the myths and legends of the Gauls (or Celts) and the Bretons equally they migrated to the French region from modern day England and Ireland. Other smaller influences on the evolution of French mythology came from the Franks.

History of myth in France [edit]

Prior to March 1790, French republic was divided into 34 provinces which existed independently of each other. All provinces operated under the government of the King, but in that location was no national citizenship or holistic nation state.^[1] Most provinces were settled past several unlike racial groups. Every bit such, most provinces developed their own unique mythological behavior and customs. These celebrated geographic divisions take led to a great diversity of myths and legends which survive beyond gimmicky France.

Gallia, etymologically distinct from Gaul though in mutual parlance used interchangeably, was the name given to contemporary France by the Romans, and comprised land from the Mediterranean coast of France to the Pyrenees. Gaul was inhabited by several ethnic groups, generally descendant from Celtic peoples, known as the Gallic tribes. These Gallic tribes developed singled-out forms of Gallo-Roman civilisation later on the Roman sacking of Gaul in the 2d century.^[2] The kickoff settlers inhabited modern solar day Brittany, and the mythology of the northernmost Gallic tribes, including werewolves and other mischwesen, survive in lais from Medieval manuscripts.^[3] Between the 3rd and 7th century, Germanic migrants began to settle in Roman-Gaul. As the Western-Roman empire began to collapse, the German migrants who would get known as the Franks began to exercise their influence over the w of France. The Franks shared many of the customs and superstitions with other Germanic peoples, and spread many of their nature rituals and behavior across western France.^[iv]

Gallo-Roman myth [edit]

After the sacking of Gaul past the Romans in the second century, the spiritual and mythological practices of the Gauls in the French region began to change due to Roman influence. Traditional Celtic Paganism draws on the deities of the Celtic pantheon, an all-encompassing grouping of gods and goddesses traditionally worshiped in Celtic lands, and acknowledges the supernatural within the natural environment. As the Roman Empire began to aggrandize, many Celtic beliefs and practices merged with the behavior of the Romans. By the third century, the Gauls worshiped many Roman deities similar Mercury and Mars, and some uniquely Gallo-Roman Gods, similar Teutates and Dea Matrona.^[5] ^{[half dozen]} Many of the Roman deities may have been worshiped under different names, though virtually records of Gallic religions were written by Romans similar Julius Caesar and hence these names are unknown.^[7]

Private households and tribes had their own gods and goddesses, who served as a span between people and nature. The Gallo-Romans believed that some natural features had their own deities. Some of these deities, are all the same revered under Christianised names, like the nymph of the Breton shore, who is still venerated nether the name of Saint Anne. Many of these local deities were drawn from the old Celtic pantheon, and influenced by the Roman deities.^[8]

The Gauls worshiped the main gods of the Roman pantheon, observing rituals related to Mercury, Apollo, Mars, Jupiter, and Minerva. Gallo-Romans regarded Mercury as the creator of the Arts, and the God ruling over trade, commerce, and communication. Apollo was believed to protect the Gauls from affliction, Minerva was the goddess of wisdom and applied life arts, Jupiter was able to command the sun, moon, and weather, and Mars was the god of war.^[ix] The Gauls oft made sacrifices to Mars during wartime, offer up cattle from conquered territories in exchange for protection in battle.

Druidism [edit]

The influence of Celtic mythology did non disappear after the Roman invasion, with the rituals and practices of Druidism even so exerting influence over the mythology of the Gauls. Druids in Roman-Gaul were the philosophers and religious figures of the Gallic tribes. Druids were the educated classes among Celtic and Gallo-Roman civilisation, having knowledge about nature, astronomy, literature, and the law. Druids were unable to record any of their noesis in written form, but records from Julius Caesar survive, giving details of Druidic rituals. Caesar writes that Druids were responsible for conducting both human and fauna sacrifices for those who were sick or at risk of dying in battle. Druids synthetic wicker statues and images in which the sacrifices are placed before they are burned. In traditional Celtic Paganism, these sacrifices were made to the Celtic gods and goddesses. Roman-Gallo Druids probably made sacrifices to honour the gods of the Roman pantheon past cartoon on the Celtic practice of sacrifice. Pliny the Elder, a Roman-Gallic author who wrote extensively near Gallo-Roman civilization, observed that Druids acted as judges in criminal cases and provided spiritual guidance to their people past interpreting omens.^[10] ^[xi]

Myths of Brittany [edit]

Prehistoric myth [edit]

The Carnac Stones in Brittany

The Carnac stones are a cluster of megaliths in the due north western village of Carnac in Brittany. The megaliths were probably built by either Celtic or pre-Celtic peoples, between the Bronze and Iron Ages. In that location are more than than three,000 types of megaliths in the cluster including the dolmen, a large, rock supported by smaller stones; and the menhir, a monolith set on the end of a single stone which is buried in the ground.^[12] The folkloric significance of these stones is unclear though they probably functioned equally outdoor altars or open-air temples for rituals involved in the practicing of Celtic Paganism.^[13] Dolmens and menhirs may as well marking the tombs of significant leaders in tribal groups, similar chiefs, priests, or celebrated warriors.^[fourteen]

Centre Ages and Paganism [edit]

The Eye Ages was a period of transition betwixt the various Pagan traditions influenced by the Celts and the Romans, and the influx of Christianity from Britain. Much of Brittany's sociology, including the Gallo-Roman deities and mythical figures, were preserved in lais; short style of poesy popular in the High Middle Ages which discuss values of chivalry, the roll of the mythical in the lives of regular people, and they deal primarily with matters of love.^[fifteen] The lais of Marie de France were some of the most influential and provided insight into many of Brittany's folkloric behavior in the Middle Ages.^[16]

Prominent figures of Celtic Paganism characteristic heavily in Breton lais. Many sprites, fairies, and demons populate the belief system of the Celts and were important figures in the communication of moral lessons and the explanation of unknown phenomena in Brittany. Such figures who were important to the Bretons included

A statue of Ankou, in the chapel of St Fiacre at Cabellou in Concarneau.

The Ankou: A grim-reaper blazon figure who travels beyond Brittany in a cart and collects the souls of peasants. The Ankou is usually depicted as a female skeleton and the figure was probably derived from the Celtic god of Death, just was greatly influenced by Medieval ideas of 'Death the Skeleton.'^[17]
The Nain: A gargoyle like creature who dance around dolmen in the heart of the night. It was believed that those run into the Nain will expletive them with bad luck and will plant false memories in the minds of victims in order to lure them into danger.^[17]
The Youdic: Victims of the vast bogs believed to be portals to infernal regions and Hell known as the Yeun.^[17]

Werewolves also feature heavily in the mythology of Brittany. Brittons believed werewolves to be men condemned to transform into wolves as punishment for sins. Superstition regarding werewolves may have stemmed from a fearfulness of cannibalism amidst early residents of Brittany, simply fears most the existence of werewolves connected into the 16th century.^[16] Werewolves appear in many Breton lais, including the lais of Marie de France, 1 of the most well-known authors of Old French lais in the 12th century. Werewolves appear in Marie de France's lai 'Bisclavret' which tells the story of a man who transforms into a werewolf, referred to as a bisclavret in the story, when he removes his wearable.^[xviii] Marie de France's work probable draws heavily from existing pre-existing mythology and can be used to understand how the public felt nearly certain figures.^[xviii]

Christianisation of the Brittany [edit]

Brittany was Christianised during the latter part of the Gallo-Roman habitation of France. In the fifth and 6th centuries C.E. British citizens moved to Brittany to flee from Anglo-Saxon invaders. The British migrants spread Christianity throughout Brittany over the next 300 years, assisted by missionaries from the British Isles.^[19] Gimmicky Britons give great respect to the '7 Founding Saints' who are credited with bringing Catholicism to Brittany. The 'Seven Founding Saints' are:

St Paol Aoreliann
St Tudwal
St Brieg
St Maloù
St Samsun of Dol
St Padarn
St Kaourintin ^[nineteen]

Brittany's insular nature has led to the development of many distinctive traditions within Catholic religious practice, including "Pardons." Pardons are penitential ceremonies occurring in an individual parish on the banquet day of their saint. The celebrations involve parishioners processing together to a church or shrine to ask for forgiveness for sins, and ends with a large repast celebrated by all the penitents.^[xx]

Frank myth [edit]

Pre-Christian Paganism [edit]

Approximate location of the Frankish tribes in the 3rd century.

The Frank people are a group of Germanic migrants who detect their mythological and spiritual origins in pre-Christian Germanic Paganism. The Franks invaded the Gallo-Roman state in the 5th century, and became the ascendant force in the region of nowadays-24-hour interval French republic and Western Federal republic of germany. In 358 CE, Rome was forced to relinquish some of the Gallic land they held, allowing the Franks to expand their territory into the land of Gaul. By 480 CE, the Franks held firmly to the western part of France.^[21]

Early Frank mythology found its roots in Germanic paganism, and the Franks would have probably worshiped gods from a German pantheon, but may have placed emphasis on the fertility gods. The German pantheon is likely to have had three central figures; Thor, the almost powerful god who rules the air and sea, Wodan, god of state of war, and Fricco god of peace. The Frankish people probably worshiped the deities of the German pantheon through the construction of altars and practicing of nature-based rituals in woods glens or beside lakes. Information technology is believed that the Franks took a deeply tribal approach to religious practice. Apart from the most central figures of the German pantheon, some gods borrowed from the Nordic pantheon, or the "Allfadir," a primal, all-knowing deity, the many Frankish tribes worshiped separate gods. These tribalistic gods were not worshiped or feared exterior their tribes. Cults of Wodan (sometimes referred to Ođinn), and Cults of Nerthus were common among the key Frankish tribes, while Cults of Yngvi were mutual among tribes along the North Sea.^[22]

Christianisation of the Franks [edit]

The procedure of converting the Infidel Franks to Chalcedonian Christianity began between the late 5th century and early on sixth century. It began with the baptism of the wife of Clovis I, the first king to unite all of the Frankish tribes under one ruler. His wife, Clotilde, converted to Chalcedonian Christianity in approximately 500 CE and then convinced Clovis I to be baptised into Chalcedonian Christianity in 508 CE.^[23] During his reign, King Clovis I encouraged many Frankish tribes to begin practicing Christianity, weakening the hold that Roman legend had on the Franks. He influenced the mass adoption of Chalcedonian Christianity at the plummet of the Roman empire, which encouraged the unification of the Frankish tribes under the dominion of Clovis. King Clovis I managed to more often than not phase out the practicing of Germanic Paganism in the Frankish land during his reign.^[24] ^[25]

References [edit]

^ The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica (2019). "Ancien régime | French history". Encyclopedia Britannica . Retrieved 2020-05-19 .
^ The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica (2019). "France - The Roman conquest". Encyclopedia Britannica . Retrieved 2020-05-19 .
^ Spense, Lewis (1917). "CHAPTER 6: BRETON FOLK-TALES". Legends and Myths of Brittany. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Visitor Publishers. pp. 156–172.
^ Perry, Walter Copland (1857). The Franks, from Their Kickoff Appearance in History to the Death of King Pepin. London: Longman, Brown, Green, Longmans, and Roberts. p. 22. ISBN9785877394957.
^ Aberth, John (2013). An Environmental History of the Middle Ages: The Crucible of Nature. Routledge. ISBN978-0-415-77945-half-dozen.
^ Dark-green, Miranda (2011-09-thirty). "Animals and Animisim". The Gods of the Celts. History Press. ISBN978-0-7524-6811-2.
^ The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica (2016). "Celtic religion - The Celtic gods". Encyclopedia Britannica . Retrieved 2020-05-nineteen .
^ Macbain, Alexander (2005-11-01). Celtic Mythology and Religion. Cosimo, Inc. p. 68. ISBN978-ane-59605-339-7.
^ Macbain, Alexander (2005-xi-01). Celtic Mythology and Faith. Cosimo, Inc. p. 62. ISBN978-ane-59605-339-7.
^ Macbain, Alexander (2005-11-01). Celtic Mythology and Religion. New York: Cosimo, Inc. p. 69. ISBN978-1-59605-339-7.
^ The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica (2019). "Druid | Description, History, & Facts". Encyclopedia Britannica . Retrieved 2020-05-19 .
^ "Carnac Stones - Carnac, France". www.sacred-destinations.com . Retrieved 2020-05-19 .
^ Spence, Lewis (1917). "Chapter 2: MENHIRS AND DOLMENS". Legends and Romances of Brittany. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company Publishers. p. 38.
^ Spence, Lewis (1917). "Affiliate II: MENHIRS AND DOLMENS". In Legends and Romances of Brittany. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company Publishers. p. 39.
^ "Definition of LAIS". www.merriam-webster.com . Retrieved 2020-05-19 .
^ ^a ^b Spence, Lewis (1917). "Chapter 11: THE BRETON LAYS OF MARIE DE French republic". Legends and Myths of Brittany. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company Publishers. pp. 282–331.
^ ^a ^b ^c Lewis, Spense (1917). "CHAPTER Four: SPRITES AND DEMONS OF BRITTANY". Legends and Romances of Brittany. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Visitor Publishers. pp. 96–103.
^ ^a ^b Shoaf, Judy (1996). Bisclavret (PDF). Cocky-Published.
^ ^a ^b Spence, Lewis (1917). "Chapter XII: THE SAINTS OF BRITTANY". Legends and Myths of Brittany. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company Publishers. p. 350.
^ "Catholic ENCYCLOPEDIA: Pardons of Brittany". world wide web.newadvent.org . Retrieved 2020-05-xix .
^ "Frank | People, Definition, & Maps". Encyclopedia Britannica . Retrieved 2020-05-19 .
^ Fabbro, Eduardo (2006). "Germanic Paganism among the Early Salian Franks" (PDF). Journal of Germanic Mythology & Folklore. 1 (4): 7–13. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-08-20. Retrieved 2020-06-10 .
^ Mitchell, Kathleen (2020). "Clovis I | Biography, Significance, & Facts". Encyclopedia Britannica . Retrieved 2020-05-xix .
^ Fabbro, Eduardo (2006). "Germanic Paganism among the Early on Salian Franks" (PDF). Journal of Germanic Mythology & Folklore. 1 (4): 17–18. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-08-20. Retrieved 2020-06-10 .
^ The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica (2019). "Frank | People, Definition, & Maps". Encyclopedia Britannica . Retrieved 2020-05-nineteen .