Celtic Mythology

Review of the relationship between archaeology and myth in early medieval archaeology, arguing for a more nuanced and engaged interdisciplinary. Case studies present evidence for the creation of deities in early medieval contexts that would normally be considered to be pre-historic and pagan in origin. Winner of the Martyn Jope Prize 2020 from the Society for Medieval Archaeology.

Pre-publication archived version available here:https://pure.qub.ac.uk/en/publications/archaeology-and-myth-in-early-medieval-europe-making-the-gods-of-

Borsje, J., A. Dooley, S. Mac Mathuna and G. Toner (eds. with editorial assistance by N. McGuire, N. Mac Cathmhaoil and T. Oudesluijs). 2014. Celtic Cosmology: Perspectives from Ireland and Scotland (Papers in Medieval Studies 26), Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies.

Continuation of the Atlantic Theory of Homer's Ilias and Odyssey (part 1: Atlantic Troy). Odysseus' wanderings after his departure from Troy. Study of Atlantic authors De Grave, Cailleux, Gideon, Wilkens, Vinci. Identification of Ismaros as Brittany, Bay of Douarnenez.

Continuation of the Atlantic Theory of Homer's Ilias and Odyssey (part 1: Atlantic Troy; part 2:  Atlantic Ismaros-Kikones; part 3: Atlantic Kuthera-Lotophages; part 4: Atlantic Land of the Cyclopes; part 5: Atlantic Aiolia). Odysseus' wanderings after his departure from Troy: Route: from Corvo, Azores, to La Havana, Cuba. Study of Atlantic authors De Grave, Cailleux, Gideon, Wilkens, Vinci.

See now full text version on academia.edu!
Apollo Cunomaglos leads to a multi-disciplinary discussion of Celtic religion: from wolves to cosmology, fertility, ancestry, afterlife, rites de passage and manty more.
The epithet Cunomaglos is known from an altar at the Britanno-Roman sanctuary of Nettleton Shrub in Wiltshire. He has traditionally been interpreted as a hunting deity, as «Apollo Hound Prince», in British scholarship. But since it is certain that the ancient Celtic word cuno was used to denote both wolf and dog in this period, it seems more probable that we are dealing here with Apollo «Lord of the Wolves» similar to the Greek Apollo Lykaios. It is important to jettison the negative image that wolves still have in scholarship in order to understand the meaning of Apollo Cunomaglos. An interdisciplinary analysis of pre-Roman and Romano-Celtic iconography —as well as evidence from other cultures in addition to medieval Welsh and Irish mythology— suggests that wolves must have played a significant role in people’s religious understandings, for example in relation to fertility, nourishment, cosmology, strength, ancestry, prophecy, afterlife beliefs, rites de passage, and many more. Altogether, there emerges a certain image of Apollo Cunomaglos as potentially a powerful, even omnipotent deity, perhaps related to Apollo Maponus, Belenos, Lugus, and Vaelicus.
[ES] Resumen: Apollo Cunomaglos es conocido gracias a un altar procedente del santuario britano-romano de Nettleton Shrub, en Wiltshire  Inglaterra). En la historiografía anglosajona, ha sido tradicionalmente nterpretado como una deidad cazadora, como «Apolo, el Príncipe  azador». Sin embargo, dado que la antigua palabra céltica cuno fue tilizada en esa época tanto para aludir al lobo como al perro, parece más probable que en este caso nos encontremos ante un Apolo «Señor de los Lobos» similar al Apollo Lykaios del mundo griego. Para poder comprender el significado de Apollo Cunomaglos es necesario superar la imagen negativa que se tiene de los lobos en el ámbito académico.
Con ese propósito, este artículo plantea un análisis interdisciplinar de la iconografía prerromana y romano-céltica, de las mitologías medievales galesase irlandesas, y de evidencias de otras culturas relacionadas con el lobo, que muestra la gran importancia de ese animal en las concepciones religiosas de esas poblaciones, como, por ejemplo, en las relacionadas con la fertilidad, la nutrición, la cosmología, la fortaleza, los ancestros, la profecía, las creencias escatológicas, y los ritos de paso, entre otras. De todo ello emerge una potencial imagen de Apollo Cunomaglos como una deidad poderosa, casi omnipotente, que quizás estuvo relacionada con otros dioses como Apollo Maponus, Belenos, Lugus y Vaelicus

The following is an exploration into the structure of the Monist theology and cosmological philosophy of the ancient Celtic Druids, focusing especially on the four lines attributed to the Four Masters. Again, for this endeavor, is the need to gather the Celtic material and compare it to the related Indo-European data. Whilst the focus on the foundational mythological theme of the four primordial master poet teachers found in the many Indo-European traditions comparable to those of the Celts. Much of the material gathered here consists mainly of French documents and letters which I had collected over the decades and which needed a translation. The main sources for this study consist of Celtic scholars which I was in contact with. These were the distinguished linguist Joseph Monard, and Serj Pinault, artist and contributing author of Ialon-Clairière, the Celtic and druidical studies bulletin based in Britany, France.

Rechercher la signification du serpent à tête de bélier, cette « chimère » celtique, est d'autant plus délicat que le corpus des exemples est assez limité et que ses deux parties sont des symboles quasiment universels qui ouvrent un très vaste champ sémantique. Il convient toutefois de les examiner le plus brièvement possible avant de porter l'accent sur leur combinaison. Si un fond de croyances immémoriales relie partout le serpent aux « profondeurs humides de la terre » 1 à la fécondité et au renouveau de la vie, l'iconographie celtique le montre avec une tête de bélier, s'élevant du sol et associé justement au dieu-cerf. Le serpent à tête de bélier a peut-être été vénéré comme « germe de vie » indépendamment du dieu aux bois de cerf dont il semble parfois un doublet parfois un aspect chthonien.

The Gundestrup Cauldron has remained enigmatic since the day it was discovered in a Danish peat bog near Borremosebog in May of 1891. Many have wondered and pondered over the mysterious imagery and have tried to give it an interpretation. Some have proposed a Scythian or Vedic Indian origin to it, while others have recognized the clear connection to Celtic mythological themes and motifs. The following article is but a brief and detailed interpretative iconographical analysis of what is in truth a star chart such as those formerly conceived and maintained by the Celtic Druids of the La Tène cultural period. Our understanding of zodiacal stellar symbolism is but a "cultural construct." For instance, when one looks at the vastness of the night sky, all one sees is an infinity of pin point specks of light. Connecting the bright dots into a recognizable pattern is truly an

Exploring the tales of many of the mysterious and captivating Faerie Queens, this exceptional anthology contains eighteen essays exploring the diverse accounts and themes associated with the Faerie Queens and their influence in magic, literature and folklore. From the Arthurian mythos to Scandinavia, from ancient Greece to Renaissance poetry and beyond, the awesome power of the Faerie Queens to inspire, challenge and transform is investigated and discussed from both scholarly and personal perspectives.

Fifth in a series of short articles for the Irish Arts Review that aims to put Irish arts in historical and social contexts by highlighting selected artworks and archival resources at the John J. Burns Library for rare books, special collections and archives at Boston College. This fifth installment focuses on a previously unknown embroidery designed and executed by Maud Gonne.

A importância da tradução desta obra para o português é enorme principalmente pela dificuldade de acesso a fontes célticas em língua portuguesa. Mabinogion é um conjunto de contos galeses que foram escritos entre os séculos XI e XIV, mas que referem-se por vezes a acontecimentos muito mais antigos, datando do século VII, e a crenças ancestrais. Os relatos começaram a ser postos por escrito por ocasião da invasão normanda quando os chefes locais resolveram mandar escrever as narrativas que haviam circulado oralmente por muitos séculos, como forma de manter a tradição. Estes contos foram compilados no Livro Branco de Rhydderch (Llyfr Gwyn Rhydderch) e no Livro Vermelho de Hergest (Llyfr Coch Hergest) e foram traduzidos pela primeira vez para o inglês por Lady Charlotte Guest no século XIX, a qual utilizou o termo mabinogion como título para colêtanea dos onze contos. A denominação da tradutora inglesa é errônea, pois o termo mabinogi refere-se à infância de um herói. Esta palavra aparece no fim do primeiro relato, Pwyll, Príncipe de Dyved, mas relaciona-se apenas aos quatro primeiros contos ou ramos (além de Pwyll, Branwen, a filha de Lyr, Manawyddan, o Filho de Lyr e Math, o Filho de Mathonwy). Nestes, a personagem de Pryderi aparece como elo de ligação entre as histórias embora não seja personagem principal, unindo-as em acontecimentos que tratam do nascimento, infância, juventude e morte. Uma outra interpretação para a palavra mabinogi seria a de relato de um jovem, pois a palavra maban, diminutivo de mab significa filho ou juventude; por isso trataria das façanhas de um herói relacionado aos antigos deuses. Neste sentido, Pryderi seria um mac ind óc, isto é o filho do Deus Pwyll, senhor de Dyved. Os quatro ramos do Mabinogion relacionam-se a três famílias de deuses, a de Pwyll e sua descendência, representada por Pryderi, a dos filhos de Llyr (Bran, Branwen e Manawyddan) e a dos filhos de Don (Gwydion e Gilvaethwy, que aparecem no quarto ramo). Através dos contos podemos notar as correspondências entre deuses galeses e irlandeses, por exemplo, a deusa irlandesa Dana ou Don galesa, Manannan e Manawyddan, Deus do Mar. É possível perceber o sentido de clã, da união familiar como essenciais à sobrevivência dos celtas e para levar as aventuras ao bom termo. Um exemplo ocorre no terceiro ramo: uma maldição havia sido mandada e com ela animais, habitações, plantas, tudo havia sumido. Ao final do relato a revelação: tratava-se de uma vingança de Llwyd, amigo de Gwawl contra a descendência de Pwyll, pois Gwawl havia sido ultrajado pelo pai de Pridery, Pwyll, o qual lhe batera enquanto estava num saco e tomara dele Rhiannon. Os onze contos podem ser agrupados em três grupos: o primeiro, com narrativas relacionadas a Pryderi (os quatro ramos do Mabinogi), um segundo contendo quatro contos independentes (O sonho de Maxen, Llud e Levelys, Culhwch e Olwen e O Sonho de Rhonabwy) e o terceiro composto por três romances arturianos, influenciados pela temática de Chrétien de Troyes. Os romances são A Dama da Fonte, Peredur, o filho de

V práci chci formulovat novou metodu výkladu mýtu, která vychází z terapeutických metod, které Jung popsal a využíval. Sepsáním následující práce se také pokusím o závan čerstvého vzduchu mezi tradiční interpretační východiska, vnesení nového dynamického postupu mezi proudy, které už pár let provází stagnace. Zvykli jsme si mýty vykládat jako něco mrtvého, často jsou pro nás jen součástí zaniklých náboženských tradic. Stále zapomínáme na to, že jsme to "my a příběh ", co při interpretaci mýtu předkládáme dalším čtenářům. V následujícím textu budu studovat mýtus jako samostatnou živou substanci, jejíž prvky se obměňují a neustále k nám ve svých proměnách pronikají nejen v příbězích. Představená metoda bude záhy aplikována na text mýtu Tochmarc Étaíne.

ATU 20C is an international tale with an eschatological theme and a wide distribution throughout the world. Gaelic variants
recorded in Ireland and Scotland during the 19th and 20th
centuries have been observed to contain cosmological themes and formulae, along with the pagan theonyms Crom and Donn. These
are examined in their relation to a medieval Irish cosmological
formula appearing in the Táin and other sources. The pre-
Christian traditions, particularly that of a tripartite cosmological
structure consisting of sky-earth-sea, are discussed within the
contexts of early Celtic belief. Comparisons with Iranian, Indic,
Greek, and Germanic systems indicate the presence of three such
cosmic realms from Indo-European times, suggesting that the
modern Gaelic variants, taken together, may be regarded as a
remarkable instance of long-term oral transmission.

Guido von List (1848-1919) è stato uno studioso, poeta, giornalista, scrittore e alpinista tedesco. Il suo lavoro di ricerca sulle origini delle religioni pagane dell'antica Europa, e in particolar modo le sue intuizioni volte a decifrare i significati più esoterici dell'intero complesso mitico degli antichi popoli germanici, costituisce tuttora un'occasione imprescindibile per chiunque volesse approfondire l'argomento, al punto che  Marcello De Martino lo definisce "l'antesignano della teoria duméziliana" della tripartizione indoeuropea, nonché "l'esatto omologo di George Dumézil in ambito occultistico".

The Dictionary of Indo-European Poetic and Religious Themes (DIEPART) was a desideratum in the field of comparative studies. Initiated by the founding father Adalbert Kuhn, Indo-European phraseology and poetics has been a constant subject of research, with a first synthesis in 1967 by Rüdiger Schmitt (Dichtung und Dichtersprache in indogermanischer Zeit, Wiesbaden), a seminal book by Calvert Watkins in 1995 (How to Kill a Dragon. Aspects of Indo-European Poetics, Oxford) and various important works by Enrico Campanile, Françoise Bader, M.L. West and some others.
Didier Calin has made a new synthesis in the form of a Dictionary, extremely practical in use, where he not only presents the existing results, but also brings the new discoveries he made with the help of the Anatolian languages and the Latvian folksongs, the dainas. A copious index verborum and index locorum enable the researchers to find quickly a text occurence and its translation.
The book is designed not only for comparatists or indo-europeanists but also for classicists and for the specialists of various branches who are interested in the deep history of their field.»
Didier CALIN, who lives in Riga, was trained in Germany in Indo-European philology. He has studied extensively the Latvian dainas (popular folksongs) which retain an extraordinary wealth of mythological motives of Indo-European age.
Can be ordered here : http://www.centchemins.com/

Part of Palgrave's Critical Approaches to Children's Literature series

This book examines the creative uses of “Celtic” myth in contemporary fantasy written for children or young adults from the 1960s to the 2000s. Its scope ranges from classic children’s fantasies such as Lloyd Alexander’s The Chronicles of Prydain and Alan Garner’s The Owl Service, to some of the most recent, award-winning fantasy authors of the last decade, such as Kate Thompson (The New Policeman) and Catherine Fisher (Darkhenge). The book focuses on the ways these fantasy works have appropriated and adapted Irish and Welsh medieval literature in order to highlight different perceptions of “Celticity.” The term “Celtic” itself is interrogated in light of recent debates in Celtic studies, in order to explore a fictional representation of a national past that is often romanticized and political.

Iconography of the Gundestrup Cauldron 13 plates : discovery, components of iconographis discourse, decoding the discourse : Celto-Roman archaeology and medieval literature; theological, mythological and ritual commentary.
english and french text
Texte anglais et français (essai d'analyse iconographique du chaudron de Gundestrup).

The modern Celtic myth is a complex framework because of its variety of constituent elements. In essence, it consists of an empathetic celebration of otherness, based on a timeless narrative and restorative nostalgia, but including nationalist and capitalistmarket interests. Since the first edition of the Ossianic poems by James Macpherson in 1760, Celticness has firmly settled within a collective imagination in search of alternative aesthetic, political, and even spiritual values. It has been exploited in different geocultural spaces and articulated in propaganda strategies, to found ethnic consciousness and fill the gaps of history. In addition to other Celtic areas of Europe, Galicia (NW Spain) has a long Celtophile tradition, with relevant intellectual support, ritual symbologies, and media productions. This article focuses on Galician Celtic-based history, icons, events, phenomena like the Real Banda of bagpipes, the Interceltic Festival of Ortigueira, and the renewed archaeological attempt to locate Galician ancestry within Iron Age Celts. Celticness has been the main identity locus in the construction of Galicia as a nation, shaping a specific social awareness and even invoking racial arguments. Comparison is established with Scotland, Brittany and Ireland (the ‘brothers from the north’) in their respective perception and treatment of modern Celticness.

La première édition de Cycle et métamorphoses du dieu cerf a été publiée en juin 2014 dans un très petit nombre d'exemplaires. Les nombreux changements et ajouts font de la présente un nouveau livre. Il me semble donc logique d'en changer le titre. Les articles mis en ligne sur academia.edu couvrent une part importante des thèmes abordés et constituent en quelque sorte une étape intermédiaire de ma recherche. Mon enquête commencera par la description et la comparaison des monuments, stèles et inscriptions. Les thèmes récurrents sont ensuite examinés pour esquisser un champ sémantique qui permet de cerner de plus en plus la personnalité cernunnienne. Le lecteur est conduit devant un cercle de dieux disparus qui ont été vus avec Cernunnos ou qui lui disputent des attributs, et qui malgré une originalité indéniable montrent des traits qui renvoient à lui comme à leur point focal. L'intégration de cet ensemble permet en retour d'obtenir un portrait du dieu plus fondé, plus contrasté et surtout plus dynamique, à partir duquel de nouvelles hypothèses sur les croyances gauloises pourront être formulées. Le dieu-cerf des anciens Celtes incarne d'abord la fécondité, l'abondance et l'immortalité. L'iconographie celtique et gallo-romaine, les mythes transmis par les auteurs antiques, les récits gallois et irlandais, ainsi que certaines coutumes de l'Europe ancienne permettent de retrouver les traces d'un dieu aux multiples visages qui peut se manifester comme phallus primordial, arbre cosmique ou axe de la roue sidérale. Son principal avatar est un grand cerf immémorial qui semble à l'origine de l'univers. De sa ramure naissent les deux forces antagonistes qui produisent éternellement le levant et le couchant, la lumière et les ténèbres, la vie et la mort, la création et la destruction. Maître du ciel nocturne et de l'éternel retour, le dieu cerf conduit toute création dans une chasse éternelle… Tel est le portrait idéal qui ressort en filigrane si on fait abstraction des lieux et dates de ses différentes manifestations. En réalité, les différents aspects de Cernunnos se côtoient, se succèdent et se chevauchent dans un foisonnement incomparable, de sorte qu'on peut se demander s'il provient d'un archétype lié à l'ethnogenèse des Celtes ou si les « choses sacrées » et le personnel divin subissent son attraction, se structurant de plus en plus par rapport à lui.

The film Song of the Sea reflects a Irish folkloric network in its use of the selchie legend, characters from Celtic and Irish folklore, and stylistic elements that reflect the prehistoric and historic past of Irish art. These aspects combine to serve as a celebration for sacred nature. 

**Note: I am an undergraduate student who is just beginning their scholarly career so if anything in the paper is factually incorrect or if you have any suggestions please let me know!

Today, most people know the story of Arthur drawing the sword from the stone, and many also know the tale of his taking the sword from a hand rising out of the middle of a lake. Yet if you ask them to name Arthur’s sword, only one name, Excalibur, will spring to mind. So, did Arthur have two swords, only one of which was named, or was there only one sword, with two different accounts of its origins?

This paper examines how the modern confusion has arisen from the way the legend of Arthur’s sword was transmitted across cultures over the course of the Middle Ages. Starting with the earliest Welsh accounts, references to Arthur’s swords are traced through the Latin, Old French and Middle English texts. But it is in the early French tradition that we find the seeds of much of the later confusion. Here, a simple misunderstanding produced much later confusion as to just whose sword Excalibur really was. Thereafter, the story of Arthur’s “swords” becomes a struggle to account for, and lay the puzzle to rest. In the course of this, new tales began to be introduced to account for the origins of Arthur’s sword, and to relate its passing, while at the same time, new swords are introduced to fill the place of Excalibur in Arthur’s hand.

Most of these swords are now largely forgotten, but the stories told to account for them have much to tell us about the way cultural and linguistic differences and sometimes simple biases continually reshaped the very Arthurian legend itself. And they also reveal something too often overlooked about the role of the King’s sword in the hand of the King’s Champion.

This paper was presented and published in 1999. The current text has been subject to minor revisions to correct typographical errors, but the substance of the text remains unchanged.

EXTRACT. Myth and Materiality, Oxbow Books, 2018, promotes the thesis that myth may illuminate archaeology and that on occasion archaeology may shed light on myth. Medieval Irish literature is rich in mythic themes and some of these are used as a starting point. While some myths are of great antiquity, others were invented by contemporary authors. It is a challenging source, first explored in Archaeology and Celtic Myth (2014); now this work expands on some of the themes pursued there and introduces some new ones. The cover image of the emblematic Celtic warrior Cú Chulainn is by J.C. Leyendecker. This imaginative illustration of the mythical hero was commissioned by The Century Magazine for an article in 1907 on the ancient Irish sagas by President Theodore Roosevelt. [Extract]

Viking Language 2: The Old Norse Reader is now available with a limited-time offer. The reader immerses the learner in the legends, folklore, and myths of the Vikings. The readings are drawn from sagas, runes and eddas. They take the student into the world of Old Norse heroes, gods, and goddesses. There is a separate chapter on the ‘Creation of the World’ and another on ‘The Battle at the World’s End,’ where the gods meet their doom. Other readings and maps focus on Viking Age Iceland, Greenland, and Vínland. A series of chapters tackles eddic and skaldic verse with their ancient stories from the old Scandinavian past. Runic inscriptions and explanations of how to read runes form a major component of the book. Where there are exercises, the answers are given at the end of the chapter. Both Viking Language 1 and 2 are structured as workbooks. Students learns quickly and interactively. More information on our website: vikinglanguage.com

University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee Center for Celtic Studies Samhain Celebration Invited Lecture, October 31, 2004

In this public talk, I describe the most common Breton legends, which are rarely written in English. French books on Breton myths are filled with stories of the Atlantis-like sunken city of Kêr-Is, the Breton fairies known as Korrigans, and the Grim Reaper-like Ankoù. Added to these is a less well-known and very interesting- but not spooky- syncretized Breton folk character, Sant-Korneli. Here I discuss each of these realms of Breton folklore, while contrasting them with similar tales from other Celtic Nations.

Leda and the Swan is a poem by Irish poet William Butler Yeats. The poem narrates the scene of Zeus raping the Greek Princess Leda in the form of a swan and creates an extended imagery for the reader. The "Leda and the Swan" concept does not only exist in poetry but also in mythology, visual arts, and literary sources. Some minor changes in the story, overall feeling or message are present from source to source, and the idea behind the poem by Yeats is more personal than others. Leda and the Swan written by Yeats' is closely related to his perspective on life. The poem represents the idea of gyres, which is linked to the ever going cycle of history, and the ideology that small details in the past have the power to create great changes. These particular ideas conveyed to the reader by expression of cultural and mythical elements throughout the poem.  Lara Nur Tankal 2019

The tropical year was divided in 365. 2423 days starting from the fall equinox. The names of the Celtic Zodiac were identical to those of the lunar months. The calendar found in Coligny, France, is strictly an astronomical device. Dr. Garret Olmstead who also studied the Coligny Calendar uncovered in 1897, discovered that, although made in the first century BCE, was using astronomical calculations going back to 1100 BCE!

Abstract: "Morgan le Fay: The Inheritance of the Goddess" will analyze Morgan le Fay's character in Arthurian narrative during the Middle Ages. Starting from a research on the Celts and their culture, this article aims to prove that Morgan le Fay's origin might be traced back to Celtic goddesses due to the characteristics she shares with the Celtic goddesses The Morrígan and Modron. However, Morgan is only mentioned for the first time, in 1150, in the work Vita Merlini by Geoffrey of Monmouth, where she is named Morgen. Queen of the Otherworldly island Avalon she possesses solely positive traits. Therefore, this study's goal is also to explain why Morgan le Fay was transformed into one of the greatest villains of Arthurian texts. To reach this goal, some of the main English medieval literary will be analyzed as well as other social and cultural factors.

"Selected proceedings of the “First International Conference on Ethnoastronomy: Indigenous Astronomical and Cosmological Traditions of the World”held at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., 5-9 September 1983."

Available on Amazon.com  - see link in listing. Ships internationally from the USA.

Questo articolo osserva come il mito di Cian Bolpìn (tratto dalle "Dolomitensagen" di K. F. Wolff) riprende lo stesso schema narrativo di "Amore e Psiche" di Apuleio ribaltandone però la relazione Dio/inizianda in Dea/iniziando. Viene rilevato inoltre che dalle Dolomiti ai Grigioni, esistono diverse varianti della storia di Cian Bolpin e che tutte però narrano di una Dea che inizia un ragazzo e non viceversa, come nella versione mediterranea. Se ne analizzano le ragioni, evidenziandone la struttura narrativa (uguale per entrambe le versioni) e trovando corrispondenze persino col ciclo bretone.

The Enlightenment myth that scientific rationalism gradually would overcome magical and religious beliefs has proved a true paradigm of modern societies (Barthes 2005; Gouk 2012). However, the tendency towards the supernatural looks quite strong in our time (Margry 2008). Within this frame Celtic music shows an overwhelming capacity to transform past and present into an unlimited semiological universe populated by all kind of phantasies, spiritualism, medievalism, elves and nymphs (Tolkien 1983), resulting in a new cosmology
that re-enchants reality. Among the followers of celtdom (Stokes 1997), and especially in the scenario of Celtic music festivals, there are many young people who seem to search for a parallel world which might compensate the psychoemotional deficit derived from pervasive secularization (Campos 2012). This paper addresses how the youthful need to escape from urban disaffection
may lead to an unconscious attempt to (re)build identity through an inner trip to the self physically embodied in the attendance to certain events, an experience assumable as a contemporary rite of passage. Conclusions point to understand Celtic music and mythology as a reaction to restore the cultural balance broken in Western societies since the unstoppable rise of rationalism and technology.

Works cited

- Barthes, Roland. 2005. El grano de la voz. Entrevistas 1962-1980. Buenos Aires: Siglo XXI Editores Argentina.
- Campos Calvo-Sotelo, Javier: “La Nueva Romería. Fenomenología causal en los festivales de música celta”. In J. Marín et al (Eds.), Musicología Global, Musicología Local. Proceedings of the VIII Conference of Sedem (pp. 641-661). Madrid: Sociedad Española de Musicología
- Gouk, Penelope. 2012. Music and the emergence of experimental science in early modern Europe. SoundEffects, 2(1): 6-21.
- Margry, Peter Jan (ed.). 2008. Shrines and Pilgrimage in the Modern World. New Itineraries into the Sacred. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.
- Stokes, Martin. 1997. Introduction: Ethnicity, Identity and Music. In Ethnicity, identity and music: The musical construction of place, M. Stokes, (ed.). Oxford and New York: Berg Publishers, pp. 1-27.
- Tolkien, John R.R. 1983 [1955]. English and Welsh. In The Monsters and the Critics, Christopher Tolkien (ed.). London: George Allen & Unwin, pp. 162-197.

Underlying Maya cosmology, history and religion are several key mythological narratives explaining the origins of the world, and providing sacred charters for civilized/moral behavior. Key elements from these narratives—including shared mythemes, characters, and toponyms—have long been known to recur in various regions of Southeastern Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize, in the oral traditions of several groups speaking distinct but related Mayan languages. One such is a widespread narrative concerning an aged god of the mountains whose daughter, granddaughter, or wife runs away with a young culture hero: a parable often echoing acute concerns about female marital fidelity in contemporary christianized Maya communities. Naturally enough, the contexts of these modern myths have occasioned some concern that they may be little more than thinly disguised retellings of Biblical stories of unfaithful wives, such as Hosea and Gomer. Yet several Late Classic Maya vases and monuments from the late 7th and early 8th century AD apparently reference episodes from this same narrative, here explicitly involving Huk Xib (later Huk Siip), the aged Lord of the Deer, whose wife is spirited away by Juun Ixiim, the youthful Maize God, in a union which may have produced the famed Hero Twins. Epigraphic and iconographic analysis of the texts and imagery reflecting this lost myth, coupled with cautious comparison with potentially related modern Maya myths, allow us to reconstruct many of the basic events of this ancient tale, although several mysteries remain. Such continuity reminds us that myths can be surprisingly durable, even in the wake of military conquest and centuries of colonial rule and religious conversion. Nonetheless, still unresolved is the extent to which these various early fragments allow the confident reconstruct of a single, underlying myth. It is suggested that various regional and temporal variants may find expression or emphasis in these texts, raising questions about many of our reconstructions of ancient mythic narratives.