English mythology is the collection of myths that have emerged throughout the history of England, sometimes being elaborated upon by successive generations, and at other times being rejected and replaced by other explanatory narratives. These narratives consist of folk traditions developed in England after the Norman Conquest, integrated with traditions from Anglo-Saxon mythology, Christian mythology, and Celtic mythology. Elements of the Matter of Britain, Welsh mythology and Cornish mythology which relate directly to England are included, such as the foundation myth of Brutus of Troy and the Arthurian legends, but these are combined with narratives from the Matter of England and traditions from English folklore.
The Matter of Britain is the body of medieval literature and legendary material associated with Great Britain and Brittany and the legendary kings and heroes associated with it, particularly King Arthur. The 12th-century Welsh cleric Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae, widely popular in its day, is a central component of the Matter of Britain.
Ys, also spelled Is or Kêr-Is in Breton, and Ville d'Ys in French, is a mythical city on the coast of Brittany that was swallowed up by the ocean. Most versions of the legend place the city in the Baie de Douarnenez.
A pixie is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are speculated to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas around Devon and Cornwall, suggesting some Celtic origin for the belief and name.
"Jack the Giant Killer" is a Cornish fairy tale and legend about a young adult who slays a number of bad giants during King Arthur's reign. The tale is characterised by violence, gore and blood-letting. Giants are prominent in Cornish folklore, Breton mythology and Welsh Bardic lore. Some parallels to elements and incidents in Norse mythology have been detected in the tale, and the trappings of Jack's last adventure with the Giant Galigantus suggest parallels with French and Breton fairy tales such as Bluebeard. Jack's belt is similar to the belt in "The Valiant Little Tailor", and his magical sword, shoes, cap, and cloak are similar to those owned by Tom Thumb or those found in Welsh and Norse mythology.
In Breton folklore, a Korrigan is a fairy or dwarf-like spirit. The word korrigan means in Breton "small-dwarf". It is closely related to the Cornish word korrik which means gnome. The name changes according to the place. Among the other names, there are korrig, korred, korrs, kores, couril, crion, goric, kornandon, ozigan, nozigan, teuz, torrigan, viltañs, poulpikan, poulpiquet, and paotred ar sabad.
Welsh mythology consists of both folk traditions developed in Wales, and traditions developed by the Celtic Britons elsewhere before the end of the first millennium. As in most of the predominantly oral societies Celtic mythology and history were recorded orally by specialists such as druids. This oral record has been lost or altered as a result of outside contact and invasion over the years. Much of this altered mythology and history is preserved in medieval Welsh manuscripts, which include the Red Book of Hergest, the White Book of Rhydderch, the Book of Aneirin and the Book of Taliesin. Other works connected to Welsh mythology include the ninth-century Latin historical compilation Historia Brittonum and Geoffrey of Monmouth's twelfth-century Latin chronicle Historia Regum Britanniae, as well as later folklore, such as the materials collected in The Welsh Fairy Book by William Jenkyn Thomas (1908).
Les Lavandières, or the Midnight Washerwomen, are three old washerwomen in Celtic mythology. Names in various Celtic languages include the kannerezed noz in Brittany and the Bean nighe in Gaelic. They can also be found in the Celtic folklore of Iberia as Las Lavanderas in Cantabria, As lavandeiras in Galicia or Les Llavanderes in Asturias, and in Portugal are known as Bruxas lavadeiras . The three old women go to the water's edge at midnight to wash shrouds for those about to die, according to the myth and folklore of Brittany; or to wash the bloodstained clothing of those who are about to die, according to Celtic mythology. The Midnight Washerwomen may be related to the old Celtic tradition of the triple goddess of death and slaughter.
Cornouaille is a historical region on the west coast of Brittany in West France. The name is cognate with Cornwall in neighbouring Great Britain. This can be explained by the settlement of Cornouaille by migrant princes from Cornwall who created an independent principality founded by Rivelen Mor Marthou, and the founding of the Bishopric of Cornouaille by ancient saints from Cornwall. Celtic Britons and the settlers in Brittany spoke a common language, which later evolved into Breton, Welsh and Cornish.
Mark of Cornwall was a sixth-century King of Kernow (Cornwall), possibly identical with King Conomor. He is best known for his appearance in Arthurian legend as the uncle of Tristan and the husband of Iseult who engages with Tristan in a secret liaison, giving Mark the epithet "Cuckold King".
Conan Meriadoc is a legendary British Celtic leader credited with founding Brittany. Versions of his story circulated in both Brittany and Great Britain from at least the early 12th century, and supplanted earlier legends of Brittany's foundation. His story is known in two major versions, which appear in the Welsh text known as The Dream of Macsen Wledig, and in Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae. Both texts associate him with Magnus Maximus, a Roman usurper against the Valentinianic dynasty who was widely regarded as having deprived Britain of its defences when he took its legions to claim the imperial throne. Conan's cousin or sister, Saint Elen, is said to have been Macsen Wledic's wife.
The mythologies in present-day France encompass the mythology of the Gauls, Franks, Normans, Bretons, and other peoples living in France, those ancient stories about divine or heroic beings that these particular cultures believed to be true and that often use 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 and the Bretons as they migrated to the French region from modern day England and Ireland. Other smaller influences on the development of French mythology came from the Franks.
In Celtic mythology, the Otherworld is the realm of the deities and possibly also the dead. In Gaelic and Brittonic myth it is usually a supernatural realm of everlasting youth, beauty, health, abundance and joy. It is described either as a parallel world that exists alongside our own, or as a heavenly land beyond the sea or under the earth. The Otherworld is usually elusive, but various mythical heroes visit it either through chance or after being invited by one of its residents. They often reach it by entering ancient burial mounds or caves, or by going under water or across the western sea. Sometimes, they suddenly find themselves in the Otherworld with the appearance of a magic mist, supernatural beings or unusual animals. An otherworldly woman may invite the hero into the Otherworld by offering an apple or a silver apple branch, or a ball of thread to follow as it unwinds.
The Bretons are a Celtic ethnic group native to Brittany, north-western France. They trace their heritage to groups of Brittonic speakers who emigrated from southwestern Great Britain, particularly Cornwall and Devon, mostly during the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain. They migrated in waves from the 3rd to 9th century into Armorica, which was subsequently named Brittany after them.
Celtic literature is the body of literature written in one of the Celtic languages, or else it may popularly refer to literature written in other languages which is based on the traditional narratives found in early Celtic literature.
Morgens, morgans, or mari-morgans are Welsh and Breton water spirits that drown men.
Cornish mythology is the folk tradition and mythology of the Cornish people. It consists partly of folk traditions developed in Cornwall and partly of traditions developed by Britons elsewhere before the end of the first millennium, often shared with those of the Breton and Welsh peoples. Some of this contains remnants of the mythology of pre-Christian Britain.
Celtic mythology is the body of myths belonging to the Celtic peoples. Like other Iron Age Europeans, Celtic peoples followed a polytheistic religion, having many gods and goddesses. The mythologies of continental Celtic peoples, such as the Gauls and Celtiberians, did not survive their conquest by the Roman Empire, the loss of their Celtic languages and their subsequent conversion to Christianity. Only remnants are found in Greco-Roman sources and archaeology. Most surviving Celtic mythology belongs to the Insular Celtic peoples. They preserved some of their myths in oral lore, which were eventually written down by Christian scribes in the Middle Ages. Irish mythology has the largest written body of myths, followed by Welsh mythology.
Many cultures around the world have stories about groups of nine women. In Great Britain they occur in a variety of situations. In Scotland there are references to Nine Maidens, purportedly a group of, and there were a number of wells dedicated to them, but like all similar groupings would appear to have had their origin in pre-Christian times. In Arthurian material, the best known of these groups are the Nine sorceresses, Morgan and her sisters who live on the Isle of Avalon and are both seeresses and healers. Another group occur in the Welsh tale of Peredur son of Efrawg, and these are the armed witches of Caer Lyow. Also in Welsh mythology, we have nine maidens who tend the fire below the Cauldron of the "Chief of Annwn"; this cauldron is the target of Arthur’s raid on the Underworld in Taliesin’s famous poem Preiddeu Annwfn.
Alain II Hir, "Alain II the tall",, also known as Alan Hir was a king of Brittany who succeeded his father Iudicael as King of Cornouaille; not to be confused with the contemporary Judicael, the King of Domnonee who was son of Iudhael, King of Domnonee. He was the grandson of Hoel III, King of Brittany and descended from Aldroen, grandson of Conan Meriadoc of the Welsh tale Breuddwyd Macsen Wledig via his son Gwereg, the historical "Erec" from the Breton Romance Erec et Enide. He was the father of a supposed figure named Ifor who ruled Cornwall after reconquering it from the West Saxons and then left it to his nephew either Idwal Iwrch, King of Gwynedd or his son Rhodri Molwynog, King of the Britons as versions of the story vary, and his daughter, who in welsh genealogical manuscripts is either the mother or wife of Idwal Iwrch and possible mother of the aforementioned Rhodri Molwynog. According to Welsh tradition he was a 4th great nephew of Arthur by the marriage of Arthur's sister Elen to Hoel II of Brittany.
