Annwn

Annwn or Annwfn (Middle Welsh Annwvn, sometimes inaccurately written Annwyn, Annwyfn or Annwfyn) was the Otherworld in Welsh mythology. Ruled by Arawn, or much later by Gwyn ap Nudd, it was essentially a world of delights and eternal youth where disease is absent and food is ever-abundant. It later became Christianised and identified with the land of souls that had departed this world.

Name and etymology

Middle Welsh sources suggest that the term was recognised as meaning "very deep" in medieval times (Sims-Williams 1990). The appearance of a form antumnos on an ancient Gaulish curse tablet, however, suggests that the original term may have been *ande-dubnos, a common Gallo-Brittonic word that literally meant "underworld" (Lambert 2003). The Modern Welsh spelling Annwn is pronounced [ˈanːʊn].

The word Annwn or Annwfn is a Welsh place, located across the sea and both real offshore islands that are portrayed as the otherworld. In the land of Annwn time always remains the same. Annwn is not the world of the dead. “It is a place of feasting and never ending pleasure. Those who live in Annwn are never harmed by plague, or age.”

Sources

In the First Branch of the Mabinogi, entitled Pwyll, Prince of Dyfed, the eponymous prince offends Arawn, ruler of Annwn, by baiting his hunting hounds on a stag that Arawn's dogs had brought down. In recompense he exchanges places with Arawn for a year and defeats Arawn's enemy Hafgan. Meanwhile, Arawn rules Dyfed. During this year, Pwyll does not sleep with Arawn's wife, earning himself gratitude from Arawn. On his return, Pwyll becomes known by the title Penn Annwn, "Head (or Ruler) of Annwn."

In Culhwch and Olwen, an early Welsh Arthurian tale, it is said God gave Gwyn ap Nudd control over the demons lest "this world be destroyed." He led the Wild Hunt. A Christian story tells of the Welsh Saint Collen entering Gwyn's palace to banish him with holy water.

The poem, “The Spoils of Annwn” discuss how King Arthur leads an expedition to the otherworld to receive a treasure and rescue a prisoner. A quote from the poem, “ Three shiploads we went; save seven none returned.”

Neo-druidism

Some people have claimed that the door to Annwn was at the mouth of the Severn near Lundy Island or on Glastonbury Tor^{[citation needed]}. Glastonbury has been interpreted by some as a sacred "Isle of the Dead", and is also revered as a place where saints and kings are buried. Supposedly, on a certain day of the year, this door would open, and the inhabitants would welcome humans in for feasting and celebration, upon the condition that they took nothing back with them to the human realm. This went on until one reveller kept a flower in his pocket. From that day on, the door has remained closed.

See also

• Cŵn Annwn
• Other World
• Avalon

References

• Lambert, Pierre-Yves. 2003. La langue gauloise: description linguistique, commentaire d’inscriptions choisies. Paris: Errance. 2nd ed.
• Sims-Williams, Patrick. 1990. Some Celtic otherworld terms. Celtic Language, Celtic Culture: A Festschrift for Eric P. Hamp, ed. Ann T.E. Matonis and Daniel F. Mela, 57-84. Van Nuys, Ca.: Ford & Bailie.
• Carl Lindahl, C.A. (2000-2002). Medieval Folklore. Oxford University: Oxford University Press, Inc.
• John Matthew’s. J.M. (1996). Sources of the Grail. Great Britain: Floris Books.
• Mike Kennedy. M.K. (1996). Celtic Myth&Legend. UK: Blandford and Cassel Imprint.