In Irish and Scottish mythology, the
Cailleach (pronounced /kalʲəx/, Irish plural cailleacha
/kalʲəxə/, Scottish Gaelic plural
cailleachan /kalʲəxən/), also known as the
Cailleach Bheur, is generally seen as a divine hag, a creator, and possibly an ancestral deity or deified ancestor. The word simply means 'old woman' in modern
Scottish Gaelic, and has been applied to numerous mythological figures in both Scotland
and Ireland.
Legends
In Scotland, where she is also known as Beira, Queen of
Winter, she is credited with making numerous mountains and large hills, which are said to have been formed when she was
striding across the land and accidentally dropped rocks from her apron. In other cases she is said to have built the mountains
intentionally, to serve as her stepping stones. She carries a hammer for shaping the hills and valleys.[1]
In partnership with the goddess Brìghde, the Cailleach is seen as a seasonal deity or spirit,
with The Cailleach Bheur ruling the winter months between Samhuinn and Bealltainn, and Brìghde ruling the summer months between Bealltainn and Samhuinn. Depending on local climate,
the change in 'rulership' is celebrated any time between Là Fhèill Brìghde (February 1) at the earliest, Latha na Cailliche
(March 25), or Bealltainn at the latest. Some interpretations have the Cailleach and Brìghde as two faces of the same
goddess.[2] She evinces many traits fitting
for the personified Winter: she herds deer, she fights Spring, and her staff freezes the ground.[3]
In Scotland, The Cailleachan (lit. 'old women') are also known as The Storm Hags, and seen as personifications of the
elemental powers of nature, especially in a destructive aspect. They are said to be particularly active in raising the windstorms
of spring, during the period known as A' Chailleach.[2][4] One
legend describes The Cailleach as turning to stone on Beltane and reverting back to humanoid
form on Samhain in time to rule over the winter months. In Scotland, she ushers in winter by
washing her plaid in the Whirlpool of Coire
Bhreacain. This process is said to take three days, during which the roar of the coming tempest is heard as far away as
twenty miles inland. When she is finished, her plaid is white and snow covers the land.[2]
In Scotland and Ireland, the first farmer to finish the grain harvest made a corn dolly,
representing The Cailleach, from the last sheaf of the crop. The last farmer to finish had the responsibility to take in and care
for the corn dolly for the next year. Competition was fierce to avoid having to take in the Old Woman.[5]
The word cailleach (in modern Scottish Gaelic, 'old wife, nun') comes from the
Old Irish caillech, 'veiled one', which is probably derived from the Latin pallium, 'cloak'.[6] The word is related to caileag which means 'girl'. The Lowland Scots word for 'hag' is carline which has evolved to mean witch. Another word for 'hag' is the Irish Síle, which has led some to speculate on a connection
between the Cailleach and the stonecarvings of Sheela na Gigs.[7] Some scholars believe the Old Irish poem, 'The Lament of the Old Woman
of Beare' is about the Cailleach; Kuno Meyer states, '...she had fifty foster-children in Beare. She had seven periods of youth
one after another, so that every man who had lived with her came to die of old age, and her grandsons and great-grandsons were
tribes and races.'[8][9]
The Cailleach Bheur has been described in some sources as having blue-black skin, like a corpse. In later tales she is also
known as Cailleach nan Cruachan, the witch of Ben Cruachan (a Mountain in
Argyll and Bute, Scotland). Tea-towels and postcards of her are sold in the visitor shop
for the Hollow Mountain. She is also credited with creating Loch
Awe.
In the area of the Cliffs of Moher, she is reportedly given the name Bronach or
'sorrowful'.[10]
See also
Notes
- ^ Mackenzie, Donald Alexander (1917). "Beira, Queen of Winter" in
Wonder Tales from Scottish Myth and Legend"
- ^ a b c McNeill, F. Marian (1959). The Silver Bough, Vol.2: A Calendar of
Scottish National Festivals, Candlemas to Harvest Home. Glasgow: William MacLellan, 20-1. ISBN
0-85335-162-7.
- ^ Briggs, K. M. (1967). The Fairies in English Tradition and Literature. London: University of
Chicago Press, 40.
- ^ McNeill, F. Marian (1959). The Silver Bough, Vol.1: Scottish Folklore and Folk-Belief. Glasgow:
William MacLellan, 119. ISBN 0-85335-161-9.
- ^ McNeill, Vol.2 (1959) pp.119-124
- ^ Macbain, Alexander (1998) Etymological Dictionary Of
Scottish-Gaelic. New York, Hippocrene Books. ISBN 0-7818-0632-1 p.63
- ^ Ross, Anne (1973, reprint 2004) "The divine hag of the pagan Celts"
in The Witch Figure: Folklore Essays by a Group of Scholars in England Honoring the 75th Birthday of Katharine M. Briggs.
ed. by Venetia Newall. London, Routledge and Kegan Paul. ISBN 0-4153-3074-2
- ^ Meyer, Kuno (1994 (orig. 1913)). Ancient Irish Poetry. London: Constable and Co.,
90-3. ISBN 0094733805.
- ^ Ó Crualaoich, Gearóid (2003). The Book of the Cailleach: Stories of the Wise-Woman
Healer. Cork: Cork University Press, 48-52. ISBN 1-85918-372-7.
- ^ House Shadow Drake. Cailleach
Bheara
Bibliography
- Carmichael, Alexander (1992). Carmina Gadelica. Lindisfarne Press. ISBN
0-940262-50-9
- Danaher, Kevin (1962). The Year in Ireland. Irish Books & Media. ISBN
0-937702-13-7
- Hull, Eleanor. "Legends and Traditions of the Cailleach Bheara or Old Woman (Hag) of Beare" in
Folklore, Vol. 38, No. 3 (Sep. 30, 1927), pp. 225-254
- MacKillop, James (1998). Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-280120-1
- McNeill, F. Marian (1959). The Silver Bough, Vol. 1 -4. William MacLellan,
Glasgow
- Ó Crualaoich, Gearóid (2003). The Book of the Cailleach: Stories of the Wise-Woman Healer. Cork University Press. ISBN
1-85918-372-7
External links
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