In Irish mythology, Lir or Ler ("the sea") was the god of the sea, father of Manannan mac Lir, and a son of Elatha. In early genealogies, he is named Allód, and corresponds to Llŷr in Welsh mythology. This figure is most famously portrayed in Shakespeare's play, King Lear.
Gaelic References
Lir, like his Welsh counterpart, is a God of the Sea, though in the case of the Gaelic myths his son Manannan mac Lir seems to take over his position and so features more prominently. It is probable that more myths referring to Llyr/Ler which are now lost to us existed and that his popularity was greater, especially considering the number of figures called 'son of Llyr/Ler'.
Lir is a key character in the well-known mythological story Oidheadh Chlainne Lir; however, it is not definitely established whether this is the same person as Manannán's father or a different Lir. The Lir in this story was the rival of Bodb Dearg for the kingship of the Tuatha Dé Danann after their retreat into the fairy mounds. In order to appease Lir, Bodb gave one of his daughters to marry him, Aeb. She bore him four children, one girl, Fionnuala, and three sons, Aed and twins, Fiachra and Conn.
Aeb died and, not wanting the children to remain motherless, Bodb sent another of his daughters, Aoife, to marry Ler. Aoife grew jealous of the children and cursed them to live as swans for 900 years.[1]
See also
References
- ^ Dictionary of Celtic Myth and Legend, Miranda J. Green, Thames and Hudson, Ltd, 1997
External links
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