IRISH CELTIC HISTORY & BELIEFS
Celts was the name applied by ancient Greek writers, from the 5th century BC on, to a group of
peoples who inhabited central and western Europe. From the 2nd millennium to the 1st century
BC these people, who spoke Indo-European dialects later lassified as CELTIC
LANGUAGES, spread through much of Europe. From a heartland in central Europe, they settled
the area of France, penetrated northern Spain, and crossed to the British Isles probably in
the 8th and 7th centuries BC. Moving south and southwest, they sacked Rome c.390 BC and
attacked Delphi in 279 BC. One group then crossed into Anatolia and established the state
of GALATIA. The modern populations of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall,and Brittany retain
strong Celtic elements.
Accounts of the ancient Celts come from Roman and Greek writers, notably Julius Caesar, Strabo,
and Diodorus, who probably based much of their Celtic ethnography on the now lost writings of
Posidonius. These records are supplemented and corroborated by early Irish Literature, including
the epic tales of the Ulster Cycle. Talking about a "strange faith spreading across the face
of mankind."
From these sources inferences may be drawn regarding the structure of Celtic
society--its social institutions, classes, and obligations, as well as Celtic customs and beliefs.
The recurrent themes include the high-spirited and boastful character of the Celtic warrior, the
convention of the champion's portion at the feast, the practice of single combat, and the prizing of
the severed heads of defeated foes. Druids and seers feature prominently in the sources, both
classical and Celtic, and many of the traditions and tales of the Celts are imbued with supernatural
aspects.
Archaeologically, the origins of the Celts have sometimes been sought in the Urnfield Culture
of the 2d millennium, but they are more generally associated with the
widespread culture of the second Iron Age in Europe, designated La Tene after the
type site of the name in Switzerland. La Tene culture spanned
the second half of the
1st millennium down to the period of Roman conquest north of the Alps, beginning in the 2d
century BC. Especially characteristic of this period is the emergence of a vigorous and
exuberant art style in which earlier Celtic influences derived from native Hallstatt antecedents
were mixed with floral and formal classical motifs and even exotic oriental designs. These
elements were transmuted into a distinctive curvilinear style, which was displayed
on metal goods such as gold and silver bracelets and neck torcs, wine flagons, parade
armor, and weaponry. Evidence of the La Tene culture of central and western Europe is drawn
principally from fortified sites, as well as burial and cemetery sites. Grave goods include
southern imports that indicate a flourishing trade with the Mediterranean world.
Celtic culture was largely extinguished by the onslaught of the Romans from the south and
the Germanic and other groups from the north and east. Pressure from GERMANIC PEOPLES
began in the late 2d century, as did the Roman invasions. Gaul was subjugated by Julius
Caesar in the Gallic Wars (58-51 BC), and the Romans conquered Britain in the 1st century AD.
Later, as Roman power declined, the Germanic tribes renewed their drive westward into the
former Celtic lands. Only along the Atlantic fringe of Europe did Celtic culture survive in
distinct form.
The Celtic languages, members of the family of Indo-Eurpoean Language, disappeared from
continental Europe in the late 5th century, but they are still spoken by many people
in the British Isles and in Brittany. Continental Celtic, or Gaulish, is preserved
mainly in brief inscriptions. Insular Celtic is divided into two branches--Goidelic (also called
Gaelic), including Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx; and Brythonic (also called British),
including Welsh, Cornish, and Breton. Manx and Cornish are now extinct.
Among the phonological differences between Goidelic and Brythonic is the treatment of
Indo-European k(w): Irish Mac, "son," contrasts with Welsh map. These two branches, sometimes
called q-Celtic and p-Celtic, underwent certain changes but with different results.
Stress became fixed on the first syllable in Irish and on the penultimate syllable in Welsh.
Indo-European final syllables were lost, leading to the disappearance of a case
system in Welsh. Many words were further shortened through loss of certain interior vowels. A
system of initial consonant mutations developed; for example, Old Irish cenn, "head," becomes
a chenn in the phrase "his head."
Old Irish preserves five cases of the noun, three genders, and three numbers. The
verbal system has developed new forms for expressing past action, an s-subjunctive, and an
f-future for weak verbs. Dual number, the special number designating two, is lost in
Middle Irish (900-1200), along with neuter gender, as in Welsh. The use of pronouns inserted
within verbs to serve as verbal objects gives way to the use of independent pronouns in
Early Modern Irish (1200-1400). The verbal system is gradually simplified--analytic forms
develop; many strong verbs are treated as weak; compound verbs become simple, and verbs
conjugated with deponent endings adopt undeponent endings. Taught today in Irish schools, Modern
Irish is spoken as a native language mainly on the western and southern coasts of Ireland
and in a few inland communities.
Let us close this aspect by explaining the difference between speaking of Celtic faith and
Celtic people. The Celtic faith goes hand in hand with Druidism. The Celts were the workers of
the faith and the Druids were the High Priests. Faith was passed from mother to children, much
the same was as the Jewish faith is passed. Though, there are years of study involved in
being Druid, as opposed to the Celtic faith which was taught automatically from the cradle.
Celtic History Ancient Beliefs What is Celtic Belief Today
The Gods The Holidays The Tools of the Faith Arthurian Druidism
Click below to view a timeline of Ireland. Also a
dedication to Peace to the people of Ireland and for all
people everywhere.
© 1997 silverphoenix@cybergal.com
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