Irish mythology

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a woman sitting on top of a tree next to a moon

In Irish mythology, Danu ([ˈdanu]; modern Irish Dana [ˈd̪ˠanˠə]) is a hypothetical mother goddess of the Tuatha Dé Danann (Old Irish: "the peoples of the goddess Danu"). Though primarily seen as an ancestral figure, some Victorian sources also associate her with the land. The hypothetical nominative form of the name, *Danu, is not found in any medieval Irish text, but is rather a reconstruction by modern scholars based on the genitive Danann (also spelled Donand or Danand), which is the…

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a black cat sitting on top of a tree branch

The púca (Irish for spirit/ghost), pooka, phouka, phooka, phooca, puca or púka, is primarily a creature of Irish folklore. Considered to be bringers both of good and bad fortune, they could either help or hinder rural and marine communities. The creatures were said to be shape changers which could take the appearance of black horses, goats and rabbits. The púca has counterparts throughout the Celtic cultures of Northwest Europe. For instance, in Welsh mythology it is named the pwca and in…

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an old irish fairy tale is shown in this black and white book with the title

Arthur Rackham (1867-1939) English, Golden Age Illustrator. Irish Fairy Tales by James Stephens (1920) Illustrated by Arthur Rackham archive.org/stream/irishfairytales01step#page/n11/mode/2up

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a green horse with long hair standing on the ground

Kelpie

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a drawing of a man riding on the back of a horse

The Dullahan is a headless rider, and being the most famous of its kind, was likely the inspiration for Washington Irving's Headless Horseman character. The rider was usually on a dark horse, carrying his or her own head. The decapitated head was said to have constant hideous grin, and its skin was the consistency and color of moldy cheese. The rider's weapon is a whip fashioned from a human spinal cord.

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an old building in the middle of a green field with text overlay reading 10 writing prompts from irish mythology

This week’s prompts come from Irish mythology. This was quite a challenge for me than the post on Greek Myths as I knew basically nothing about it before I started. (Now also have a list based on Norse Myths and Bulgarian Folklore!) I used Wikipedia a lot and a helpful website called Bardmythologies.com. I encourage you to check this site out and read all of the myths, they are truly fascinating. Two books also came in handy during my research that I would like to highly recommend. One is…

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"Daughter of the Sea". Selkies are mythological creatures found in Faroese, Icelandic, Irish, and Scottish folklore. They are said to live as seals in the sea, but shed their skin to become human on land. The legend apparently originated on the Orkney and Shetland Islands and is very similar to those of swan maidens." Selkie Fantasy Art, Lesbian Mermaid Art, Captured Mermaid Art, Mermaid Oracle, Fabian Perez, Alex Pardee, Irish Mythology, Fairy Tale, Myths And Mermaids Oracle

"Daughter of the Sea". Selkies are mythological creatures found in Faroese, Icelandic, Irish, and Scottish folklore. They are said to live as seals in the sea, but shed their skin to become human on land. The legend apparently originated on the Orkney and Shetland Islands and is very similar to those of swan maidens."

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