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Arthur in the Celtic Languages

Arthur in the Celtic Languages

Ceridwen Lloyd-Morgan | Erich Poppe

(2019)

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Book Details

Abstract

This is the first comprehensive authoritative survey of Arthurian literature and traditions in the Celtic languages of Welsh, Cornish, Breton, Irish and Scottish Gaelic. With contributions by leading and emerging specialists in the field, the volume traces the development of the legends that grew up around Arthur and have been constantly reworked and adapted from the Middle Ages to the twentieth century. It shows how the figure of Arthur evolved from the leader of a warband in early medieval north Britain to a king whose court becomes the starting-point for knightly adventures, and how characters and tales are reimagined, reshaped and reinterpreted according to local circumstances, traditions and preoccupations at different periods. From the celebrated early Welsh poetry and prose tales to less familiar modern Breton and Cornish fiction, from medieval Irish adaptations of the legend to the Gaelic ballads of Scotland, Arthur in the Celtic Languages provides an indispensable, up-to-date guide of a vast and complex body of Arthurian material, and to recent research and criticism.


Table of Contents

Section Title Page Action Price
Cover Cover
Half Title i
Title Page iii
Copyright iv
Contents vii
Preface xi
Acknowledgements xiii
List of Contributors xv
List of Illustrations xix
List of Abbreviations xxi
Glossary of Welsh Terms xxiii
Introduction 1
Part One: Wales 11
The Beginnings of Welsh Arthurian Tradition 13
1 Arthurian references in Early Welsh Poetry 15
2 The Earliest Myrddin Poems 35
3 Trystan and Esyllt 51
Native Welsh Arthurian Tales 65
4 Culhwch ac Olwen 67
5 Breuddwyd Rhonabwy 80
Medieval Translations and Adaptations into Welsh 93
6 Brut y Brenhinedd 95
7 The First Adaptations from French: History and Context of a Debate 110
8 Owain or Iarlles y Ffynnawn 117
9 Ystorya Geraint fab Erbin\r 132
10 Historia Peredur ab Efrawg 145
11 Y Seint Greal 158
Influences and Re-compositions 171
12 Arthur in Trioedd Ynys Prydain 173
13 Arthurian References in Medieval Welsh Poetry, c.1100–c.1540 187
14 Later Hybrid Narrative Texts in Middle Welsh 203
15 Folklore and Popular Tradition 214
16 Arthurian Place-names of Wales 231
17 Arthurian Tradition in Modern Welsh Literature 245
Part Two: Cornish and Breton Traditions 261
18 Cornwall and the Matter of Britain 263
19 Arthur in Earlier Breton Traditions 281
20 Popular Traditions and the Work of Hersart de la Villemarqué 304
21 The Arthurian Legend in Modern Breton Culture 320
Part Three: The Gaelic World 337
Ireland 339
22 The Earliest Irish Material\r2 341
23 Irish Translations and Romances 344
Scotland 359
24 Scottish Gaelic Literature and Popular Traditions\r 361
Bibliography 375
Index of Manuscripts 390
General Index 392