Brazil (mythical island)
Encyclopedia
Brasil, also known as Hy-Brasil or several other variants, is a phantom island
which was said to lie in the Atlantic ocean west of Ireland. In Irish myth
s it was said to be cloaked in mist
, except for one day each seven years, when it became visible but still could not be reached. It probably has similar roots to other mythical islands said to exist in the Atlantic, such as Atlantis
, St. Brendan's Island
and the Isle of Mam. The etymology of the names Brasil and Hy-Brasil are unknown but in Irish tradition it is thought to come from the Irish Uí Breasail (meaning "descendants (i.e., clan) of Breasal"), one of the ancient clan
s of northeastern Ireland. cf.
Old Irish: Í: island; bres: beauty, worth; great, mighty.
by Angelino Dulcert
. Later it appeared as Insula de Brasil in the Venetian map of Andrea Bianco (1436), attached to one of the larger islands of a group of islands in the Atlantic. This was identified for a time with the modern island of Terceira
in the Azores
A Catalan chart
of about 1480 labels two islands "Illa de brasil", one to the south west of Ireland (where the mythical place was supposed to be) and one south of "Illa verde" or Greenland
.
On maps the island was shown as being circular
, often with a central strait
or river
running east-west across its diameter. Despite the failure of attempts to find it, this appeared regularly on maps lying south west of Galway Bay
until 1865, by which time it was called Brasil Rock.
shortly after the return of John Cabot
from his expedition in 1497 reports that land found by Cabot had been "discovered in the past by the men from Bristol who found Brasil".
Despite the similitude, the name of the country Brazil
has no relation to the mythical islands. It was at first named Ilha de Vera Cruz
(Island of the True Cross) and later Terra de Santa Cruz (Land of the Holy Cross) by the Portuguese navigators who discovered the land. After some decades, it started to be called 'Brazil' (today Brasil) due the exploration of Brazilwood (ember-like wood), at that time the only economic production of this land.
Later, various people claimed to have seen the island off the coast of Ireland, or even landed on it, the last supposed sighting being in 1872. In 1674 Captain John Nisbet claimed to have seen the island when on a journey from France to Ireland. He stated the island was inhabited by large black rabbits and a magician who lived alone in a stone castle. Roderick O’Flaherty
in A Chorographical Description of West or H-Iar Connaught (1684) tells us "There is now living, Morogh O'Ley (Murrough Ó Laoí
), who imagins he was personally on O'Brasil for two days, and saw out of it the iles of Aran, Golamhead, Irrosbeghill, and other places of the west continent he was acquainted with."
Hy-Brasil has also been identified with Porcupine Bank
, a shoal in the Atlantic Ocean about 200 kilometres (124.3 mi) west of Ireland and discovered in 1862. As early as 1870 a paper was read to the Geological Society of Ireland suggesting this identification. The suggestion reappears regularly since, e.g. in an 1883 edition of Notes and Queries
and in various publications in the twentieth century, one of the most recent being Graham Hancock
's book Underworld: The Mysterious Origins of Civilization.
Phantom island
Phantom islands are islands that were believed to exist, and appeared on maps for a period of time during recorded history, but were later removed after they were proved to be nonexistent...
which was said to lie in the Atlantic ocean west of Ireland. In Irish myth
Irish mythology
The mythology of pre-Christian Ireland did not entirely survive the conversion to Christianity, but much of it was preserved, shorn of its religious meanings, in medieval Irish literature, which represents the most extensive and best preserved of all the branch and the Historical Cycle. There are...
s it was said to be cloaked in mist
Mist
Mist is a phenomenon of small droplets suspended in air. It can occur as part of natural weather or volcanic activity, and is common in cold air above warmer water, in exhaled air in the cold, and in a steam room of a sauna. It can also be created artificially with aerosol canisters if the...
, except for one day each seven years, when it became visible but still could not be reached. It probably has similar roots to other mythical islands said to exist in the Atlantic, such as Atlantis
Atlantis
Atlantis is a legendary island first mentioned in Plato's dialogues Timaeus and Critias, written about 360 BC....
, St. Brendan's Island
St. Brendan's Island
Situated somewhere west of Northern Africa, St. Brendan’s Isle is a phantom island often regarded as myth, since, unless it is the so-called "Eighth Canary Island" known since time immemorial to the Spanish and Portuguese authorities as San Borondón, only a few have claimed to have seen it.In the...
and the Isle of Mam. The etymology of the names Brasil and Hy-Brasil are unknown but in Irish tradition it is thought to come from the Irish Uí Breasail (meaning "descendants (i.e., clan) of Breasal"), one of the ancient clan
Clan
A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clan members may be organized around a founding member or apical ancestor. The kinship-based bonds may be symbolical, whereby the clan shares a "stipulated" common ancestor that is a...
s of northeastern Ireland. cf.
Cf.
cf., an abbreviation for the Latin word confer , literally meaning "bring together", is used to refer to other material or ideas which may provide similar or different information or arguments. It is mainly used in scholarly contexts, such as in academic or legal texts...
Old Irish: Í: island; bres: beauty, worth; great, mighty.
Appearance on maps
Nautical charts identified an island called "Bracile" west of Ireland in the Atlantic Ocean as far back as 1325, in a portolan chartPortolan chart
Portolan charts are navigational maps based on realistic descriptions of harbours and coasts. They were first made in the 14th century in Italy, Portugal and Spain...
by Angelino Dulcert
Angelino Dulcert
Angelino Dulcert , probably also the same person known as Angelino de Dalorto , and who's real name was probably Angelino de Dulceto or Dulceti or possibly Angelí Dolcet, was an Italian-Majorcan cartographer....
. Later it appeared as Insula de Brasil in the Venetian map of Andrea Bianco (1436), attached to one of the larger islands of a group of islands in the Atlantic. This was identified for a time with the modern island of Terceira
Terceira Island
Referred to as the “Ilha Lilás” , Terceira is an island in the Azores archipelago, in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean. It is one of the larger islands of the archipelago, with a population of 56,000 inhabitants in an area of approximately 396.75 km²...
in the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
A Catalan chart
Catalan chart
Catalan charts are a subtype of the medieval period portolan chart. Portolan charts are a type of map generated by using a mariner's compass and direct observation to determine the shape and location of coastlines and ports. The term "portolan" means "pertaining to ports and harbors" and should...
of about 1480 labels two islands "Illa de brasil", one to the south west of Ireland (where the mythical place was supposed to be) and one south of "Illa verde" or Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
.
On maps the island was shown as being circular
Circular
Circular is a basic geometric shape such as a Circle.Circular may also refer to:-Documents:*Circular note, a document request by a bank to its foreign correspondents to pay a specified sum of money to a named person...
, often with a central strait
Strait
A strait or straits is a narrow, typically navigable channel of water that connects two larger, navigable bodies of water. It most commonly refers to a channel of water that lies between two land masses, but it may also refer to a navigable channel through a body of water that is otherwise not...
or river
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
running east-west across its diameter. Despite the failure of attempts to find it, this appeared regularly on maps lying south west of Galway Bay
Galway Bay
Galway Bay is a large bay on the west coast of Ireland, between County Galway in the province of Connacht to the north and the Burren in County Clare in the province of Munster to the south. Galway city is located on the northeast side of the bay. It is about long and from to in breadth...
until 1865, by which time it was called Brasil Rock.
Searches for the island
Expeditions left Bristol in 1480 and 1481 to search for the island, and a letter written by Pedro de AyalaPedro de Ayala
Don Pedro de Ayala was a 16th-century Spanish diplomat employed by Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile at the courts of James IV of Scotland and Henry VII of England. His mission to Scotland was concerned with the King's marriage and the international crisis caused by the pretender...
shortly after the return of John Cabot
John Cabot
John Cabot was an Italian navigator and explorer whose 1497 discovery of parts of North America is commonly held to have been the first European encounter with the continent of North America since the Norse Vikings in the eleventh century...
from his expedition in 1497 reports that land found by Cabot had been "discovered in the past by the men from Bristol who found Brasil".
Despite the similitude, the name of the country Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
has no relation to the mythical islands. It was at first named Ilha de Vera Cruz
Ilha de Vera Cruz
Ilha de Vera Cruz was the first name given by the Portuguese navigators to the newly discovered land on the northeast coast of what later became known as Brazil...
(Island of the True Cross) and later Terra de Santa Cruz (Land of the Holy Cross) by the Portuguese navigators who discovered the land. After some decades, it started to be called 'Brazil' (today Brasil) due the exploration of Brazilwood (ember-like wood), at that time the only economic production of this land.
Later, various people claimed to have seen the island off the coast of Ireland, or even landed on it, the last supposed sighting being in 1872. In 1674 Captain John Nisbet claimed to have seen the island when on a journey from France to Ireland. He stated the island was inhabited by large black rabbits and a magician who lived alone in a stone castle. Roderick O’Flaherty
Ruaidhri Ó Flaithbheartaigh
Ruaidhri Ó Flaithbheartaigh, King of Iar Connacht and Chief of the Name, fl. 1244-1273.-Biography:Ruaidhri was a brother of the preceding chief, Morogh...
in A Chorographical Description of West or H-Iar Connaught (1684) tells us "There is now living, Morogh O'Ley (Murrough Ó Laoí
Murrough Ó Laoí
Murrough Ó Laoí, Irish Physician, fl. 1668 – 1684.Ó Laoí was a descendant of a hereditary medical family to the O'Flaherty, who were first mentioned in Crichaireacht cinedach nduchasa Muintiri Murchada, c. 1000. They moved west across Lough Corrib with the O'Flahertys, continuing their profession...
), who imagins he was personally on O'Brasil for two days, and saw out of it the iles of Aran, Golamhead, Irrosbeghill, and other places of the west continent he was acquainted with."
Hy-Brasil has also been identified with Porcupine Bank
Porcupine Bank
Porcupine Bank is an area of the Irish shelf approximately west of Ireland. The relatively raised area of seabed lies between the deep-water Porcupine Seabight and Rockall Trough....
, a shoal in the Atlantic Ocean about 200 kilometres (124.3 mi) west of Ireland and discovered in 1862. As early as 1870 a paper was read to the Geological Society of Ireland suggesting this identification. The suggestion reappears regularly since, e.g. in an 1883 edition of Notes and Queries
Notes and Queries
Notes and Queries is a long-running quarterly scholarly journal that publishes short articles related to "English language and literature, lexicography, history, and scholarly antiquarianism". Its emphasis is on "the factual rather than the speculative"...
and in various publications in the twentieth century, one of the most recent being Graham Hancock
Graham Hancock
Graham Hancock is a British writer and journalist. Hancock specialises in unconventional theories involving ancient civilizations, stone monuments or megaliths, altered states of consciousness, ancient myths and astronomical/astrological data from the past...
's book Underworld: The Mysterious Origins of Civilization.