Four Branches of the Mabinogi
Encyclopedia
The Four Branches of the Mabinogi are the best known tales from the collection of medieval Welsh
prose known as the Mabinogion
. The word "Mabinogi" originally designated only these four tales, which are really parts or "branches" of a single work, rather than the whole collection. The tales contain most of what is recorded of Welsh mythology
.
, appears in all four branches, though not always as a central character. They include:
It has been suggested that originally these tales were all part of a tradition surrounding the life of Pryderi, and that later additions of material have since come to dominate the stories. It is unclear whether this is indeed the case, or if, alternatively, Pryderi himself was introduced to link legends of separate origins.
Pwyll, Prince of Dyfed
The first branch tells of how Pwyll
, the prince of Dyfed
, exchanges places for a year with Arawn
, the ruler of Annwn
, defeats Arawn's enemy Hafgan
and on his return encounters Rhiannon
, a beautiful maiden whose ambling horse cannot be caught. He manages to win her hand at the expense of Gwawl
, to whom she is betrothed. He does so by using a magic bag that can never be filled in which he traps Gwawl. His men beat Gwawl while he is in the bag. Rhiannon bears Pwyll a son but the child disappears the night he is born. Rhiannon is accused of killing him and forced to carry guests on her back as punishment. But the child had been taken by a monster and is rescued by Teyrnon
and his wife who bring him up as their own, calling him Gwri Golden Hair, until his resemblance to Pwyll becomes apparent. They return him to his real parents, Rhiannon is released from her punishment and the boy is renamed Pryderi.
, sister of Bendigeidfran
(meaning "blessed raven", otherwise known as Brân the Blessed), king of Britain
, is given in marriage to Matholwch
, king of Ireland. Branwen's half-brother Efnisien
, angry that he was not consulted, insults Matholwch by mutilating his horses. Bendigeidfran gives him compensation in the form of new horses and treasure, including a magical cauldron which can restore the dead to life. After returning to Ireland, Matholwch and Branwen have a son, Gwern
, but Efnisien's insult continues to rankle among the Irish and Branwen is banished to the kitchen and beaten every day. Branwen trains a starling
to take a message to Bendigeidfran, who goes to war against Matholwch. His army crosses the Irish Sea
in ships, but Bendigeidfran is so huge he wades across. The Irish offer to make peace and build a house big enough to entertain Bendigeidfran but hang a hundred bags inside, supposedly containing flour but actually containing armed warriors. Efnisien, suspecting a trick, reconnoitres the hall and kills the warriors by crushing their heads inside the bags. Later, at the feast, Efnisien, again feeling insulted, throws Gwern on the fire and fighting breaks out. Seeing that the Irish are using the cauldron to revive their dead, Efnisien hides among the corpses and destroys the cauldron, although the effort costs him his life. Only seven men, all Welsh, survive the battle, including Pryderi, Manawydan
and Bendigeidfran, who is mortally wounded by a poisoned spear. Bendigeidfran asks his companions to cut off his head and take it back to Britain where it continues to live for eighty years as they partake of an enchanted feast. Branwen dies of grief on returning home. Five pregnant women survive to repopulate Ireland.
Manawydan
Pryderi
and Manawydan return to Dyfed, where Pryderi is reunited with his wife Cigfa
and Manawydan marries Rhiannon (Pryderi's mother from the First Branch). However, a magical mist descends on the land, leaving it empty of all domesticated animals and humans apart from the four protagonists. They stay in Dyfed and support themselves by hunting at first, then move to England where they make a living making saddles, shields and shoes of such quality that the local craftsmen cannot compete and drive them from town to town. Eventually they return to Dyfed and become hunters again. While they are hunting a white boar leads Pryderi and Manawydan to a mysterious castle. Pryderi, against Manawydan's advice, goes inside but does not return. Rhiannon goes to investigate and finds Pryderi clinging to a bowl, unable to speak. The same fate befalls her and the castle disappears. Manawydan and Cigfa return to England as shoemakers, but once again the locals drive them out and they return to Dyfed. They sow three fields of wheat but the first field is destroyed before it can be harvested. The next night the second field is destroyed. Manawydan keeps watch over the third field and when he sees it destroyed by mice he catches one and decides to hang it the next day. A scholar, a priest and a bishop in turn offer him gifts if he will spare the mouse but he refuses. When asked what he wants in return for the mouse's life he demands the release of Pryderi and Rhiannon and the lifting of the enchantment over Dyfed. The bishop agrees because the mouse is in fact his wife. He reveals that his name is Llwyd son of Cil Coed and that he caused the enchantment on Dyfed in revenge for the insult against his friend Gwawl, whom Pwyll, Pryderi's father, humiliated in the First Branch.
in north Wales is ruled by Math, son of Mathonwy
, whose feet must be held by a virgin at all times except while he is at war. Math's nephew Gilfaethwy
is in love with Goewin
, the current footholder, and Gilfaethwy's brother Gwydion
tricks Math into going to war against Pryderi so Gilfaethwy can have access to her. Gwydion kills Pryderi in single combat and Gilfaethwy rapes Goewin. Math marries Goewin in compensation for her rape and banishes Gwydion and Gilfaethwy, transforming them into a breeding pair of deer, then pigs, then wolves. After three years they are restored to human form and return.
Math needs a new footholder and Gwydion suggests his sister Aranrhod
but, when Math magically tests her virginity, she gives birth to two sons. One, Dylan
, immediately takes to the sea. The other is raised by Gwydion but Aranrhod swears that he will never have a name or arms unless she gives them to him, which she refuses to do. But Gwydion tricks her into naming him Lleu Llaw Gyffes
(Bright, (with a) Deft (Skilful) Hand) and giving him arms. She then swears he will never have a wife of any race living on earth so Gwydion and Math make him a beautiful wife from oak
, broom
, and meadowsweet
, naming her Blodeuwedd
("Flower Face"). Blodeuwedd falls in love with a passing hunter called Gronw Pebyr
and they plot to kill Lleu. Blodeuwedd tricks him into revealing the means by which he can be killed but, when Gronw attempts to do the deed, Lleu escapes, though wounded, transformed into an eagle.
Gwydion finds Lleu, transforms him back into human form and turns Blodeuwedd into an owl. Gronw offers to compensate Lleu but Lleu insists on returning the blow that was struck against him. He kills Gronw with his spear, which is thrown so hard it pierces him through a stone behind which he is hiding.
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
prose known as the Mabinogion
Mabinogion
The Mabinogion is the title given to a collection of eleven prose stories collated from medieval Welsh manuscripts. The tales draw on pre-Christian Celtic mythology, international folktale motifs, and early medieval historical traditions...
. The word "Mabinogi" originally designated only these four tales, which are really parts or "branches" of a single work, rather than the whole collection. The tales contain most of what is recorded of Welsh mythology
Welsh mythology
Welsh mythology, the remnants of the mythology of the pre-Christian Britons, has come down to us in much altered form in medieval Welsh manuscripts such as the Red Book of Hergest, the White Book of Rhydderch, the Book of Aneirin and the Book of Taliesin....
.
Overview
The most mythological stories contained in the Mabinogion collection are four interrelated tales, by a single author or storyteller, titled The Mabinogi in manuscripts, or often "The Four Branches of the Mabinogi". The use of characters' names as titles for each branch is also a modern practice; they are not named in the original manuscripts. One figure, PryderiPryderi
Pryderi fab Pwyll is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology, the son of Pwyll and Rhiannon, and king of Dyfed following his father's death. He is the only character to appear in all Four Branches of the Mabinogi, although the size of his role varies from tale to tale...
, appears in all four branches, though not always as a central character. They include:
- Pwyll Prince of Dyfed, telling of Pryderi's parents, his birth, loss, and eventual recovery.
- Branwen Daughter of Llŷr, which mostly follows Branwen's marriage to the King of Ireland. Pryderi is named but plays no part in this branch.
- Manawydan Son of Llŷr, where Pryderi returns home with Manawydan, brother of Branwen, and they encounter misfortune.
- Math Son of Mathonwy, following Math and Gwydion and their conflict with Pryderi.
It has been suggested that originally these tales were all part of a tradition surrounding the life of Pryderi, and that later additions of material have since come to dominate the stories. It is unclear whether this is indeed the case, or if, alternatively, Pryderi himself was introduced to link legends of separate origins.
Pwyll, Prince of DyfedPwyll Pendefig Dyfed; "Pwyll, Prince of Dyfed," is a legendary tale from medieval Welsh literature and the first of the four branches of the Mabinogi. It tells of the friendship between Pwyll, prince of Dyfed, and Arawn, lord of the Otherworld, of the courting and marriage of Pwyll and Rhiannon and of the birth and...
The first branch tells of how PwyllPwyll
Pwyll Pen Annwn is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology and literature, the lord of Dyfed, husband of Rhiannon and father of the hero Pryderi...
, the prince of Dyfed
Kingdom of Dyfed
The Kingdom of Dyfed is one of several Welsh petty kingdoms that emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain in south-west Wales, based on the former Irish tribal lands of the Déisi from c 350 until it was subsumed into Deheubarth in 920. In Latin, the country of the Déisi was Demetae, eventually to...
, exchanges places for a year with Arawn
Arawn
In Welsh mythology, Arawn was the king of the otherworld realm of Annwn, appearing prominently in the first branch, and alluded to in the fourth. In later tradition, the role of king of Annwn was largely attributed to the Welsh psychopomp, Gwyn ap Nudd...
, the ruler of Annwn
Annwn
Annwn or Annwfn was the Otherworld in Welsh mythology. Ruled by Arawn, or much later by Gwyn ap Nudd, it was essentially a world of delights and eternal youth where disease is absent and food is ever-abundant. It later became Christianised and identified with the land of souls that had departed...
, defeats Arawn's enemy Hafgan
Hafgan
Hafgan is one of the kings of the otherworld, Annwn, in Welsh mythology. He appears in the First Branch of the Mabinogi as the main rival of Arawn, the other king of Annwn. The dominions of the two kings sit side by side, and Hafgan is constantly warring against Arawn...
and on his return encounters Rhiannon
Rhiannon
Rhiannon is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology, mother to the Demetian hero Pryderi and wife to Pwyll . She is probably a reflex of the Celtic Great Queen goddess Rigantona and may also be associated with the horse goddess Epona.She appears in both the first and third branches of the Mabinogi...
, a beautiful maiden whose ambling horse cannot be caught. He manages to win her hand at the expense of Gwawl
Gwawl
In Welsh mythology, Gwawl was the son of Clud, and tricks Pwyll into promising him Rhiannon. She decides to marry Pwyll instead. Gwawl is only mentioned in the First Branch of the Mabinogi...
, to whom she is betrothed. He does so by using a magic bag that can never be filled in which he traps Gwawl. His men beat Gwawl while he is in the bag. Rhiannon bears Pwyll a son but the child disappears the night he is born. Rhiannon is accused of killing him and forced to carry guests on her back as punishment. But the child had been taken by a monster and is rescued by Teyrnon
Teyrnon
In Welsh tradition, Teyrnon Twrf Liant is the lord of Gwent and the foster-father of the divine son, Pryderi. He appears most prominently in Pwyll Pendefig Dyfed, the first branch of the Mabinogi, but also features briefly in the early Arthurian tale, Culhwch ac Olwen as a knight of King Arthur's...
and his wife who bring him up as their own, calling him Gwri Golden Hair, until his resemblance to Pwyll becomes apparent. They return him to his real parents, Rhiannon is released from her punishment and the boy is renamed Pryderi.
Branwen, Daughter of Llŷr
In the second branch, BranwenBranwen
Branwen, Daughter of Llŷr is a major character in the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, which is sometimes called the Mabinogi of Branwen after her. Branwen is a daughter of Llŷr and Penarddun...
, sister of Bendigeidfran
Bran the Blessed
Brân the Blessed is a giant and king of Britain in Welsh mythology. He appears in several of the Welsh Triads, but his most significant role is in the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, Branwen ferch Llŷr. He is a son of Llŷr and Penarddun, and the brother of Brânwen, Manawydan, Nisien and Efnysien...
(meaning "blessed raven", otherwise known as Brân the Blessed), king of Britain
Britain in the Middle Ages
England in the Middle Ages concerns the history of England during the Medieval period — from the end of Roman rule in Britain through to the Early Modern period...
, is given in marriage to Matholwch
Matholwch
Matholwch, King of Ireland, is a character in the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, the tale of Branwen ferch Llŷr.The story opens with Bran, King of Britain, sitting on a rock by the sea at Harlech and seeing the vessels of Matholwch approaching. Matholwch has come to ask for the hand of Bran's...
, king of Ireland. Branwen's half-brother Efnisien
Efnisien
Efnysien fab Euroswydd is a sadistic anti-hero in Welsh mythology, appearing prominently in the tale of Branwen ferch Llŷr, the second branch of the Mabinogi...
, angry that he was not consulted, insults Matholwch by mutilating his horses. Bendigeidfran gives him compensation in the form of new horses and treasure, including a magical cauldron which can restore the dead to life. After returning to Ireland, Matholwch and Branwen have a son, Gwern
Gwern
; "Alder," is a minor figure in Welsh tradition, the son of Matholwch king of Ireland, and Branwen, sister to the king of Britain. He appears in the tale of Branwen, daughter of Llŷr, in which he is murdered by his sadistic uncle Efnysien which sparks a mutually destructive battle between Britain...
, but Efnisien's insult continues to rankle among the Irish and Branwen is banished to the kitchen and beaten every day. Branwen trains a starling
Starling
Starlings are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Sturnidae. The name "Sturnidae" comes from the Latin word for starling, sturnus. Many Asian species, particularly the larger ones, are called mynas, and many African species are known as glossy starlings because of their iridescent...
to take a message to Bendigeidfran, who goes to war against Matholwch. His army crosses the Irish Sea
Irish Sea
The Irish Sea separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is connected to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel, and to the Atlantic Ocean in the north by the North Channel. Anglesey is the largest island within the Irish Sea, followed by the Isle of Man...
in ships, but Bendigeidfran is so huge he wades across. The Irish offer to make peace and build a house big enough to entertain Bendigeidfran but hang a hundred bags inside, supposedly containing flour but actually containing armed warriors. Efnisien, suspecting a trick, reconnoitres the hall and kills the warriors by crushing their heads inside the bags. Later, at the feast, Efnisien, again feeling insulted, throws Gwern on the fire and fighting breaks out. Seeing that the Irish are using the cauldron to revive their dead, Efnisien hides among the corpses and destroys the cauldron, although the effort costs him his life. Only seven men, all Welsh, survive the battle, including Pryderi, Manawydan
Manawydan
Manawydan fab Llŷr is a figure of Welsh mythology, the son of Llŷr and the brother of Brân the Blessed and Brânwen. The first element in his name is cognate with the stem of the name of the Irish sea god Manannán mac Lir, and likely originated from the same Celtic deity as Manannán...
and Bendigeidfran, who is mortally wounded by a poisoned spear. Bendigeidfran asks his companions to cut off his head and take it back to Britain where it continues to live for eighty years as they partake of an enchanted feast. Branwen dies of grief on returning home. Five pregnant women survive to repopulate Ireland.
ManawydanManawydanManawydan fab Llŷr is a figure of Welsh mythology, the son of Llŷr and the brother of Brân the Blessed and Brânwen. The first element in his name is cognate with the stem of the name of the Irish sea god Manannán mac Lir, and likely originated from the same Celtic deity as Manannán...
, son of Llŷr
PryderiPryderi
Pryderi fab Pwyll is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology, the son of Pwyll and Rhiannon, and king of Dyfed following his father's death. He is the only character to appear in all Four Branches of the Mabinogi, although the size of his role varies from tale to tale...
and Manawydan return to Dyfed, where Pryderi is reunited with his wife Cigfa
Cigfa
Cigfa ferch Gwyn Glohoyw is a minor character in Welsh mythology, the wife of King Pryderi of Dyfed. She is mentioned briefly in the First Branch of the Mabinogi, and appears more prominently in the third...
and Manawydan marries Rhiannon (Pryderi's mother from the First Branch). However, a magical mist descends on the land, leaving it empty of all domesticated animals and humans apart from the four protagonists. They stay in Dyfed and support themselves by hunting at first, then move to England where they make a living making saddles, shields and shoes of such quality that the local craftsmen cannot compete and drive them from town to town. Eventually they return to Dyfed and become hunters again. While they are hunting a white boar leads Pryderi and Manawydan to a mysterious castle. Pryderi, against Manawydan's advice, goes inside but does not return. Rhiannon goes to investigate and finds Pryderi clinging to a bowl, unable to speak. The same fate befalls her and the castle disappears. Manawydan and Cigfa return to England as shoemakers, but once again the locals drive them out and they return to Dyfed. They sow three fields of wheat but the first field is destroyed before it can be harvested. The next night the second field is destroyed. Manawydan keeps watch over the third field and when he sees it destroyed by mice he catches one and decides to hang it the next day. A scholar, a priest and a bishop in turn offer him gifts if he will spare the mouse but he refuses. When asked what he wants in return for the mouse's life he demands the release of Pryderi and Rhiannon and the lifting of the enchantment over Dyfed. The bishop agrees because the mouse is in fact his wife. He reveals that his name is Llwyd son of Cil Coed and that he caused the enchantment on Dyfed in revenge for the insult against his friend Gwawl, whom Pwyll, Pryderi's father, humiliated in the First Branch.
Math, son of Mathonwy
While Pryderi rules Dyfed in south Wales, GwyneddGwynedd
Gwynedd is a county in north-west Wales, named after the old Kingdom of Gwynedd. Although the second biggest in terms of geographical area, it is also one of the most sparsely populated...
in north Wales is ruled by Math, son of Mathonwy
Math ap Mathonwy
In Welsh mythology, Math fab Mathonwy, also called Math ap Mathonwy was a king of Gwynedd who needed to rest his feet in the lap of a virgin unless he was at war, or he would die...
, whose feet must be held by a virgin at all times except while he is at war. Math's nephew Gilfaethwy
Gilfaethwy
In Welsh mythology, Gilfaethwy was a son of the goddess Dôn and brother of Gwydion and Arianrhod in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi.His uncle Math ap Mathonwy, king of Gwynedd, must keep his feet in the lap of a young virgin at all times unless he is going to war...
is in love with Goewin
Goewin
Goewin is a figure in Welsh mythology, where she has a small but crucial role in the fourth branch of the Mabinogi, named after Math fab Mathonwy...
, the current footholder, and Gilfaethwy's brother Gwydion
Gwydion
Gwydion fab Dôn is a magician, hero and trickster of Welsh mythology, appearing most prominently in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi, which focuses largely on his relationship with his young nephew, Lleu Llaw Gyffes...
tricks Math into going to war against Pryderi so Gilfaethwy can have access to her. Gwydion kills Pryderi in single combat and Gilfaethwy rapes Goewin. Math marries Goewin in compensation for her rape and banishes Gwydion and Gilfaethwy, transforming them into a breeding pair of deer, then pigs, then wolves. After three years they are restored to human form and return.
Math needs a new footholder and Gwydion suggests his sister Aranrhod
Arianrhod
Arianrhod is a figure in Welsh mythology who plays her most important role in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi. She is the daughter of Dôn and the sister of Gwydion and Gilfaethwy; the Welsh Triads give her father as Beli Mawr...
but, when Math magically tests her virginity, she gives birth to two sons. One, Dylan
Dylan Eil Ton
Dylan ail Don is a character in the Welsh mythic Mabinogion tales, particularly in the fourth tale, "Math fab Mathonwy"...
, immediately takes to the sea. The other is raised by Gwydion but Aranrhod swears that he will never have a name or arms unless she gives them to him, which she refuses to do. But Gwydion tricks her into naming him Lleu Llaw Gyffes
Lleu Llaw Gyffes
Lleu Llaw Gyffes is a hero of Welsh mythology. He appears most prominently in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi, the tale of Math fab Mathonwy, which tells the tale of his birth, his marriage, his death, his resurrection and his accession to the throne of Gwynedd...
(Bright, (with a) Deft (Skilful) Hand) and giving him arms. She then swears he will never have a wife of any race living on earth so Gwydion and Math make him a beautiful wife from oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
, broom
Broom (shrub)
Brooms are a group of evergreen, semi-evergreen, and deciduous shrubs in the subfamily Faboideae of the legume family Fabaceae, mainly in the three genera Chamaecytisus, Cytisus and Genista, but also in many other small genera . All genera in this group are from the tribe Genisteae...
, and meadowsweet
Meadowsweet
Filipendula ulmaria, commonly known as Meadowsweet, is a perennial herb in the family Rosaceae that grows in damp meadows. It is native throughout most of Europe and Western Asia...
, naming her Blodeuwedd
Blodeuwedd
Blodeuwedd or Blodeuedd, , is the wife of Lleu Llaw Gyffes in Welsh mythology, made from the flowers of broom, meadowsweet and the oak by the magicians Math and Gwydion, and is a central figure in the fourth branch of the Mabinogi.-Role in Welsh tradition:The...
("Flower Face"). Blodeuwedd falls in love with a passing hunter called Gronw Pebyr
Goronwy
Gronw Pebr is a warrior, hunter and antagonist in Welsh tradition, appearing primarily in the fourth branch of the Mabinogi as the lord of Penllyn, the lover of Blodeuwedd and the murderer of Lleu Llaw Gyffes...
and they plot to kill Lleu. Blodeuwedd tricks him into revealing the means by which he can be killed but, when Gronw attempts to do the deed, Lleu escapes, though wounded, transformed into an eagle.
Gwydion finds Lleu, transforms him back into human form and turns Blodeuwedd into an owl. Gronw offers to compensate Lleu but Lleu insists on returning the blow that was struck against him. He kills Gronw with his spear, which is thrown so hard it pierces him through a stone behind which he is hiding.
Recent translations
- Bollard, John K. (translator), and Anthony Griffiths (photographer). The Mabinogi: Legend and Landscape of Wales. Gomer Press, Llandysul, 2006. ISBN 1-84323-348-7
- Davies, Sioned. The Mabinogion. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007. ISBN 0192832425
- Ford, Patrick K. The Mabinogi and Other Medieval Welsh Tales. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1977. ISBN 0-520-03414-7
- Gantz, Jeffrey. The Mabinogion. London and New York: Penguin Books, 1976. ISBN 0-14-044322-3.
- Jones, Gwyn and Thomas Jones. The Mabinogion. Everyman's Library, 1949; revised 1974, 1989, 1993.
- 2001 Edition, (Preface by John Updike), ISBN 0-375-41175-5
External links
- Annotated translation of the Four Branches. Mabinogi.net.