Caer
An Irish swan maiden with whom Aengus (god of poetry) fell in love. He
also became a swan .
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Cailleach
Cailleach is referred to as the "Mother of All" in parts of
Scotland. Also known as Scotia, she is depicted as an old hag with the
teeth of a wild bear and boar's tusks. She is believed to be a great sorceress.
One superstition regarding Calliach is that the farmer who is last to
harvest his grain would be the person to "look after" Caileach
for the rest of the year, until the next harvest. The first farmer who
finishes harvesting would make a corn-dolly from the grain he has harvested.
He would, then, pass it on to the next farmer who finishes. It would keep
going until the corn-dolly ends up with the last farmer. That last farmer
would be obligated to watch the "old woman". She is also known
to have created the earth.
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Cailleach
Beara
("crone of Beare") An Irish giantess associated with mountains.
She holds in her apron huge boulders with which to add to mountainous
realms. She is a Tutelary to southwest Munster. She also appears in tales
describing a knight being importuned by an old hag for love, acceptance
of which transforms her into a beautiful maiden.
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Cailleach
Beine Bric
A legendary Scottish witch, who probably recalls an earlier local goddess. |
Cailleach
Bheur
("genteel crone") A Scottish giantess associated with Winter.
She is said to be blue in color, and a peculiarity of hers is that she
emerges on Samhain as a ancient hag, gradually ages in reverse, and disappears
at Beltain as a young and beautiful maiden.
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Camma
The goddess of the hunt among the Britons.
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Campestres,
the
The mother goddessses of Celtic cavalry in the Roman army. Remnants of
her worship have been found at Hardknott and Maryport in Cumberland, Benwell
in Northumberland and Tomen-y-mur in Merionethshire.
Canola
According to the myth she was the inventor of the Irish harp. She had
a disagreement with a lover, and so she left his bed to wander the night.
Hearing beautiful music, she stopped and sat down; soon she fell asleep
in the open air. Wakening to daylight, Canola discovered the music had
been made by the wind, blowing through the rotted sinews clinging to the
skeleton of a whale. Inspired by the sight and remembering its magical
sound, she built the first harp.
Carlin
She was the spirit of the eve of Samhain (Halloween), the night the year
turned to winter, and the ghosts of the dead roamed the world of the living.
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Carman
A destructive witch, she was the goddess of evil magic. She had three
equally destructive sons: Dub ("darkness"), Dother ("evil"),
and Dian ("violence"), who ravaged Ireland. The Tuatha Dé
Danann fought against Carman with their most powerful weapons. Finally
the sorceress Bechuille, was able to undo Carman's curses. Her sons were
destroyed and Carman put in chains, where she died of grief. Her festival
was celebrated on the first of August.
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Cartimandua
A legendary warrior queen who waged war against the Roman Empire, she
was the leader of the Brigantes, descendants of the goddess Brigantia
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Cathleen
Ni Hoolihan
The female personification of Ireland is known as Cathleen Ni Hoolihan,
and she is a symbol of Irish patriotism. During times of trouble, especially
war, Cathleen walks across Ireland to gather the support of men and boys
to aid her in battle. As she gathers her supporters, she has the appearance
of an old woman. Yet when she has gained her followers, she takes the
shape of a fresh, high-spirited young woman. Initially, she appears to
be weak and haggard because she is under great duress.
The death of the soldiers gives life to Ireland. In the connotation of
a vampiress, she regains her health and youth by feeding upon the blood
of the brave soldiers who give their lives for her. These deaths should
not be looked upon as tragic or needless, because they have died as heroes
and they will always be remembered.
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Cathubodva
Gaulish war goddess.
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Ceibhfhionn
The Irish goddess of inspiration.
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Ceithlenn
The wife of Balor, the king of the Fomorians. She equates with Dana.
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Cerridwen
(Kerridwin) The Welsh Triple Goddess. Her cauldron was the Celtic symbol
for prosperity and rebirth, and she herself is the Mother Goddess, famous
for nurturing her children. Her totem animal, the white sow, represents
the moon as well as Kerridwin's crone/transformatrix aspect.
The great bard Taliesin (often thought to be Merlin), born of the goddess
according to a favorite Celtic regeneration myth, attributed his magic
talents to her. She can be equated with Greek Demeter, Anatolian Diana
of Ephesus, and Kali, all goddesses who both give and take away. The Goddess
of Death and Regeneration and keeper of the cauldron of inspiration; her
totem was the pig.
One day she asked Gwion to stir the cauldron, which contained boiling
hot herbs; he accidentally burnt his fingers and put them in his mouth,
taking in some of the mixture and instantly becoming brilliant. Angry
that he had disobeyed her and took the gift she had been preparing for
her own son, she chased him all over, both of them transforming themselves
into various creatures: she became a greyhound and he became a hare; then
a hawk and a bird; and finally she became a hen and he a seed of grain,
which she ate. He grew inside of her for 9 months and she gave birth to
Taliesin, who became the greatest poet of Wales. When the boy Gwion inadvertently
tastes the brew instead, she pursues him in a transformation hunt which
is a thinly glossed description of an initiatory rebirth.
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Cessair
(Cessra) A great magician, she became the first queen of Ireland. She
was the grand-daugher of Noah, who sent his son Bith, daugher-in-law Birren,
their daughter Cessair and her husband Fintaan to the edge of the western
world forty days before the Flood. One account says that they rejected
Noah's god and took their own with them. Acompanying them were 50 (or
150) women who were the mothers of the various nations of the world. Cesara
may be a pre-Celtic matriarchal goddess. |
Cethlenn
Wife of Balor.
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Cethlion
The Celtic prophetess of the Fomorians who warned of their impending doom
at the hands of the Tuatha Dé Danann.
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Cliodhna
(Cliona of the Fair Hair) The Irish goddess of beauty. and daughter of
Gebann the Druid, of the Tuatha Dé Danann. She later became a fairy
queen in the area of Carraig Cliodhna in County Cork.
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Clota
(Clûd) The Celtic goddess of the river Clyde.
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Corra
The Scottish Goddess of prophecy.
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Corrigan
In the folklore of Brittany, a female fairy. She is said to have been
one of the ancient druidesses, and was malicious towards Christian priests.
Corrigan is fond of pretty human children, and is usually blamed for all
changeling substitutions.
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Coventina
The British goddess of water and springs. She was known in the area of
Carrawburgh (Roman Brocolitia) along Hadrian's Wall. She personified a
holy spring that had healing powers. She is the goddess of featherless
flying creatures, and is depicted on a water-borne leaf, sometimes as
a triple goddess.
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Creiddylad
A Welsh goddess, daughter of Llyr, the maiden over whom two rivals must
battle every first of may until doomsday. She appeared in Shakespeare's
King Lear as the king's daughter Cordelia, a strong female who will not
be obesquious to the father-figure, and who marries tha man of her choosing.
Cuda
A British mother goddess.
Cyhiraeth
The Celtic goddess of streams. She later entered folklore as a spectre
haunting woodland streams. Her shriek was said to foretell death (see
also Banshee).
Cymidei
Cymeinfoll
A Welsh War-Hag, it was said she give birth every six weeks to a fully
armed warrior. The wife of Llasar, and keeper of the Cauldron of Regeneration.
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