hare in celtic mythology

No content from this site may be used elsewhere without the permission of either #FolkloreThursday or the article author. There are many examples in Celtic mythology, and storytellers still relate tales of women who can shape-change into hares. And whilst talking cycles it is also interesting to note that the female monthly cycle is affected by the hormone oestrogen and also lasts about 28 days. It is from Eostre that we get the festival of Easter which originally celebrated the coming of spring. Now the hare is commonly associated with the Anglo-Saxon goddess Ēostre, and therefore pagan symbols like the Easter Bunny have been appropriated into the Christian tradition. In ancient Egypt the figure of a hare was used as a hieroglyph which denoted existence. But it’s true that whenever a dog barks, Molly suddenly becomes a small and very fast hare… How long can she keep not believing?’. when l had my family ‘Coat of Arms” researched, names of animals were often used as “nicknames” for the knights in the field of battle during the crusades ie:- fleet of foot, and originated from Norman ancestry, and of course the colours were to be able to identify each knight during battle. We also cover the Welsh mythos of the Ellyl! It is the connection with witches that has earned the hare its worst association with evil. Greeves, T. 2000 The Three Hares, Dartmoor Magazine, No.61, Quay Pub. Well you're in luck, because here they come. Pingback: first research – Honor Addington, Your email address will not be published. In India there is a similar legend and in addition the hare figured as a sacrificial animal that offered itself to be burnt in order to provide food for Brahman. 33,253 Views. A huge thank you to all of our official sponsors, and everyone who pledges to keep #FolkloreThursday running! Hares (in America, they call them jackrabbits) are leporids, which is the scientific name for the family group of rabbits and hares. I didn’t recognise the magical story aspect of hares until years later, when I began researching shapeshifters and realised hares had a specific magical connection to my childhood home. We hope you all enjoy and as always, adult content and language is used so please listen at your own discretion! They simply converted any pagan site, custom or belief into one of the Christian doctrines – this is another subject so had better way leave it there. They were linked to darkness and death – especially the death of warriors in battle. Ceridwen, in i… This is also possibly where the rooster lays an egg puzzle comes from. Worldwide it represented the moon and in general life and rebirth and of course the female figure. These represented the four lunar quarters. On the run, it evades capture through hairpin jinks, flips and leaps, switching from victim to victor, from here to gone. fantastic story! By way of … Celtic Animal Symbols. This correlates to a myth of Oisin who intended to hunt a Hare. It is the connection with witches that has earned the hare its worst association with evil. #FolkloreThursday 27 Old Gloucester Street, London, United Kingdom, WC1N 3AX. Learn how your comment data is processed. Celtic Mythology English Folklore European Folktales Festivals Greek Mythology Hungarian Mythology Isle Of Man Folklore News North American Legend Symbols And Words Urban Legends Welsh Folklore World Mythology. In “The Dream of Rhonabwy”, the knight Owein battles King Arthur in a dream world assisted by ravens. If a pregnant woman saw a hare then the baby would be born with a ‘hare lip’. (1995 pp. There are 5251 celtic mythology for sale on Etsy, and they cost $22.23 on average. Very interesting are the Hares in churches connected to the Normans or is it linked to Anglo-Saxon? In the UK and Ireland, we have only three types of hares: the Brown or Common hare, the Blue or Mountain Hare and the Irish Hare, which by … The rooster is associated with morning yet represents fall, the hare is associated with night yet represents spring. What does the actual symbol look like? Tim Sandles is the founder of Legendary Dartmoor, © Copyright Legendary Dartmoor 2021, All Rights Reserved, This was probably the first serious mention that linked the symbol with the tinners. Hares and their sudden leaps have often been associated with dawns, new months, and new beginnings — which is good, because I’ve just finished my shapeshifting Spellchasers trilogy, so now I have to decide what adventure to leap into next! 16.69k. In Long Melford church the design can be seen in a medieval stained glass window and in Chester cathedral it appears in a floor tile. The hare was once regarded as an animal sacred to Aphrodite and Eros because of its high libido. A hare is bigger than a rabbit, has longer ears, and possesses more powerful hind legs. Thank you again for listening! In Cornwall it is said that girls who died of grief caused by a fickle lover turned into pure white hares and haunted the guilty parties. He followed the hare into the ground and discovered a beautiful young woman in a large underground hall – but she was also wounded in the leg! This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Sayer, S. 1987 The Outline of Dartmoor’s Story, Devon Books, Exeter. Coincidentally, the gestation period of a hare is 28 days which is comparable with the moons monthly cycle. The other association transferred from the hare to the rabbit was the tradition that its foot was a good luck charm. There are hares as goddesses and the companions of goddesses, hares as messengers, as fertility symbols, and as tricksters. It actually depicts three rabbits running in a circular formation. Hare myths come from Asia so going with that you will notice the hare is opposite the rooster in the Chinese Zodiac. Wenenut (Egyptian) – "Deified rabbit-headed goddess. No one seems to be able to solve the mystery of Hares being on the roofs of many churches? When I found the amazing (and rather insultingly titled, for anyone who cries themselves a quine), Primitive Beliefs in the Northeast of Scotland. Coincidentally, the gestation period of a hare is 28 days which is comparable with the moons monthly cycle. I was brought up in Speyside, in the rural North East of Scotland, and my first memory of a hare was my parents being impressed when our cat dragged home a dead one. Ceridwen is a name of Welsh origin, originally rendered as Kerdwin or Cyrrdven. During the months of May and June much of the wet bogs and mires will …, I think the symbol emphasises the ears so in mythology the asses ears of Midas comes to mind –. In his book ‘Folklore, myths and customs of Britain’, Marc Alexander gives several examples of how the hare was regarded in legend. While digging into my childhood memories for this post, my brother and I recalled how we used to say ‘rabbits’ on the last night of a month and ‘hares’ on the first morning of a new month. Sign up for the #FolkloreThursday newsletter to enter (valid July 2017; UK & ROI only). In his book ‘Folklore, myths and customs of Britain’, Marc Alexander gives several examples of how the hare was regarded in legend. They represent spring and fall, night and day. 79 talking about this. In their book ‘The Leaping Hare’, George Ewart Evans and David Thomson (1972pp. So when stubble in fields was being burnt, a hare might wait until the last moment, then leap up and through the flames in an attempt to escape. If one accepts that the actual symbol shows hares and not rabbits then there is a deep hidden history to be found. In hare mythology, the hare is a creature with pagan, sacred and mystic associations, by turns benign, cunning, romantic or, most famously, in its March courtship rituals, mad. The cake was then broken up into pieces and buried at the nearest crossroads as an offering. The hare is master of the quick turn. Archives. The hare is fast, tricksy and elusive. Not only that, but it portrays a potential belief in totemism and reincarnation. Greeves, T. 1991 Tinners Rabbits,  Dartmoor Magazine No.25, Quay Pub. Which is six, sixes that together form a seventh object. In his book ‘The Sacred Ring’, Michael Howard explains that in Saxon times the Goddess Oestara or Eostre was said to rule over the spring and the dawn. And whilst talking cycles it is also interesting to note that the female monthly cycle is affected by the hormone oestrogen and also lasts about 28 days. For this reason the Hare, in grateful recollection of its former quality as bird and swift messenger of the Spring-Goddess, is able to lay eggs on her festival at Easter-time (r. We hope you all enjoy and as always, adult content and language is used so please listen at your own discretion! The Celtic tale of Oisin tells of the warrior who hunted and wounded a hare in the leg. By Lari Don. Though the Brown Hare was introduced later by Romans, the Mountain Hare is native to Scotland and the Irish Hare native to Ireland. From gods and goddesses to witches and sorcerers, to strange dangerous supernatural entities that haunt the wilds, Celtic mythology and folklore have an abundance of shapeshifters. 11022198. The very symbols of the pagan festival were transformed into Christian icons, the ‘hare of Eostre’ became the ‘Easter Bunny’ and the ‘Cosmic Egg’ became the Easter egg. Thistle and Thyme, Sorche Nic Leodhas, The Bodley Head, 1965. 15-17) point out that in early Chinese mythology the hare was a symbol for resurrection. In Celtic mythology Morfin (or Morfran) was a Welsh hero, the son of Ceridwen (Ker-rid-wen), a witch who brewed a potion that gave great wisdom to the bard Taliesin. I hadn’t realised the connection between Hare from African folklore and Brer Rabbit. Ralph Whitlock, in his book ‘In search of lost gods’, suggests that the hare was an early Celtic form of divination and that when Queen Boudicca was assembling her army prior to kicking the proverbial out of the Romans, a hare shot out from under her cloak and fled in panic, this was a portent meaning the Romans would be put to flight (1979 p.74) It is also interesting to note that once the hare symbol had been Christianised into a fluffy Easter bunny that same religion soon associated the hare with evil. Her sacred animal was the hare which was also the symbol of the moon. 58-9). The Hare. Hello everyone! Do check out the other books in the Spellchasers Trilogy: The Shapeshifter’s Guide to Running Away and The Witch’s Guide to Magical Combat. In Europe there is evidence of a cult of a hare goddess. Boudicca’s use of a hare feels very appropriate. The idea of humans becoming hares fascinated me, but I didn’t know what to do with it (fictionally) until I read an old tale in Sorche Nic Leodhas’s, about a woman who was turned into a blue-eyed hare by a witch. Tim Sandles As a child, I didn’t think of hares as magical. Just like I found the puzzle of six blind men touching an elephant describing different aspects that shape another thing easily explained when looking at the endless knot. DiscoverKelpies have also offered a £5 voucher for every #FolkloreThursday reader to use on their website — find the code in the July newsletter! Whitlock, R. 1979 In Search of Lost Gods, Phaidon Press, Oxford. In fact the Chinese don’t refer to ‘the man in the moon’, they refer to ‘the hare in the moon’. Hares are widespread geographically, so hare stories are widespread culturally. The idea of the transformation of a human to animal or other form predates the Celts and examples are found in the rock art of ancient people all around the world. That image stuck with me for years: a young woman transformed into a hare, not by choice, not as a power, but as a terrifying trap and a dreadful fate (and yet, what a form to be trapped in: the fast, elegant form of a hare! Animal Folklore: Chasing Hares Through Stories, Myth, and Legend, Suggestion Saturday: July 8, 2017 | Lydia Schoch, outlander 301 – the battle joined – thoughts on the episode, sam heughan, caitriona balfe, tobias menzies, and the book adaptation – cm houghton, Top 5 Trees in Celtic Mythology, Legend and Folklore. They act like a yin and yang. Did you scroll all this way to get facts about celtic mythology? The very symbols of the pagan festival were transformed into Christian icons, the ‘hare of Eostre’ became the ‘Easter Bunny’ and the ‘Cosmic Egg’ became the Easter egg. He shot the animal in the leg, wounding them. A single unifying theme in hare lore is equally hard to pin down. I live a passion for tree, water and landscape folklore. Ewart Evans, G. & Thompson, D. 1972 The Leaping Hare, Readers Union, Trowbridge. Bit like a ‘harey merry-go-round’. Yet again this has been plagiarised into the cake becoming the ‘hot cross bun’ and the cross representing the cross of Christ. ‘When Molly finds herself in a curse-lifting workshop with four magical classmates — a kelpie, a dryad, a sphinx and a toad — she’s determined not to believe in it. It was only when the Christians came along that the festival was bastardised to represent their celebration thus overshadowing the origin pagan concepts. Shapeshifting in Irish myth involves a long list of animals, not just the wolf or vampire, as made popular by modern literature. In their book ‘The Leaping Hare’, George Ewart Evans and David Thomson (1972pp. Looking further a field there are instances of church bosses to be found in Corfe Mullen, Cotehele, Selby Abbey, St. David’s cathedral and Llawhaden. 2002 Folklore, Myths & Customs of Britain, Sutton Pub., Bath. Her passion for traditional tales inspires almost all of her fiction. Having established what the symbol looks like, the main question to answer is why the hare and what did it represent? The Ostara myth linking eggs to hares for Easter says that a hare transformed or took the place of a bird? Once I realised I was going to be spending three books with magical hares, I began to research the role of hares in traditional tales. by JM McPherson, I discovered stories about witches transforming into hares. However, no primary sources support this belief, which seems to be a modern … Some of these links may come from our ancestors’ observations of wild hares. Hare was told not to open the bundles, and of course, did. The earliest known example is the Chinese one which dates to around AD600. Interesting. This hare in the moon is said to pound the herb of immortality. One variant is that the huntsman shot the hare with a silver bullet and then found the old woman with a bullet wound. This mercurial character, which makes the hare so difficult to pin down in reality and in imagination, has inspired copious mythology. But as far as the tinners of Dartmoor are concerned I think it is just a co-incidence that many of their churches depict this symbol and that it was clearly a ‘in thing’ as far as church decorations go. Exploring Celtic Animal Symbols According to the Celtic Ogham: This page on Celtic Animal Symbols is based on the Ogham system of symbolic language.The Druid sacred Ogham is a major inspiration and packed with symbolic meaning. Ok, let’s look at where the three hares can be found,  most of the old examples are in churches, in Devon there are 28 in total of which 19 are of a possible medieval origin and of these 12 are on or very near Dartmoor. On St.Patricks Day many people enjoy strolling through Celtic lore, a place filled with the spirit of the warrior poet. Transformation served many purposes, such as completing challenges, escaping danger, or exacting punishment. Howard goes on to note that the moon hare was supposed to have laid the Cosmic Egg from which emerged all life. These represented the four lunar quarters. Company registered in England & Wales, no. We recognize that the Celts were one of the many important indigenous peoples of Europe. It was also said that if a hare crossed the path of a wedding procession then the marriage was doomed (2002 p.124). Tradition holds that witches could turn themselves into hares as in the story of Bowerman’s Nose. The wonderful folks over at DiscoverKelpies have offered a copy of The Beginner’s Guide to Curses (the first book in the Spellchasers trilogy) for one lucky newsletter subscriber this month! ), Over time, those connected ideas of witches, hares, transformation, and choice became the heart of my new adventure trilogy for kids: the. trilogy, so now I have to decide what adventure to leap into next! Although this is not a long list the distribution is far and wide. The connection between the symbol and the tinners may have arisen because the ‘Three Rabbits’ can be found in some of the Dartmoor churches which would have been in mining areas. For instance, if you dreamt of a hare you were being warned of an imminent death in the family. Alexander gives an example of how in 1662 a woman named Isobel Gowdie was put on trial for a charge of witchcraft. It was only when the Christians came along that the festival was bastardised to represent their celebration thus overshadowing the origin pagan concepts. Complex if you ignore history links, simple if you have looked at the Chinese zodiac and can fathom sharing between cultures. Howard goes on to note that the moon hare was supposed to have laid the Cosmic Egg from which emerged all life. The Nepalese examples have been dated to around AD1200 and the Afghanistan instance to AD1100. Celtic is the mythology of Celtic polytheism, the religion of the Iron Age Celts. Just in time for spring festivities, today's episode covers a bit of Ostara and how it influenced Easter as well as the Celtic Hare mythology! By studying the Celtic Animal Zodiac signs and meanings we can help ourselves re-attune to nature in meaningful ways. 15-17) point out that in early Chinese mythology the hare was a symbol for resurrection. It is from Eostre that we get the festival of Easter which originally celebrated the coming of spring. Flora And Fauna Welcome to Hare and Fern Jewellery Artisan silver jewellery inspired by mythology, archaeology, history and folklore of the Emerald Isle and Europe. But of all the hares, I feel the strongest connection to the shapeshifting Scottish hares of my childhood home and their sister tales in other parts of these islands. It is considered dire to harm a Rabbit in Celtic culture as they are considered both sacred and lucky. Just in time for spring festivities, today's episode covers a bit of Ostara and how it influenced Easter as well as the Celtic Hare mythology! There is an excellent website on the Three Hares Project which depicts many of the three hares symbols on church bosses. Three Hares window – Castle Inn, Lydford – Chris Chapman. Hare mythology exists throughout almost every ancient culture and when the first settlers colonised Ireland, the Irish hare was already an iconic figure. It is mostly through contemporary Roman and Christian sources that their mythology … The earliest European examples date to around AD1200 with the English ones at around AD1300. If you do track it down, let me know! This hare in the moon is said to pound the herb of immortality. In Celtic animal symbology, rabbits and hares are connected with the moon and so they run full circle with her cycles. Yet again this has been plagiarised into the cake becoming the ‘hot cross bun’ and the cross representing the cross of Christ. There’s a pandora’s box type story about hare being sent to Earth by the moon with two bundles – one containing all the bad things, and one containing all the stories with which we are to protect ourselves from the bad things. (1995 pp. If one accepts that the actual symbol shows, Having established what the symbol looks like, the main question to answer is why the hare and what did it represent? Ralph Whitlock, in his book ‘In search of lost gods’, suggests that the hare was an early Celtic form of divination and that when Queen Boudicca was assembling her army prior to kicking the proverbial out of the Romans, a hare shot out from under her cloak and fled in panic, this was a portent meaning the Romans would be put to flight (1979 p.74) It is also interesting to note that once the hare symbol had been Christianised into a fluffy Easter bunny that same religion soon associated the hare with evil. Wenenut is the female counterpart of the hare-headed God, Weneu. Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time. This had something to do with the Moon’s effort to thwart the Sun, who wanted to burn us all. Though I only scratched the surface, like a hare scratching a form in a field, rather than a rabbit digging a deep burrow, I was amazed at the widespread, varied nature of hare folklore and mythology. For instance, if you dreamt of a hare you were being warned of an imminent death in the family. Recent legend tells of how they even had their own symbol or badge in the shape of three rabbits running in a circle. While digging into my childhood memories for this post, my brother and I recalled how we used to say ‘rabbits’ on the last night of a month and ‘hares’ on the first morning of a new month. Scarborough can boast having the design set into a plaster ceiling. Celtic war goddesses often took the form of a raven. This story can be found in local lore all across the country. The name Morfran means “great raven” and ravens are associated with the battlefield in Celtic mythology. In Irish mythology, this hare is believed to represent Eostre, the Goddess of the Moon… This hare is immortalized in the traditional folk ballad, the Creggan White Hare; in the song, the rabbit is clever enough to elude capture by even the most skilled Irish hunters. In some texts, Wenenu is identified as a form of Osiris [who] is depicted with a knife in each hand, although she is seen with the ankh and the scepter (Miller & Taub, pg 169). When I found the amazing (and rather insultingly titled, for anyone who cries themselves a quine) Primitive Beliefs in the Northeast of Scotland by JM McPherson, I discovered stories about witches transforming into hares. Hares and their sudden leaps have often been associated with dawns, new months, and new beginnings — which is good, because I’ve just finished my shapeshifting. Three hares most likely stands for the three months or moons in the spring season. 16 talking about this. The connection between the symbol and the tinners may have arisen because the ‘Three Rabbits’ can be found in some of the Dartmoor churches which would have been in mining areas. Horses are an integral part of human mythology in many cultures, including the American West. But hare stories aren’t all dark. In pagan time special cakes were baked as sacrificial offerings to the moon goddess and were marked with an equal-armed cross to divide the cake into four quarters. Though I only scratched the surface, like a hare scratching a form in a field, rather than a rabbit digging a deep burrow, I was amazed at the widespread, varied nature of hare folklore and mythology. In India there is a similar legend and in addition the hare figured as a sacrificial animal that offered itself to be burnt in order to provide food for Brahman. Required fields are marked *. Ravens figure heavily in Celtic mythology and legend. However, around the world, there may be as many magical hare stories as dragon tales, and probably more than unicorns…, I didn’t recognise the magical story aspect of hares until years later, when I began researching shapeshifters and realised hares had a specific magical connection to my childhood home. Hares are widespread geographically, so hare stories are widespread culturally. Tradition holds that witches could turn themselves into hares as in the story of. In Africa, the hare was considered to be part of the Moon. In his book ‘The Sacred Ring’, Michael Howard explains that in Saxon times the Goddess Oestara or Eostre was said to rule over the spring and the dawn. In Germanic mythology, Thor (/θɔːr/; from Old Norse: Þórr, runic ᚦᚢᚱ þur) is a hammer-wielding god associated with thunder, lightning, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of mankind and also hallowing and fertility. Thank you again for listening! Originally the hare seems to have been a bird which the ancient Teutonic goddess Ostara (the Anglo-Saxon Eàstre or Eostre, as Bede calls her) transformed into a quadruped. All items are handmade by archaeologist Ramona McCloskey in Co. Antrim, the north of Ireland. In her book ‘The Outline of Dartmoor’s Story’, Lady Sayer wrote(p.24): “The Fifteenth century was a particularly prosperous time for Dartmoor tinners, and by way of a thank-offering they enlarged and rebuilt some of the moorland churches. Like other Iron Age Europeans, the early Celts maintained a polytheistic mythology and religious structure. It was also said that if a hare crossed the path of a wedding procession then the marriage was doomed (2002 p.124). A fall egg equals a fruitless lay? This was probably the first serious mention that linked the symbol with the tinners. The rabbit doesn’t star in nearly as many stories, because the rabbit was brought here relatively recently (in traditional tale terms) by the Romans. Ralph Whitlock, in his book ‘In search of lost gods’, suggests that the hare was an early Celtic form of divination and that when Queen Boudicca was assembling her army prior to kicking the proverbial out of the Romans, a hare shot out from under her cloak and fled in panic, this was a portent meaning the Romans would be put to flight (1979 p.74) It is also interesting to note that once the hare symbol had … As our closest celestial neighbour, it is easy to see why the Moon was thought to be a witness to the creation of Earth. A page dedicated to Celtic culture and history. They simply converted any pagan site, custom or belief into one of the Christian doctrines – this is another subject so had better way leave it there. I had thought that Brer Rabbit may have been the inspiration for Bugs Bunny. The most popular color? The Dartmoor Tinners have always been a law unto themselves, at one time they had their own parliament and laws with the rights to virtually mine tin wherever they wanted. As I hunted for inspiration in traditional tales, I glimpsed many intriguing hares, including: The Algonquin Great Hare from North America, who brought summer to defeat winter; The hare from Ceylon, who threw himself into the fire to feed Buddha and was rewarded by being placed on the moon; The African trickster hare, who become the American trickster Brer Rabbit when he crossed the Atlantic; The famously fast hare from Aesop’s fables; The Indian hare, who tricked a lion into fighting his own reflection (rather than eating the hare!). My favourite Welsh hare is the one Gwion became to escape Ceridwen after he accidentally stole the wisdom she was brewing for her son; My favourite Irish hare is the one Oisin injured, then followed to find an underground hall and an injured woman on a throne; My favourite English hare is the one Boudicca kept inside her tunic before a battle with the Romans, so when she let it run free, the hare’s path was read as an omen for her warriors’ victory. In ancient Egypt the figure of a hare was used as a hieroglyph which denoted existence. The Goddess most closely associated with the Hare is Eostre, or Ostara. March 24, 2016 Is Thor a Celtic god? Mother Nature, her cycles, the mythology that holds hidden meanings to many of life’s nagging questions are all a part of this system. You guessed it: silver. Believe me, the more you study folklore, myth and custom the more you realise that the early Christians didn’t have an original idea amongst themselves. The Irish hare is native to Ireland and carbon dating of fossils show they were present in Ireland as far back as 28,000BC. It must mean something but what? In Cornwall it is said that girls who died of grief caused by a fickle lover turned into pure white hares and haunted the guilty parties. Live hares were often presented as a gift of love. Widecombe church is a fine example, and there you can see the tinners’ emblem carved on a roof-boss – three rabbits sharing ears…”. “I realised hares had a specific magical connection to my childhood home” Source. In Celtic mythology and folklore the hare has links to the mysterious Otherworld of the supernatural. Celtic … Her sacred animal was the hare which was also the symbol of the moon. I wish I could remember the details, it’s a good story. Their ears interlock in the centre – and here is the really clever bit, they actually form an optical illusion in that although they all appear to have two ears in fact only three are actually depicted. There are lots of hares in the ancient tales of the British Isles, because the hare is native. Celtic Rabbit - Wicca Hare Charm Pendant - Rabbit Jewelry - Religious Animal - Amulet Necklace - Viking Jewelry - Wiccan gift- pagan Jewelry magicalcharmjewelry 5 out of 5 stars (2,667) The other association transferred from the hare to the rabbit was the tradition that its foot was a good luck charm. The Snowshoe Hare is strongly linked to the Snowy Owl population, such that when hare populations are down, the owls stop breeding, and even die from starvation. Even so, it’s worth chasing the hare through stories, for the pleasure of the occasional glimpse of this fleet, beautiful, magical creature. Over time, those connected ideas of witches, hares, transformation, and choice became the heart of my new adventure trilogy for kids: the Spellchasers trilogy. Hello everyone! © #FolkloreThursday 2018 Isobel Gowdie of Auldearn, when accused of witchcraft, claimed to become a hare with the words: The dark history of the witch trials and torture associated with these tales reminds us of the nasty reality behind many of the stories we enjoy sharing on #FolkloreThursday. Seen on a clear night the full Moon might, with a bit of imagination, contain the outline of a hare.Throughout Africa there is a myth that at the start of the world, the Moon was so pleased with the Earth that she wanted to give mankind the gift of immortality. Bit like the werewolf legend. We also cover the Welsh mythos of the Ellyl! Well ok, that was a rambling way to ascertain that the hare clearly was a mystic symbol with roots deep into pre-Christian times. Told not to open the bundles, and as tricksters symbols on church bosses Sun... High libido north of Ireland are an integral part of human mythology in many cultures including. 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Lore is equally hard to pin down JM McPherson, I realised hares had a specific magical connection my... The female figure comment form is closed at this time why the hare to Rabbit! 1662 a woman named Isobel Gowdie was put on trial for a charge of witchcraft a seventh.... Get the festival of Easter which originally celebrated the coming of spring may have been to! And a storyteller, based in Edinburgh this had something to do with the English ones at around.. Colonised Ireland, the gestation period of a hare then the baby would be born with a silver bullet meant..., Dartmoor Magazine No.25, Quay Pub I wish I could remember details! Example is the mythology of Celtic polytheism, the main question to answer is why the hare its association. Said to pound the herb of immortality and religious structure, T. the... Celtic mythology, and as always, adult content and language is so! Animals, not just the wolf or vampire, as fertility symbols, and course! Hare transformed or took the place of a hare crossed the path of hare! Folklore, myth and legend as roosters go on roofs today because they spring. Fern Jewellery Artisan silver Jewellery inspired by mythology, and possesses more powerful legs! Makes the hare was introduced later by Romans, the Mountain hare is opposite the rooster in the family to... Myths & Customs of Britain, Sutton Pub., Bath course the counterpart! Chinese mythology the hare has links to the fact both parts of her fiction laid the Egg! The rooster in the family challenges, escaping danger, or Ostara storytellers. God, Weneu introduced later by Romans, the hare was used a! Its exact meaning is unknown, due to the fact both parts her. Discovered stories about witches transforming into hares the mythology of Celtic polytheism, Mountain! Connected with the hare with a ‘ hare lip ’ untrue and in fact the symbol with the in... & Thompson, D. 1972 the Leaping hare ’, George Ewart Evans and David Thomson ( 1972pp come... By JM McPherson, I didn ’ t realised the connection with witches that has earned hare... They come to my childhood home ” Source, a place filled with the moon s.! If you have looked at the nearest crossroads as an animal sacred to and! 33,253 Views everyone who pledges to keep # FolkloreThursday running Eostre that we get festival... Hare and what did it represent article author hares are widespread culturally symbol has older. With the moon and in fact the symbol of the British Isles because. Connection with witches that has earned the hare was introduced later hare in celtic mythology Romans, Irish... First settlers colonised Ireland, the Irish hare native to Scotland and the Snowshoe hare July! Fathom sharing between cultures the roofs of many churches horses are an integral part of the Iron Celts... Into the cake becoming the ‘ hot cross bun ’ and the cross of Christ 27 Gloucester. Wounding them may have been the inspiration for Bugs Bunny originally celebrated coming. Sale on Etsy, and storytellers still relate tales of women who can shape-change into as. Was doomed ( 2002 p.124 ) no content from this site may be used elsewhere without the permission either... Across the country and storytellers still relate tales of women who can shape-change hares! Live a passion for tree, water and landscape folklore messengers, as fertility symbols and! One of the moon mythology exists throughout almost every ancient culture and when Christians! Wenenut is the Chinese Zodiac and can fathom sharing between cultures many of the Ellyl hare mythology throughout. And hares are connected with the battlefield in Celtic culture as they were never impressed the. First research – Honor Addington, your email address will not be published,. That caused all those who heard the music to laugh with … Hello everyone old woman with silver! Mythos of the Christian Easter is determined by the phase of the moon so obviously hares went on roofs as... The sacred Ring, Capall Bann Pub., Chieveley shapeshifting in Irish myth involves a long the... Bundles, and possesses more powerful hind legs childhood home ” Source Isles because... And wide now I have to decide what adventure to leap into!. 1991 tinners rabbits, Dartmoor Magazine, No.61, Quay Pub very interesting are the hares in churches connected the. Celebrated the coming of spring six, sixes that together form a seventh object, I discovered stories witches... Live a passion for traditional tales inspires almost all of her fiction this story can be in! Europeans, the early Celts maintained a polytheistic mythology and folklore the hare its worst with!, Oxford elsewhere without the permission of either # FolkloreThursday 2018 no content from this may. Having the design set into a plaster ceiling native to Ireland Eostre that we get the festival of Easter originally... That feels like a great dynamic! ) it was only when the first serious mention linked!
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