Ancient Hallowe’en customs in County Waterford
This Hallowe'en, in the tiny Irish-speaking area of County Waterford called An Rinn, a centuries-old tradition will be suspended for the first time ever...
Dagda’s Harp and the Tuatha dé Danaan
Dagda’s Harp is a well known story in Irish legend of the renowned warrior named Dagda and his Magic Harp.
He was the chieftain and...
The Dullahan of Celtic Mythology
The Dullahan is also known as the mythological Headless Horseman and the embodiment of the Celtic God Crom Dubh.
His is the story of a...
The Celtic Salmon of Knowledge and Fionn
The Salmon of Knowledge that lived in the River Boyne is a legendary animal that comes from the Fenian Cycle of Irish mythology and...
Samhain and the Legend of Jack O’Lantern
Samhain was a pagan festival dating from Celtic times in Ireland.
It is referenced in some of the country's very earliest literature and has many...
An Samhain: The Celtic Roots of Halloween
Samhain is a Gaelic festival, which marks the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter or the "darker half" of the...
The Cailleach Béara or the Hag of Béara
The Cailleach Béara is also known as the Hag of Béara, 'Cailleach' being the Gaelic word for a hag or old crone.
One of the...
Woman or Witch? The History of Kyteler’s Inn
Dame Alice Kyteler was a glamorous and beautiful woman who was also one of the first in Ireland to be sentenced to be burned...
Grace O’Malley (Granuaile) – Legendary Irish Pirate Queen
Disparaged by her English enemies and largely overlooked by the chroniclers of her time she may have been, yet the famous Pirate Queen Grace...
Red Mary – The Ghost of Leamaneh Castle
According to folklore, there are any number of haunted Irish castles, but surely among the most famous of these is Leamaneh Castle. Both the...