Brigid ( , ; meaning 'exalted one' from Old Irish),Campbell, Mik
Behind the Name.
See also Xavier Delamarre, ''brigantion / brigant-'', in ''Dictionnaire de la langue gauloise'' (Éditions Errance, 2003) pp. 87–88: "Le nom de la sainte irlandaise ''Brigit'' est un adjectif de forme *''brigenti''... 'l'Eminente'." Delamarre cites E. Campanile, in '' Langues indo-européennes'' ("The name of the Irish Saint Brigid is an adjective of the form *''brigenti''... 'the Eminent'"), edited by Françoise Bader (Paris, 1994), pp. 34–40, that Brigid is a continuation of the Indo-European goddess of the

dawn Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc has reached 18° below the observer's horizo ...

Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...

. Brigit or Bríg is a goddess of pre-Christian Ireland. She appears in

Irish mythology Irish mythology is the body of myths native to the island of Ireland. It was originally passed down orally in the prehistoric era, being part of ancient Celtic religion. Many myths were later written down in the early medieval era by C ...

as a member of the

Tuatha Dé Danann The Tuath(a) Dé Danann (, meaning "the folk of the goddess Danu (Irish goddess), Danu"), also known by the earlier name Tuath Dé ("tribe of the gods"), are a supernatural race in Irish mythology. Many of them are thought to represent deity, ...

, the daughter of

the Dagda The Dagda (Old Irish: ''In Dagda,'' ga, An Daghdha, ) is an important god in Irish mythology. One of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the Dagda is portrayed as a father-figure, king, and druid.Koch, John T. ''Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia ...

and wife of

Bres In Irish mythology, Bres (or Bress) was a king of the Tuatha Dé Danann. He is often referred to by the name Eochaid / Eochu Bres. He was an unpopular king, and favoured his Fomorian kin. Name ''Eochu Bres'' has been translated as "beautiful ho ...

, with whom she had a son named Ruadán. She is associated with wisdom, poetry, healing, protection, blacksmithing and domesticated animals. ''

Cormac's Glossary ''Sanas Cormaic'' (or ''Sanas Chormaic'', Irish for "Cormac's narrative"), also known as ''Cormac's Glossary'', is an early Irish glossary containing etymologies and explanations of over 1,400 Irish words, many of which are difficult or outdated. ...

'', written in the 9th century by Christian monks, says that Brigid was "the goddess whom poets adored" and that she had two sisters: Brigid the healer and Brigid the smith.Ó hÓgáin, Dáithí. ''Myth, Legend & Romance: An encyclopaedia of the Irish folk tradition''. Prentice Hall Press, 1991. p.60Wright, Brian. ''Brigid: Goddess, Druidess and Saint''. The History Press, 2011. pp.26-27 This suggests she may have been a

triple deity A triple deity is a deity with three apparent forms that function as a singular whole. Such deities may sometimes be referred to as threefold, tripled, triplicate, tripartite, triune, triadic, or as a trinity. The number three has a long history ...

. She is also thought to have some relation to the

British Celtic Insular Celtic languages are the group of Celtic languages of Brittany, Great Britain, Ireland, and the Isle of Man. All surviving Celtic languages are in the Insular group, including Breton, which is spoken on continental Europe in Brittany, ...

goddess Brigantia.

Saint Brigid Saint Brigid of Kildare or Brigid of Ireland ( ga, Naomh Bríd; la, Brigida; 525) is the patroness saint (or 'mother saint') of Ireland, and one of its three national saints along with Patrick and Columba. According to medieval Irish hagiogra ...

shares many of the goddess's attributes and her feast day, 1 February, was originally a pagan festival (

Imbolc Imbolc or Imbolg (), also called Saint Brigid's Day ( ga, Lá Fhéile Bríde; gd, Là Fhèill Brìghde; gv, Laa'l Breeshey), is a Gaelic traditional festival. It marks the beginning of spring, and for Christians it is the feast day of Saint ...

) marking the beginning of spring. It has thus been argued that the saint is a Christianization of the goddess; a form of

syncretism Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various school of thought, schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or religious assimilation, assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in t ...

In early Irish literature

'', written by Christian scribes in the 9th century and based on earlier sources, says that Brigit was a goddess and daughter of

. It describes her as a "goddess of poets" and "woman of wisdom" or

sage Sage or SAGE may refer to: Plants * ''Salvia officinalis'', common sage, a small evergreen subshrub used as a culinary herb ** Lamiaceae, a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint or deadnettle or sage family ** ''Salvia'', a large ...

, who is also famous for her "protecting care". It says that Brigid has two sisters: Brigit the physician or "woman of healing", and Brigit the smith. It explains that from these, all goddesses in Ireland are called ''Brigit''; suggesting that it "may have been more of a title than a personal name".Koch, John. ''Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia''. ABC-CLIO, 2006. pp.287-288 The ''

Lebor Gabála Érenn ''Lebor Gabála Érenn'' (literally "The Book of the Taking of Ireland"), known in English as ''The Book of Invasions'', is a collection of poems and prose narratives in the Irish language intended to be a history of Ireland and the Irish fro ...

'' also calls Brigit a poetess and daughter of the Dagda. It says she has two oxen, Fea and Femen, from whom are named Mag Fea (the plain of the

River Barrow The Barrow ( ga, An Bhearú) is a river in Ireland. It is one of The Three Sisters; the other two being the River Suir and the River Nore. The Barrow is the longest of the three rivers, and at 192 km (120 mi), the second-longest ri ...

) and Mag Femin (the plain of the

River Suir The River Suir ( ; ga, an tSiúr or ''Abhainn na Siúire'' ) is a river in Ireland that flows into the Atlantic Ocean through Waterford after a distance of . The catchment area of the Suir is 3,610 km2.

). Elsewhere, these are named as the two oxen of Dil, "radiant of beauty," which may be a byname for Brigid. It also says she possesses the "king of boars", Torc Triath (from whom the plain of Treithirne is named), and the "king of

wethers Wethers is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Brian Wethers (born 1980), American basketball player * Doris L. Wethers (1927–2019), American pediatrician See also *Grey Wethers, two neolithic sites in England *Wether (disambigu ...

", Cirb (from whom the plain of Cirb is named). The animals were said to cry out whenever plundering was committed in Ireland. This suggests Brigid was a guardian goddess of domesticated animals. In ''

Cath Maige Tuired ''Cath Maige Tuired'' (modern spelling: ''Cath Maighe Tuireadh''; ) is the name of two saga texts of the Mythological Cycle of Irish mythology. It refers to two separate battles in Connacht: the first in the territory of Conmhaícne Cúile Tuir ...

'', Bríg is the wife of

and bears him a son, Ruadán. It says she began the custom of

keening Keening (Irish: Caointeoireacht) is a traditional form of vocal lament for the dead in the Gaelic Celtic tradition, known to have taken place in Ireland and Scotland. Keening, which can be seen as a form of sean-nós singing, was performed in th ...

, a combination of wailing and singing, while mourning the death of Ruadán. She is credited in the same passage with inventing a whistle used for night travel. In her English retellings of Irish myth,

Lady Augusta Gregory Isabella Augusta, Lady Gregory (''née'' Persse; 15 March 1852 – 22 May 1932) was an Irish dramatist, folklorist and theatre manager. With William Butler Yeats and Edward Martyn, she co-founded the Irish Literary Theatre and the Abbey Theatre, ...

describes Brigit as "a woman of poetry, and poets worshipped her, for her sway was very great and very noble. And she was a woman of healing along with that, and a woman of smith's work, and it was she first made the whistle for calling one to another through the night."

Brigid and Saint Brigid

In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, some argue that the goddess Brigid was

syncretized Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in the theology and mythology of religion, thu ...

with the Christian saint of the same name. According to medievalist Pamela Berger, Christian monks “took the ancient figure of the mother goddess and grafted her name and functions onto her Christian counterpart,"

St. Brigid of Kildare Saint Brigid of Kildare or Brigid of Ireland ( ga, Naomh Bríd; la, Brigida; 525) is the patroness saint (or 'mother saint') of Ireland, and one of its three national saints along with Patrick and Columba. According to medieval Irish hagiogra ...

. St. Brigid is associated with perpetual, sacred flames, such as the one maintained by 19 nuns at her sanctuary in

Kildare Kildare () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. , its population was 8,634 making it the 7th largest town in County Kildare. The town lies on the R445, some west of Dublin – near enough for it to have become, despite being a regional cen ...

, Ireland. The sacred flame at Kildare was said by

Giraldus Cambrensis Gerald of Wales ( la, Giraldus Cambrensis; cy, Gerallt Gymro; french: Gerald de Barri; ) was a Cambro-Norman priest and historian. As a royal clerk to the king and two archbishops, he travelled widely and wrote extensively. He studied and taugh ...

and other chroniclers to have been surrounded by a hedge, which no man could cross. Men who attempted to cross the hedge were said to have been cursed to go insane, die or be crippled. The tradition of female priestesses tending sacred, naturally occurring ''eternal flames'' is a feature of ancient Indo-European pre-Christian spirituality. Other examples include the Roman goddess Vesta, and other hearth-goddesses, such as

Hestia In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Hestia (; grc-gre, Ἑστία, meaning "hearth" or "fireside") is the virgin goddess of the hearth, the right ordering of domesticity, the family, the home, and the state. In myth, she is the firstborn ...

. Both the goddess and saint are associated with holy wells, at Kildare and many other sites in the Celtic lands.

Well dressing Well dressing, also known as well flowering, is a tradition practised in some parts of rural England in which wells, springs and other water sources are decorated with designs created from flower petals. The custom is most closely associated with ...

, the tying of rags, (called

clootie A clootie (also cloutie; from the Scots word cloot or clout: "a piece of cloth or leather; a patch; a rag") is a strip or piece of cloth, a rag or item of clothing, traditionally used to make clootie dumplings. The term ''clootie'' can also refe ...

s in Scotland), to the trees next to healing wells, and other methods of petitioning or honoring Brigid still take place in some of the British Isles and the diaspora.Healy, Elizabeth (2002) ''In Search of Ireland's Holy Wells''. Dublin, Wolfhound Press pp. 12–19, 27, 56–7, 66, 69, 81.Logan, Patrick (1980) ''The Holy Wells of Ireland''. Buckinghamshire, Colin Smythe Limited. . pp. 22–3, 95. Brigid is considered the patroness of poetry, smithing, medicine, arts and crafts, cattle and other livestock, sacred wells, serpents (in Scotland) and the arrival of early spring.Carmichael, Alexander (1900) ''Carmina Gadelica: Hymns and Incantations, Ortha Nan Gaidheal, Volume I'', p. 16
The Sacred Texts Archive
/ref> In the Christian era, nineteen nuns at Kildare tended a perpetual flame for the Saint, which is widely believed to be a continuation of a pre-Christian practice of women tending a flame in her honour. Her festival day,

is traditionally a time for weather prognostication:

Festivals

Saint Brigid's feast day is on 1 February celebrated as

St Brigid's Day Imbolc or Imbolg (), also called Saint Brigid's Day ( ga, Lá Fhéile Bríde; gd, Là Fhèill Brìghde; gv, Laa'l Breeshey), is a Gaelic traditional festival. It marks the beginning of spring, and for Christians it is the feast day of Saint B ...

in the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...

and by the

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion after the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Founded in 1867 in London, the communion has more than 85 million members within the Church of England and other ...

. The Gaelic festival coincides with

the first day of Spring in Irish tradition, and because St Brigid has been theorised as linked to the goddess Brigid, some associate the festival of Imbolc with the goddess Brigid.

Neo-Pagan revival

Brigid is an important figure for some

modern pagans Modern paganism, also known as contemporary paganism and neopaganism, is a term for a religion or family of religions influenced by the various historical pre-Christian beliefs of pre-modern peoples in Europe and adjacent areas of North Afric ...

, who emphasize her triple aspect. She is sometimes worshipped in conjunction with

Lugh Lugh or Lug (; ga, label=Modern Irish, Lú ) is a figure in Irish mythology. A member of the Tuatha Dé Danann, a group of supernatural beings, Lugh is portrayed as a warrior, a king, a master craftsman and a savior.Olmsted, Garrett. ''The God ...

Cernunnos In ancient Celtic and Gallo-Roman religion, Cernunnos or Carnonos was a god depicted with antlers, seated cross-legged, and is associated with stags, horned serpents, dogs and bulls. He is usually shown holding or wearing a torc and sometimes ...

Name

Old Irish Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic ( sga, Goídelc, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ga, Sean-Ghaeilge; gd, Seann-Ghàidhlig; gv, Shenn Yernish or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive writt ...

''Brigit'' came to be spelled ''Briġid'' and ''Brighid'' by the

early modern Irish Early Modern Irish ( ga, Gaeilge Chlasaiceach, , Classical Irish) represented a transition between Middle Irish and Modern Irish. Its literary form, Classical Gaelic, was used in Ireland and Scotland from the 13th to the 18th century. External ...

period. Since the spelling reform of 1948, this has been spelled ''Bríd'' . The earlier form gave rise to various forms in the languages of Europe, starting from the Medieval Latin ''Brigit'' , and from there to English ''Bridget'', French ''Brigitte,'' Swedish ''Birgitta,'' Italian ''Brigida'' and Finnish ''Piritta.'' The name is derived from Proto-Celtic ''*Brigantī'' and means "the high one" or "the exalted one". It is

cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymology, etymological ancestor in a proto-language, common parent language. Because language c ...

with the name of the ancient British goddess Brigantia, with whom Brigid is thought to have some relation. It is also cognate with the

Old High German Old High German (OHG; german: Althochdeutsch (Ahd.)) is the earliest stage of the German language, conventionally covering the period from around 750 to 1050. There is no standardised or supra-regional form of German at this period, and Old High ...

personal name ''Burgunt,'' and the

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

word ''Bṛhatī'' (बृहती) "high", an epithet of the

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

dawn goddess

Ushas Ushas (Vedic Sanskrit: / ') is a Vedas, Vedic goddess of dawn in Hinduism. She repeatedly appears in the Rigvedic hymns, states David Kinsley, where she is "consistently identified with dawn, revealing herself with the daily coming of light to t ...

. The ultimate source is

Proto-Indo-European Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. Its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-European languages. No direct record of Proto-Indo-E ...

''*bʰr̥ǵʰéntih₂'' (feminine form of ''*bʰérǵʰonts'', "high"), derived from the root ''*bʰerǵʰ-'' ("to rise").Mallory, J. P. and Adams, Douglas Q. (eds.), Encyclopedia of Indo-European Culture, Taylor & Francis, 1997, p. 269

Xavier Delamarre Xavier Delamarre (; born 5 June 1954) is a French linguist, lexicographer, and diplomat. He is regarded as one of the world's foremost authorities on the Gaulish language. Since 2019, he has been an associate researcher for the CNRS- PSL AOrOc l ...

, citing E. Campanile, suggests that Brigid could be a continuation of the

Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Dutch ...

dawn goddess A dawn god or goddess is a deity in a polytheistic religious tradition who is in some sense associated with the dawn. These deities show some relation with the morning, the beginning of the day, and, in some cases, become syncretized with similar ...

. Possibly related names in Celtdom are: * Brìghde/Brìde (

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

) * Ffraid (

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

), also Braint, alt. Breint, the name of a river in Anglesey. Because of

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

pronunciation mutations and accompanying devoicing after "t" in ''Sant,'' the original mutated form of her name, ''*Fraid'' (< *Braid), changes to ''Ffraid'' in some place names such as ''Llansanffraid'' = '' Saint Bride's Village'' and

Llansantffraid-ym-Mechain Llansantffraid-ym-Mechain is a large village (in the community (Wales), community of Llansantffraid) in Powys, Mid Wales, close to the border with Shropshire in England, about south west of Oswestry and north of Welshpool. It is on the A495 roa ...

. * Breo Saighead - supposedly meaning ''the fiery arrow'', a

folk etymology Folk etymology (also known as popular etymology, analogical reformation, reanalysis, morphological reanalysis or etymological reinterpretation) is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a more famili ...

found in ''

Sanas Cormaic ''Sanas Cormaic'' (or ''Sanas Chormaic'', Irish for "Cormac's narrative"), also known as ''Cormac's Glossary'', is an early Irish glossary containing etymologies and explanations of over 1,400 Irish words, many of which are difficult or outdated. ...

'', but considered very unlikely by etymologists.

Footnotes

Notes

References

*Bitel, Lisa M. 2001
''St. Brigit of Ireland: From Virgin Saint to Fertility Goddess''
*MacKillop, James. 1998. ''Dictionary of Celtic Mythology''. (Oxford: Oxford University Press) *The Slaney Press. 1994. ''Lady Gregory's Complete Irish Mythology''. (London: The Slaney Press)

External links

Brighid: What do we really know? by Francine Nicholson // broken linkBrighid Goddess and Saint
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brigid Arts goddesses Domestic and hearth deities Fire goddesses Health goddesses Irish goddesses Smithing goddesses Triple goddesses Tuatha Dé Danann Water goddesses Irish royal consorts Wisdom goddesses Women metalsmiths Crafts goddesses Ancient Celtic religion Celtic goddesses War goddesses Dawn goddesses