In Celtic mythology, Carman or Carmun was a warrior and sorceress from

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

who tried to invade

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

in the days of the

Tuatha Dé Danann The Tuath(a) Dé Danann (, meaning "the folk of the 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 deities of pre-Christian Gae ...

, along with her three sons, Dub ("black"), Dother ("evil") and Dian ("violence"). She used her magical powers to destroy all the fruit of Ireland. Four of the Tuatha Dé Danann, Crichinbel, Lug, Bé Chuille and Aoi, challenged Carman and her sons. The sons were forced to leave Ireland, and Carman was imprisoned. She died of longing and was buried in

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 ...

among oak trees. Her grave was dug by

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 ...

. The place she was buried was called Carman after her, and the Tuatha Dé Danann are said to have instituted an

Óenach An aonach or óenach was an ancient Irish public national assembly called upon the death of a king, queen, or notable sage or warrior as part of ancestor worship practices. As well as the entertainment, the óenach was an occasion on which kings a ...

Carmán, or Festival of Carmán. Celtic historian Peter Berresford Ellis describes her as "a goddess who came to Ireland from Athens with her three ferocious sons—Calma (Valiant), Dubh (Black) and Olc (Evil). They laid Ireland to waste but were eventually overcome by the Tuatha Dé Danann. Carmán died of grief and it is recorded that death ‘came upon her in an ungentle shape’. She was subsequently remembered in

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of ...

by a Festival of Carmán held at Lughnasad, 1 August." Her story is told in a poem of the

Metrical Dindshenchas ''Dindsenchas'' or ''Dindshenchas'' (modern spellings: ''Dinnseanchas'' or ''Dinnsheanchas'' or ''Dınnṡeanċas''), meaning "lore of places" (the Irish language, modern Irish word ''dinnseanchas'' means "topography"), is a class of onomastic tex ...

, which states that she died in 600 BCE.

Given name

Carman Barnes Carman Dee Barnes (November 20, 1912 – August 19, 1980) was an American novelist. Early life Barnes was born on November 20, 1912 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She was the daughter of James Hunter Neal and poet and folklorist Lois Diantha Mi ...

(1912-1980), American novelist * Carman George Blough (1895-1981), American accountant *

Carman Lapointe Carman Lapointe (born 1951, in Canada) was Under-Secretary-General for the United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) from 2010 to 2015. Prior to joining the UN she was Auditor General for the World Bank Group headquartered in Wa ...

(born 1951), Canadian diplomat *

Carman Lee Carman Lee Yeuk-tung (born 16 August 1966) is a Hong Kong actress who has appeared in films such as '' The Wicked City'' (1992), ''Loving You'' (1995), ''The Odd One Lives'' (1997), and the North American ''Knock Off'' (1998) with Jean-Claude V ...

(born 1966), Hong Kong actress *

Carman Maxwell Carman Griffin Maxwell (December 27, 1902 – September 22, 1987) was an American animator and voice actor. Maxwell was born in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, and later moved to Kansas City, Missouri. He began his career at Walt Disney, where Maxwel ...

(1902-1987), American animator *

Carman McClelland John Carman McClelland (September 22, 1951 – June 1, 2022) was a Canadian politician in Ontario. He was an Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1987 to 1995 who represented the riding of Brampton North. He was subseque ...

(born 1951), Canadian politician *

Carman Miller Carman Irwin Miller (born 1940) is a military historian and former Dean of Arts at McGill University in Montreal. Born in Moser River, Nova Scotia, Miller received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1960 and a Bachelor of Education degree in 1961 from Ac ...

(born 1940), Canadian military historian * Carman A. Newcomb (1830-1902), American politician * Carman Newsome (1912-1974), American actor

References

External links

*''The Metrical Dindshenchas'', edited and translated by Edward J. Gwynn, a
CELT
** Volume 3, poem 1 Carmun

an

Characters in Irish mythology Women in mythology {{Celt-myth-stub