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Morrigu

 

"Badb and Macha, greatness of wealth, Morrigu
    springs of craftiness, 
   sources of bitter fighting
    were the three daughters of Ernmas." ( Macalister, 1941).
  The meaning of the name Morrigan is somewhat disputed, but the current leading theory is that it means, roughly, nightmare queen - often given as phantom queen - although others still prefer the older great queen interpretation (eDIL, n.d.). The name is a title, and also appears as Morrigu, Morrigna, and Morrighan; it is applied not only to a specific singular goddess but also to that deity's sisters, Badb and Macha, and later to the goddesses Fea and Nemain. In the Lebor Gabala Erenn we are told "Delbaeth...has three daughters, the famous war-furies Badb, Macha, and Mórrígu, the latter sometimes called Anand or Danand." (Macalister, 1941). She is the daughter of Ernmas according to the Lebor Gabala Erenn: "Ernmas had other daughters, Badb, and Macha, and Morrigu, whose name was Anand" (MacAlister, 1941). This reinforces that Morrigan's name could actually be Anand or Danand (or Anu or Danu) and indeed both are given as her name in various portions of the Lebor Gabala Erenn (Gray, 1983). For example, in verse 62, she is listed as one of the sisters with Badb and Macha: "Badb and Macha and Anand, of whom are the Paps of Anu in Luachar, were the three daughters of Ernmas the she-farmer." (Macalister, 1941). When the Anu connection is accepted some people further relate her to Aine, although that is mostly speculation (Berresford Ellis, 1987; Jones, 2009). 
    She is sometimes said to be the wife of the Dagda, and has one son, Meche, by an unnamed father; Meche had three serpents in his heart which could have destroyed all of Ireland so he was killed (Gray, 1983). She is also said to have had a daughter, Adair, by the Dagda, and in some sources 26 daughters and 26 sons who were all warriors (Gray, 1983). The goddesses Fea and Nemain are also sometimes called Morrigan, and can be interchanged with the previous named Morrigan to form the different Morrigan triplicities. Personally I favor viewing the three Morrignae as Badb, Macha, and Morrigu and I am tentatively willing to accept Anand as the name of the Morrigan. 
   On Samhain the Morrigan met with the Dagda and they united before she promised to aid the Tuatha de Danann in the Cath Maige Tuired: "The Dagda had a house in Glen Edin in the north, and he had arranged to meet a woman in Glen Edin a year from that day, near the All Hallows of the battle. The Unshin of Connacht roars to the south of it. He saw the woman at the Unshin in Corann, washing, with one of her feet at Allod Echae (that is, Aghanagh) south of the water and the other at Lisconny north of the water. There were nine loosened tresses on her head. The Dagda spoke with her, and they united. 'The Bed of the Couple' was the name of that place from that time on. (The woman mentioned here is the Morrígan.)
  Then she told the Dagda that the Fomoire would land at Mag Céidne, and that he should summon the áes dána of Ireland to meet her at the Ford of the Unshin, and she would go into Scétne to destroy Indech mac Dé Domnann, the king of the Fomoire, and would take from him the blood of his heart and the kidneys of his valour. Later she gave two handfuls of that blood to the hosts that were waiting at the Ford of the Unshin. Its name became 'The Ford of Destruction' because of that destruction of the king." http://www.ucc.ie/celt/online/T300010.html
   The Morrigan has many guises and appears in many forms. The most well known is probably that of a crow or raven (Berresford Ellis, 1987). She can be a beautiful young woman or a half-blind old crone, a black bird, a wolf, an eel, or a cow, and often shifts between shapes in a single story. 
   In mythology the Morrigan aids the Tuatha de Danann in fighting against both the Fir Bolg and the the Fomorians by using magic to confound and weaken the enemy (Gray, 1983; O hOgain, 2006). When Lugh asks her what she will contribute to the fight she replies: "‘Not hard to say,’ ... ‘I have stood fast; I shall pursue what was watched; I will be able to kill; I will be able to destroy those who might be subdued.’" (Gray, 1983). In the second battle of Magh Tuired it was said: "Then the Morrigu, daughter of Ernmass, came, and heartened the Tuatha De to fight the battle fiercely and fervently. Thereafter the battle became a rout, and the Fomorians were beaten back to the sea." (Cross & Slover, 1936). 
   The Morrigan is associated with war, battle, and death, certainly, but also with victory, strategy, magic, and possibly sovereignty.  She incites warriors to fight and also terrifies those she has set herself against. Several authors connect her to sovereignty through her connection to cattle and cattle raiding and O hOgain sees her as both a land and mother Goddess, although his view is not common. Her strongest associations are clearly with warfare and also with fate so that some people have connected her to the Norse Valkyries (Jones, 2009). 
 


References:
Berresford Ellis, P., (1987). A Dictionary of Irish Mythology
Smyth, D. (1988). A Guide to Irish Mythology
Gray, E., (1983) Cath Maige Tuired
Macalister, R., (1941). Lebor Gabala Erenn part IV
Green, M., (1992). Dictionary of Celtic Myth and Legend
Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language, eDIL, (n.d.)
O hOgain, D., (2006) The Lore of Ireland
Cross, T., and Slover. H., (1936). Ancient Irish Tales
Jones, M., (2009). Anu. Retrieved from http://www.maryjones.us/jce/anu.html

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