Morrigan

The goddess Morrígan is one of the most recognized in Celtic mythology, associated with moments of battle and death, but also fertility.

Morrígan is the deity of Celtic mythology known as the Goddess of Death and War. Furthermore, the Irish people also considered her the patroness of witches, sorceresses and priestesses.

Like the other gods in Celtic mythology, she is directly linked to the forces of nature. In this way, she was also considered the Goddess of human Destiny and considered the Great Uterus, responsible for the death, renewal and rebirth of all life.

The goddess is also often portrayed as a figure of three different identities, as well as in the form of a raven.

In the Celtic language, Morrígan means Great Queen, but also Ghost Queen or Terror. Despite this, the origin of the term has some contradictions, with aspects pointing to the source of the name in Indo-European, Old English and Scandinavian.

In addition to the traditional spelling, the goddess also has her name written as Morrighan, Mórrígan, Morrígu, Morrigna, Mórríghean or MOR-Ríoghain.

The current spelling emerged in the middle of the Irish Middle Period, when it gained the meaning of Great Queen. Before that, the name in Proto-Celtic – recorded as Moro-rigani-s – was more used in the sense of Ghost Queen.

Morrígan is considered a war deity and was therefore often invoked before battles. As a symbol of war, she was often depicted in the form of a raven, flying over warriors on the battlefield.

During the Ulster cycle, the goddess also began to be portrayed as an eel, wolf and cows. This last representation is closely linked to its role in fertility and wealth from the land.

On some occasions, Morrígan appears as a triple goddess. Although this portrayal has several versions, the most common consists of the trio of Ernmas' daughters, alongside Badb and Macha. In other accounts, the goddess is replaced by Nemain, with the entire trio being named Morrighans.

Other combinations also involve the goddess alongside Fea and Anu.

In the texts of Celtic mythology, Morrígan appears as one of the daughters of Ernmas. Before her, the first daughters were Ériu, Banba and Fódla who are also synonymous with Ireland.

The three were also wives of the last Tuatha Dé Danann kings of the region, Mac Cuill, Mac Cécht and Mac Gréine.

Morrígan appears in the second trio of islands, alongside Badb and Macha. This time, the daughters are much more powerful, endowed with a lot of cunning, wisdom and strength. Despite the difference in power, the two triads were very connected and seen as equivalent.

The goddess is also portrayed at Samhain, where she is seen stepping on both banks of the river Unius at the same time. For this reason, she is often portrayed as responsible for the emergence of the landscape.

In modern times, some authors tried to relate the goddess to the figure of Morgan le Fay, present in Arthurian legends.