Afallach
Afallach ( Welsh [ a'vaɬax ]) is a legendary figure from the medieval Welsh saga collection Mabinogion . In the “Four Branches of the Mabinogi” he is not mentioned, but appears in other stories in this collection in the genealogy of the main characters.
Mythology and Etymology
Afallach was the son of Beli Mawr and Anu , as well as Caswallawn's brother and father of Modron . Almost nothing is known of his mythology, however, like most of the figures of the four branches of the Mabinogion, he is considered a possible euhemerized Celtic deity . His name is known from the Ynys Afallach . Geoffrey of Monmouth sees this name as the Welsh translation of the mythical island of Insula Avalonis . However, Geoffrey himself speaks of it in his Vita Merlini as Insula Pomorum ("apple island"), which is also referred to by the seafaring legend of the heavenly apple island Emain Ablach . Since Afallach is probably derived from the word afall (Welsh [ a'vaɬ ] "apple" or "apple tree"), there would also be such a connection between the names.
literature
- Bernhard Maier : Lexicon of Celtic Religion and Culture (= Kröner's pocket edition . Volume 466). Kröner, Stuttgart 1994, ISBN 3-520-46601-5 , p. 5 f.