Edward Williams

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Edward Williams

Edward Williams , also Iolo Morganwg ( Morgannwg in modern spelling) (* 1747 in Llancarfan ; † 1826 ), was a Welsh antiquarian, poet, author and manuscript collector. Numerous, if not most, of the manuscripts and documents allegedly found by him were exposed as forgeries after his death. His name means in Welsh "Edward of Glamorgan " ( Iolo is the nickname of Iorwerth / Edward).

life and work

Williams began his working life as a stonemason , later known under the name Iolo Morganwg , mainly as the inventor of modern bard rituals and their philosophy . Throughout his life he was considered the leading expert on Welsh culture of antiquity and medieval times. In the course of the romantic return to Celtic / Welsh culture, he sought to establish a continuity of the poetry of bards and druids with contemporary Welsh poetry. He founded the first bard convent ( Gorsedd ) of modern times, the Gorsedd Beirdd Ynys Prydain . The founding ceremony took place on September 23, 1792 at Primrose Hill in London , where neodruidic celebrations at Beltane still take place today. This Gorsedd still takes place today in a different form.

He also made use of old literature (much of it was only recognized as a forgery long after his death), with which he wanted to prove the continuing tradition of the Druids in Wales, which should have survived the Roman invasion and Christianization , as well as a suppression of the bards under Elizabeth I of England. Iolo's philosophy makes a connection between Christianity and King Arthur's influences , much like William Blake did. His aim was to promote the Welsh language in the south of Wales , more precisely in his home region of Glamorgan. Back then there was a preference for North Welsh.

Williams was dependent on the drug laudanum most of the time due to an illness , which may have impaired his mental stability.

He was also the author of the Druid's Prayer or Gorsedd prayer (Welsh Gweddi'r Derwydd or Gweddi'r Orsedd ), which is the basis of some of the rituals of Gorseddau and Neo-Druidism , with its metaphysical theory of the "three rings of existence" of Inside out. Other writings were Cyfrinach Beirdd Ynys Prydain ("The Secret of the Bards of the Isle of Britain", 1829).

In Barddas ("Poetry", "Poetry", 1862), a work he wrote under the pseudonym Llewellyn Sion , Williams claims that during the reign of Emperor Macsen Wledig (335–388) the bards were given special privilege in their support . King Arthur wanted to counteract the subsequent decline of bardism by founding his round table in the 6th century, which was therefore actually 'an arrangement of the arts, sciences, usages and privilegy of the bards' . Williams also invented a pseudo runic script called Coelbren y beirdd ("Loose woods of the bards") in this context ( Barddas , pp. 55–167), which is still used by the Neudruids as a "traditional written form".

See also

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Bernhard Maier: Lexicon of Celtic Religion and Culture p. 337.
  2. ↑ a b Phil Carradice: BBC - Wales History: Iolo Morganwg: scholar, antiquarian and forger. March 9, 2011, accessed April 1, 2018 .
  3. ↑ a b c Helmut Birkhan: Nachantike Keltenrezeption. P. 781 ff.
personal data
SURNAME Williams, Edward
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Iolo Morganwg
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Welsh scientist, author and businessman
DATE OF BIRTH 1747
PLACE OF BIRTH Llancarfan
DATE OF DEATH 1826