Pa ŵr yw'r porthor?

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Pa ŵr yw'r porthor? [ pa uːr iur 'porθor ] (“Who is the gatekeeper?”), in older language Pa Gwr yw y Porthawr , is the title of a poem from Welsh mythology . It was created before 1100, in an incomplete manuscript in the Llyfr Du Caerfyrddin ("The Black Book of Carmarthen") from 1250 and is therefore probably one of the oldest surviving Arthurian sagas .

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The title of the story, Pa ŵr yw'r porthor? , is the first line of the poem. King Arthur comes to a castle with his followers and requests entry from the gatekeeper Glewlwyd Gafaelfawr . However, he demands that Arthur introduce all of his companions to him beforehand.

“Who is the porter?” - “Glewlwyd Gavaelvawr. Who asks? ”-“ Arthur and the beautiful Kei . ”-“ Who's with you? ”-“ The best men in the world. ”-“ You won't come [me] into my house! If you don't show them to me! "-" I will vouch for myself and you will see them, [...] "

Thereupon Arthur gives the names of his companions, u. a. by Bedwyr fab Bedrawg , Cei fab Cynyr , Mabon fab Modron and Manawydan , he also narrates some of their exploits.

This story is one of the oldest Arthurian sagas in Welsh lore, and most scholars believe that it is from pre-Norman times. The conclusive argument for this is that, in contrast to more recent stories, French loanwords and foreign words are missing and an archaic Cymric grammar is used. The person of Glewlwyd Gafaelfawr is the gatekeeper of a strange building, in the sagas Iarlles y Ffynnawn (“The mistress of the spring”), Gereint fab Erbin (“Gereint, the son of the heiress”) and Mal y kavas Kulhwch Olwen (“How Kulhwch Olwen ”) he is the keeper of Arthur Castle.

These “doorkeeper talks” ( Birkhan ) are recurring set pieces of Celtic heroic poetry. Lugh , too , can only gain access to the Túatha Dé Danann and the royal dignity in this way .

See also

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Helmut Birkhan: Celtic stories from the emperor Arthur. Part 2, p. 104.
  2. ↑ Helmut Birkhan: Celtic stories from the emperor Arthur. Part 2, p. 181 f.
  3. ↑ Helmut Birkhan: Celts. Attempt at a complete representation of their culture. Pp. 502, 891.
  4. ↑ Helmut Birkhan: Nachantike Keltenrezeption. P. 116 f. (for the entire paragraph "Content)"