Welsh Legends and Folk-Tales by Gwyn Jones
"Welsh Legends and Folk-Tales" by Gwyn Jones is a compilation of traditional tales from the Welsh culture, reflecting the rich tapestry of Celtic mythology and folklore. This collection draws parallels to "The Mabinogion," a foundational text of Welsh literature, and presents these stories in modern English prose while retaining original Welsh names and contexts. The book is structured into three main sections: "The Four Branches of Story," which explores the exploits of legendary Welsh heroes; "The British Arthur," which offers a unique Celtic perspective on the tales of King Arthur; and "Tales Old and New," featuring additional stories and short folktales. Themes of familial conflict, heroism, and magical encounters are prevalent throughout the narratives, offering insights into Welsh cultural values and history. Accompanied by illustrations and guides to pronunciation, this work serves both as an introduction to Welsh folklore for newcomers and a valuable resource for those familiar with the legends. The influence of these tales extends beyond literature into modern fantasy genres, highlighting their lasting impact on storytelling.
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Subject Terms
Welsh Legends and Folk-Tales by Gwyn Jones
First published: 1955; illustrated
Subjects: The supernatural and war
Type of work: Short fiction
Recommended Ages: 15-18
Form and Content
Gwyn Jones’s Welsh Legends and Folk-Tales is a collection of traditional legends and tales deriving from the distinctly Celtic people of Western Britain known as the Welsh. Many of the stories within the book parallel those found in The Mabinogion, a nineteenth century collection of Welsh legends and tales that Lady Charlotte Guest extracted from two medieval Welsh manuscripts. Jones recounts these stories from a third-person perspective in modern English prose while still preserving many of the Welsh names for people and places. The book deals with legendary Welsh leaders and folk heroes, focusing especially on their lineage, their heroic exploits, and their contributions to the legendary past. While Welsh tales are more obscure than their more popular counterparts in Irish, Scottish, and English folklore, well-read young adults may be familiar with some of the names and events, especially those pertaining to the Arthurian legends, which are still shared by most cultures throughout the British Isles and France.
The book contains three major sections—“The Four Branches of Story,” “The British Arthur,” and “Tales Old and New”—each of which is composed of subsections. For readers who may find some of the names difficult to read and pronounce, Jones includes at the end of the book a guide to pronouncing Welsh names. Other aspects of the book include a genealogical page, a map of Wales, and frequent illustrations by Joan Kiddell-Monroe.
The first section of the book, “The Four Branches of Story,” introduces the great Welsh heroes of The Mabinogion and relates the various travails and deeds associated with these heroes. A common theme throughout this section is familial disharmony. A prince named Pwyll falls in love with a beautiful woman, Rhiannon, whose father intends to marry her to another man, Gwawl, whom she does not love. A king named Brân the Blest promises his sister Branwen to Matholwch, the king of Ireland, so that relations between Britain and Ireland are eased, but, because Brân’s half brother, Efnisien, insults Matholwch, relations are strained to the point of war. Pryderi (the son of Pwyll) and his mother, Rhiannon, are entranced by a magical bowl. Gwydion, the son of Dôn, resorts to trickery in order to coerce the lady Aranrhod to bestow upon their son a proper name and weapons.
The second section of the book, “The British Arthur,” offers a rendition of some of the exploits of the legendary King Arthur, but the tales have a truly Celtic flavor to them. The majority of these tales derive from the same Welsh manuscripts from which The Mabinogion was created. The first story in this section tells of Arthur’s cousin, Culhwch, and his quest to marry Olwen, the daughter of the Chief Giant Ysbaddaden. The next story gives an account of the love of Trystan and Esyllt; because Esyllt is the wife of March, an argument ensues between Trystan and March that Arthur is forced to settle. The third story deals with a giant named Rhitta whose pride encourages him to steal the beards of his foes and wear them as ornamentation, until Arthur humbles him. The final story of this section recounts the strange, seemingly prophetic dream of a man named Rhonabwy.
The third and final section of Jones’s book, “Tales Old and New,” begins with two more stories from the Welsh manuscripts from which The Mabinogion was created. The first story describes the manner in which an emperor of Rome named Macsen Wledig finds himself a bride, while the second story tells of King Lludd and the way in which he rids Britain of three disturbing plagues: an invasion by a mischievous people called the Coranieid, a terrible scream occurring every May-eve, and a shortage of food and drink. Lludd succeeds in his quest because of the advice of his brother, Llefelys. Following these two stories are a handful of shorter Welsh folktales.
Critical Context
As an accomplished writer and scholar, Gwyn Jones was well suited to present the best of Welsh legends and folklore to young adult readers. Welsh Legends and Folk-Tales is only one book in an entire corpus of Jones’s works dealing with the legends and folklore of Northern cultures, works such as Scandinavian Legends and Folk-Tales (1956), The Norse Atlantic Saga (1964), A History of the Vikings (1968), and Kings, Beasts, and Heroes (1972). It is clear, however, that the most important influence on Welsh Legends and Folk-Tales was The Mabinogion, a work that Jones translated from the Welsh with Thomas Jones and published in 1949.
Popular interest in mythology and folklore grew steadily throughout the twentieth century, and the elements of Welsh legends and folklore presented in Welsh Legends and Folk-Tales began to arise even in mainstream young adult fiction. One need only go to Lloyd Alexander’s highly successful Chronicles of Prydain series to witness the appeal of Welsh tales. Alexander openly acknowledges a great debt to the traditional Welsh tales that inspired the Prydain series. In fact, much of the fantasy fiction of the latter half of the twentieth century incorporates the same elements that make the traditional Welsh tales so enticing: heroic quests, magical trinkets, glorious battles, fairies, and antagonistic giants. The influence of collections of traditional folklore such as Welsh Legends and Folk-Tales is widespread, profoundly affecting readers and writers alike.