Arthur in the Celtic Languages: The Arthurian Legend in Celtic Literatures and Traditions (Arthurian Literature in the Middle Ages #9)

This is the first comprehensive authoritative survey of Arthurian literature and traditions in the Celtic languages of Welsh, Cornish, Breton, Irish and Scottish Gaelic. With contributions by leading and emerging specialists in the field, the volume traces the development of the legends that grew up around Arthur and have been constantly reworked and adapted from the Middle Ages to the twentieth century. It shows how the figure of Arthur evolved from the leader of a warband in early medieval north Britain to a king whose court becomes the starting-point for knightly adventures, and how characters and tales are reimagined, reshaped and reinterpreted according to local circumstances, traditions and preoccupations at different periods. From the celebrated early Welsh poetry and prose tales to less familiar modern Breton and Cornish fiction, from medieval Irish adaptations of the legend to the Gaelic ballads of Scotland, Arthur in the Celtic Languages provides an indispensable, up-to-date guide of a vast and complex body of Arthurian material, and to recent research and criticism. This volume provides an authoritative new survey of the Arthurian literature and traditions preserved in the Celtic Welsh, Cornish, Breton, Irish, and Scottish Gaelic. Covering material from oral tradition as well as medieval and modern literature and Arthurian place-names, it traces the evolution of the tales of Arthur and his entourage in each language, illustrating how they were tailored to audiences in each country at different times. A collection of essays providing a reliable, accessible and up-to-date introduction to Arthurian literature and popular traditions in the Celtic languages, from the early Middle Ages to the twentieth century. The figure of Arthur and the characters associated with him change as the stories are reworked for audiences in the different countries and at different periods.