The Celtic Dragon Myth

by J.F. Campbell

[1911]

Contents Start Reading Page Index Text [Zipped]

The Scottish folklorist J.F. Campbell pieced together the tale of the Celtic Dragon, an intricate oft-told story involving not just dragons but mermaids, giants, and sidhe (fairies). This story, or portions thereof, is found in many Indo-European folklore traditions, as far afield as India. Campbell includes not only his merged narrative, but original Gaelic texts for two of the episodes. Campbell is best known for his four volume Popular Tales of the Western Highlands, also available at this site. The book includes a contribution by George Henderson, the Gaelic text and an English translation of the related tale of Fraoch and the Dragon.

Title Page
Table of Contents
Introduction
The Geste of Fraoch
The Death of Fraoch

The Celtic Dragon Myth

Introduction
The Fisher
The Weapon
The Three Ways
First Way
The Mermaid
First Way
The Second Way
The Meeting of the Three Ways
The Meeting of the Fisher's Three Sons
Notes To Celtic Dragon Myth

Gaelic

Na Trì Rathaidean Móra (The Three Ways) [Gaelic]
An t-Iasgair (The Three Ways) [Gaelic]