When we speak of Celtic mythology, we are not referring to a single religion or a homogeneous mythological system. Rather, we are talking about a vast mosaic of cultural traditions.

Under the term "Celtic", we group together various Indo-European peoples who, over centuries, spread across large parts of Europe. The Celts did not form a centralized empire, nor did they leave behind a systematic religious corpus comparable to Greek, Roman, or Norse traditions. Their world was plural, diverse, and deeply regional.

They shared certain cultural, linguistic, and symbolic traits, but not a single codified religion.

Celtic peoples existed in Ireland, Britain, Gaul (moder-day-France), Hispania, Central Europe, and other regions of the continent, where each territory developed its own mythological variations.

The Celts did not leave systematic religious texts. Oral traditions predominated, along with the central role of druidic knowledge. What we know today largely comes from medieval manuscripts, most of them written by Christian scribes.

Although Celtic mythology is broad and complex, modern scholarship often organizes it into several main branches.

  1. Irish tradition

The best preserved and the richest in narrative.

  1. Welsh tradition

More literary and symbolic in nature.

  1. Gaulish tradition

Far more fragmented, with scarce direct sources, relying on Roman accounts, inscriptions, and archaeological interpretations.

Speaking of Celtic mythology means recognizing that there is no single unified mythology. It is a collection of related traditions that share symbolic structures, yet remain deeply diverse.

Within this vast cultural landscape, the Irish tradition will be our starting point.

Guide to Celtic Mythology

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