In Ireland, the link between place and myth is strong, and there is no more enlightening way to understand the rich tapestry of Irish mythology, and its relationship to our true history, than by reading the landscape. Earthing the Myths is an engaging and exhaustive county-by-county guide to the vast number of fascinating places in Ireland connected to myth, folklore and early history. Covering the period 800 BC to AD 650, this book spans the Late Bronze Age, the Iron Age and the early Christian period, and explores the ways in which the land evolved, and with it our catalogue of myths and legends. Smyth chronicles sites the length and breadth of the country, where druids, fairies, goddesses, warriors and kings all left their mark, in tales both real and imagined. With over one thousand locations recorded, from Rathlin Island to the Beara Peninsula, Earthing the Myths breathes life into places throughout Ireland that find their origins in our pre-Christian and pre-Gaelic past, and shows that they still possess unique wisdom and vibrant energy.

Here are 125 magnificent folktales collected from anthologies and journals published from the mid-nineteenth century to the present day. Beginning with tales of the ancient times and continuing through the arrival of the saints in Ireland in the fifth century, the periods of war and family, the Literary Revival championed by William Butler Yeats, and the contemporary era, these robust and funny, sorrowful and heroic stories of kings, ghosts, fairies, treasures, enchanted nature, and witchcraft are set in cities, villages, fields, and forests from the wild western coast to the modern streets of Dublin and Belfast. Edited by Henry Glassie With black-and-white illustrations throughout Part of the Pantheon Fairy Tale and Folklore Library

Few countries can boast such a plentitude of traditional folktales as Ireland. In 1935, the creation of The Irish Folklore Commission set in motion the first organized efforts of collecting and studying a multitude of folktales, both written as well as those of the Irish oral tradition. The Commission has collected well over a million pages of manuscripts. Folktales of Ireland offers chief archivist Sean O'Sullivan's representation of this awe-inspiring collection. These tales represent the first English language collection of Gaelic folktales. "Without doubt the finest group of Irish tales that has yet been published in English."—The Guardian "O'Sullivan writes out of an intimacy with his subject and an instinctive grasp of the language of the originals. He tells us that his archives contain more than a million and a half pages of manuscript. If Mr. O'Sullivan translates them, I'll read them."—Seamus Heaney, New Statesman "The stories have an authentic folktale flavor and will satisfy both the student of folklore and the general reader."—Booklist

Niall Mac Coitir provides a comprehensive look at the folklore, legends and history of animals in Ireland, and describes their relations with people, being hunted for food, fur, sport, or as vermin, and their position today. A final section, inspired by stories of animal transformation, looks at twelve animals and how we can enrich our lives by visualising ourselves with their special qualities. This fascinating and beautifully illustrated compilation of folklore, legends and natural history will delight all with an interest in Ireland's animals.

Introduce yourself to the noble heroes and magical creatures of Irish mythology. Includes the two definitive works on the subject by the giants of the Irish Renaissance. W.B. Yeates' Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry and Lady Gregory's Cuchulain of Muirthemne.

"Journalist Marie Heaney skillfully revives the glory of ancient Irish storytelling in this comprehensive volume from the great pre-Christian sequences to the more recent tales of the three patron saints Patrick, Brigid, and Colmcille."--Publisher's description.

Nowhere in the nineteenth century did interest in folklore and mythology have a more thorough revival than in Ireland. There, in 1887, Lady Francesca Speranza Wilde, Oscar Wilde's mother and a well-known author in her own right, compiled this collection of charming, authentic folk tales. Collected from among the peasantry and retaining their original simplicity, the myths and legends reveal delightfully the Irish people's relationship with a spiritual and invisible world populated by fairies, elves, and evil beings. Included in Lady Wilde's collection, among others, are eerie tales of "The Horned Women," "The Holy Well and the Murderer," and "The Bride's Death-Song," as well as beguiling accounts of superstitions concerning the dead, celebrations and rites, animal legends, and ancient charms. The first book to link Irish folklore with nationalism, Legends illustrates the mythic underpinnings of the Irish character and signals the country's cultural reemergence. It remains, said the Evening Mail, "an important contribution to the literature of Ireland and the world's stock of folklore."