The blind mendicant in Ukrainian folk tradition is a little-known social order, but an important one. The singers of Ukrainian epics, these minstrels were organized into professional guilds that set standards for training and performance. Repressed during the Stalin era, this is their story.

A comprehensive reference source for Arthurian studies, "The Arthurian Name Dictionary" is a comprehensive encyclopedia of characters, places, objects, and themes found in the legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. The volume makes available, for the first time, a complete catalogue of these names, drawn from all significant Arthurian sources between Gildas's "De Excidio Britanniae "(the first "Arthurian" source, written c. 540) and Tennyson's nineteenth-century "Idylls of the Kin" (which began the modern era of Arthurian literature)
Covers all of Arthurian-informative, detailed, and extensive, The enormous number of characters and places in the vast body of literature called Arthuriana confounds even the most learned Arthurian scholars. "The Arthurian Name Dictionary "contains names extracted from over 250 original Arthurian texts. Its pages include information on characters such as Lancelot and Gawain; places such as Camelot and Camlann; objects such as Excalibur and the Holy Grail; and themes such as the Sword-in-the-Stone and the Beheading Game. Each entry provides a complete, accurate description of the name, including, when possible, the origins or historical basis of the name, and any counterparts with different names in other sources. Major characters and themes are discussed extensively, and their evolution through the series of texts is carefully traced
Offers more coverage than previous encyclopedias and dictionaries on Arthurian, "The Arthurian Name Dictionary" outdoes previous encyclopedias and dictionaries concerned with Arthurian subjects by including a far greater number of sources, by including a far greater number of names from those sources, and by discussing each name in far greater detail.

Contents:
The lion, bloodline and kinship. Misericord owls and medieval anti-semitism. Bestiary lessons on pride and lust. Sex in the bestiaries. The phoenix and the resurrection. Did imaginary animals exist? Classical ideology in the medieval bestiary. Taboos and the holy in Bodley 764. Silence's beasts.

The Concept of the Goddess explores the function and nature of goddesses and their cults in many cultures, including:
* Celtic
* Roman
* Norse
* Caucasian
* Japanese traditions.
The contributors explore the reasons for the existence of so many goddesses in the mythology of patriarchal societies and show that goddesses have also assumed more masculine roles, with war, hunting and sovereignty being equally important aspects of their cults.

eBook available with sample pages: HB:0415144213 EB:0203456386

In ancient Greece, gynaecology originated in the myth of the first woman Pandora, whose beautiful appearance was seen to cover her dangerous "insides". This book demonstrates how ancient Greek healers read the signs offered by their patients' bodies, arguing that medicine was based on ideas about women and their bodies found in myth and ritual. Helen King deploys a wide range of comparative material from the social sciences to discuss religious healing, chronic pain and the creation of a powerful self-image by aspiring healers. She outlines how nursing and midwifery have tried to create their own versions of the ancient Greek past to give themselves great status, and presents a detailed account of how doctors twisted ancient Greek texts into ways of controlling women's behaviour. Finally she analyzes how later medicine, by diagnosing "hysteria" and by recommending practices such as clitoridectomy, gave its decisions authority by claiming ancient Greek origins which never existed. The text provides an insight into the origins of gynaecology and the influence of the early study and medical texts on later medical practices and theories up to the Victorian era.

This engaging introduction to the Russian folktale considers the origin, structure, and language of folktale; tale-tellers and their audiences; the relationship of folktale to Russian ritual life; and the folktale types that are translated in subsequent volumes of The Complete Russian Folktale.

This volume is a collection of Edo (or Benin) folk tales: an oral history of Edo culture and tradition. It tells the story of how the ancient Edo conceived of the world and how they attempted both to explain the origins of their human existence on earth and to interpret their environment.

Plato's legend of Atlantis has become notorious among scholars as the absurdest lie in literature. Atlantis Destroyed explores the possibility that the account given by Plato is historically true.
Rodney Castleden first considers the location of Atlantis re-examining two suggestions put forward in the early twentieth century; Minoan Crete and Minoan Thera. He outlines the latest research findings on Knossos and Bronze Age Thera, discussing the material culture, trade empire and agricultural system, writing and wall paintings, art, religion and society of the Minoan civilization. Castleden demonstrates the many parallels between Plato's narrative and the Minoan Civilization in the Aegean.
Fired by the imagination a new vision of Atlantis has arisen over the last one hundred and fifty years as a lost utopia. Rodney Castleden discusses why this picture arose and xplains how it has become confused with Plato's genuine account.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203024869

This book discusses the origin and dispersion of the Aryans, the mythopoeic world view of early man, the animistic philosophy of savages, and the survivals of primitive belief among peasants, which enlivened the folklore controversies.

This book discusses the origin and dispersion of the Aryans, the mythopoeic world view of early man, the animistic philosophy of savages, and the survivals of primitive belief among peasants, which enlivened the folklore controversies.

The potential for healing available in well-known myths and stories is increasingly recognized, but many practitioners are unsure how to tap into this rich and often culturally-specific source of insight. What sort of story is best for what sort of situation? How can it be introduced naturally into the session? What is the best way of using the story?
These are some of the questions contributors to this book set out to answer. They explore the historical and cultural context of story-telling and provide examples of specific stories for specific situations.
Covering emotional themes such as anger, anxiety, fear, shame, guilt, separation and bereavement, the authors show how they work through stories with many different kinds of client groups and individuals of all ages in educational, health and social science settings.
The Therapeutic Use of Stories provides a sound theoretical framework for the use of stories, examples of stories with a high therapeutic value, and practical advice on how to use them to best effect.

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Everything you ever wanted to know about King Arthur and his knights is covered in this fascinating volume: the origins of the Grail legend, the Tristan and Isolde love story in opera and literature, Spielberg's use of Arthurian motifs in "Star Wars," the depiction of Arthur in paintings, the presentation of Camelot on the Broadway stage, the twitting of the legend in "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" and much more.
This critical survey of Arthurian history and legend, archaeology, literature, and the arts from the fifth century to the present provides an introduction for the general reader and a useful summary for the specialist. It offers both historical facts and key discussions on Arthurian subjects, from post-Roman Britain to the most recent novels and films. There is a lengthy glossary of Arthurian characters, motifs, and places, a chronology of major historical and literary items, a guide to pronunciation, and a full bibliography.
What's new in the Second Edition: All the material has been revised and updated to 1996 since the original 1988 edition; The chapter on modern literature has been thoroughly revised, with new material on writings from France, Germany, England, and America; The coverage of King Arthur in the arts has entirely rewritten by one of the premier authorities in Arthurian studies. Brand-new geneological charts of the ancestry of Arthur and his family and the Grail kings and knights.; A fully up-to-date chronology; Many new illustrations.

A TIMES BESTSELLER, January 2022 A TIMES HISTORICAL FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR SHORTLISTED FOR WATERSTONES BOOK OF THE YEAR A BBC HISTORY MAG BOOK OF THE YEAR A DAILY EXPRESS BOOK OF THE YEAR 'Expressive, bold and quite beautiful' The Lady '[a] delight of a book' Antonia Senior, The Times 'ravishingly lovely' The Times Ireland '[a] lively retelling of British myths' Apollo Magazine Soaked in mist and old magic, Storyland is a new illustrated mythology of Britain, set in its wildest landscapes. It begins between the Creation and Noah's Flood, follows the footsteps of the earliest generation of giants from an age when the children of Cain and the progeny of fallen angels walked the earth, to the founding of Britain, England, Wales and Scotland, the birth of Christ, the wars between Britons, Saxons and Vikings, and closes with the arrival of the Normans. These are retellings of medieval tales of legend, landscape and the yearning to belong, inhabited with characters now half-remembered: Brutus, Albina, Scota, Arthur and Bladud among them. Told with narrative flair, embellished in stunning artworks and glossed with a rich and erudite commentary. We visit beautiful, sacred places that include prehistoric monuments like Stonehenge and Wayland's Smithy, spanning the length of Britain from the archipelago of Orkney to as far south as Cornwall; mountains and lakes such as Snowdon and Loch Etive and rivers including the Ness, the Soar and the story-silted Thames in a vivid, beautiful tale of our land steeped in myth. It Illuminates a collective memory that still informs the identity and political ambition of these places. In Storyland, Jeffs reimagines these myths of homeland, exile and migration, kinship, loyalty, betrayal, love and loss in a landscape brimming with wonder.

eBook available with sample pages: HB:0415916488

An authoritative new history of the vampire, two hundred years after it first appeared on the literary scene Published to mark the bicentenary of John Polidori's publication of The Vampyre, Nick Groom's detailed new account illuminates the complex history of the iconic creature. The vampire first came to public prominence in the early eighteenth century, when Enlightenment science collided with Eastern European folklore and apparently verified outbreaks of vampirism, capturing the attention of medical researchers, political commentators, social theorists, theologians, and philosophers. Groom accordingly traces the vampire from its role as a monster embodying humankind's fears, to that of an unlikely hero for the marginalized and excluded in the twenty-first century. Drawing on literary and artistic representations, as well as medical, forensic, empirical, and sociopolitical perspectives, this rich and eerie history presents the vampire as a strikingly complex being that has been used to express the traumas and contradictions of the human condition.

Millennium, Messiahs and Mayhem brings together scholars of apocalyptic and millennial groups to explore aspects of contemporary apocalyptic fervor. Opening with a discussion of various theories of apocalypticism, the editors then analyze how millennialist movements have gained ground in largely secular societal circles. Section three discusses the links between apocalypticism and established churches, while the final part of the book looks at examples of violence and confrontation, from Waco to Solar Temple to the Aum Shinri Kyo subway disaster in Japan.

"With her trademark brio and deep-tissue understanding, Maria Tatar opens the glass casket on this undying story, which retains its power to charm twenty-one times, and counting." -Gregory Maguire, author of Wicked The story of the rivalry between a beautiful, innocent girl and her cruel and jealous mother has been endlessly repeated and refashioned all over the world. The Brothers Grimm gave this story the name by which we know it best, and in 1937 Walt Disney sweetened their somber version to make the first feature-length, animated fairy tale, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Since then, the Disney film has become our cultural touchstone-the innocent heroine, her evil stepmother, the envy that divides them, and a romantic rescue from domestic drudgery and maternal persecution. But each culture has its own way of telling this story of jealousy and competition. An acclaimed folklorist, Maria Tatar brings to life a global melodrama of mother-daughter rivalries that play out in unforgettable variations across countries and cultures. "Fascinating...A strange, beguiling history of stories about beauty, jealousy, and maternal persecution." -Wall Street Journal "Is the story of Snow White the cruelest, the deepest, the strangest, the most mythopoeic of them all?...Tatar trains a keen eye on the appeal of the bitter conflict between women at the heart of the tale...a feast of rich thoughts...An exciting and authoritative anthology from the wisest good fairy in the world of the fairy tale." -Marina Warner "The inimitable Maria Tatar offers us a maze of mothers and daughters and within that glorious tangle an archetype with far more meaning than we imagine when we say 'Snow White.'" -Honor Moore "Shocking yet familiar, these stories...retain the secret whisper of storytelling. This is a properly magical, erudite book." -Literary Review

The Mesopotamian influence on Greek mythology in literary works of the epic period is considerable - yet it is a largely unexplored field. In this book Charles Penglase investigates major Mesopotamian and Greek myths. His examination concentrates on journey myths. A major breakthrough is achieved in the recognition of the extent of Mesopotamian influence and in the understanding of the colourful myths involved.
The results are of significant interest, especially to scholars and students of ancient Greek and Near Eastern religion and mythology.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203443918

What is an Egyptian pyramid doing on the U. S. dollar bill? Did a pharaoh inspire Moses to worship one God? What's a Canaanite demoness doing at a rock concert?

Since the beginning of time, people have been insatiably curious. They've asked questions about where we come from, why the stars shine and the seasons change, and what constitutes evil. The imaginative answers crafted by our ancestors have served as religion, science, philosophy, and popular literature. In this latest installment of the New York Times bestselling Don't Know Much About(R) series, Kenneth C. Davis introduces and explains the great myths of the world using his engaging and delightfully irreverent question-and-answer style. He tackles the epic of Gilgamesh; Achilles and the Trojan War; Stonehenge and the Druids; Odin, Thor, and the entire Norse pantheon; Native American myths, and much more, including the dramatic life and times of the man who would be Buddha. From Mount Olympus to Machu Picchu, here is an insightful, lively look at the greatest stories ever told.

First Published in 2005. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

This book describes how the theory and pursuit of folklore evolved in England and were transported throughout the British Isles, the British Empire, and the world at large. It shows the intimate bonds between the culture of the folk and the history of England.

Histories of witchcraft continue to fascinate us in the late twentieth century. Looking at texts from colonial narratvies to court masques, trial records to folktales, and Shakespeare to Sylvia Plath, this book shows how the witch acts as a carrier for the fears, desires and fantasies of women and men both now and in the early modern period.
Among other topics, The Witch in History discusses:
* the way the fantasy body of the witch, viewed as both hard and boundless, represents fear of the maternal body;
* how Macbeth and other Renaissance dramas are exploitative and sensationalist representations of witchcraft;
* how the representations of witchcraft in Europe were influenced by encounters in the New World with Native American religion, and vice versa;
* how radical feminists, modern witches and academic historians have appropriated the figure of the witch to construct their own identities. This extraordinary and fascinating study goes beyond the exploration of the figure of the witch, comprising an innovative contribution to all early modern studies.

Related link: Reviews in History
eBook available with sample pages: 0203359720

For centuries Iran hosted numerous travellers and visitors of diverse nationalities and backgrounds. Many of these travellers left behind documents in which they recorded their observations during their residence in Iran, and these embody a vast range of firsthand information about the land and its people at different periods of time. This book, first published in 1990, takes as its subjects the nature and history of Iranian folk narrative scholarship. The contributions of travellers are given their due recognition as important source documents.

This volume is a study of the female aspect of religion both in past and present mythologies. It explores the function and nature of goddesses and their cults in many cultures, including Celtic, Roman, Norse, Caucasian and Japanese traditions. The contributors explore the reasons for the existence of so many goddesses in the mythological traditions of largely patriarchal societies. They demonstrate how, in many myths, the female deity is seen as more ambivalent than her male counterparts, curing and cursing at whim. They show goddesses do not play primarily "feminine" roles in myths; war, hunting and sovereignty being equally important aspects of their cults.