Despite a great many people knowing that Norway is awash with folklore, many would be hard-pressed to name a Norwegian folk narrative beyond the folk tales “The Three Billy-goats Gruff” and perhaps “East of the Sun and West of the Moon.”
The Mabinogion is a mess of misconstrued mythology, a minefield of mistranslation and misinterpretations. It’s also the font of all fantasy, a literary sub-genre that did not have any following before Lady Charlotte Guest presented her loose translation, first published in seven volumes between 1838 and 1845. Much effort was put into making them read as a cohesive, integrated story, which they were not. They were compiled from many traditional tales told in the Welsh language dating right back to the earliest bardic tradition and originate in an ancient culture that spanned pre-Roman Briton and Eire.
The Swansea Devil is a three-foot tall “cursed” sculpture which is said to have been responsible for destroying a church.
A griffin is a legendary beast believed to be the offspring of a lion and an eagle, depicted in various ways by many different human cultures.
A story of love, betrayal and impending war became entwined with upheavals that affect the discipline of folklore to this day.
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