red book... pdf
(11.38 MB, 0x0)
Including Welsh language version of the Red Book here also.
- English folklore
Now you may be wondering why I used the term English folklore and not say Anglo Saxon or some other term. Well, the reason is quite simple; the folklore of England isn't one single lineage. Allow me to explain. In England there are unique areas with unique heritages that actually contain very specific folklore to those people. An example would be Cornish folklore, which has more in common with Celtic rather than Saxon, same with the Manx from the Isle of Mann, they have a more Nordic folk heritage. Now were I to focus on a book for each different group, well that would take far too long so in it's place I will offer two general folk lore books and if requested will upload ones for region specific folklore.
So the first is one dear to my heart, Hero-Myths and Legends of the British Race. Now this book specifically is not entirely about the English nor British people overall but offers a collections of stories that quite accurately demonstrate the building blocks of the construction of English folklore. It contains tales ranging from the classic Beowulf to Ser Gerwain from Arthurian legend and Lady Cathleen, an Irish maiden who offered her soul to alleviate her peoples suffering. It all makes for quite an interesting read and goes some way to demonstrating the intermingling of Northern European folk tales on this little island.
The second book is an interesting one, I had considered going for Histories of the Kings of Britain by Geoffry of Monmouth but in it's place I think many a man seeking to reconnect with *true* England, not the squalid pit we are now, would appreciate A Book of Old English Ballads (1896). It sounds an odd choice does it not? Ah, but dear friends, it is in these ballads you get a real sense of the true English. The language is in fact not the old Anglo Saxon English but Middle English, old by current standards but still very accessible. It contains songs concerning the England/Scotland skirmishes, Robin Hood and one particular one I think many here will enjoy, the ballad of Hugh of Lincoln. I won't tell you why as that would ruin it, but needless to say it will definitely appeal.
Now, using the English fusion of Celtic and Nordic folklore we shall springboard to the North.
