“One of the things I find so refreshing in the Celtic myths is that the women are honored as much for their minds as for their bodies. The dumb blond would not stand much of a chance in ancient Celtic society”.
Moyra Caldicott, ‘Women in Celtic Myth’

The Celts, who dominated Europe and the British Isles for about 800 years (700 B.C. until around 100 A.D.), had no unifying political structures, no common religion, and no written language. Their law, history, and mythology were transmitted orally by the Druids, who functioned as lawgivers as well as priests. This information was not written down until the 6th and 7th centuries, long after Celts had virtually disappeared. There are many variants in how the stories were told, and how the names were spelled. The unifying traditions were law, kingship, and truth, along with other basic values which held society together.

Celts had no hang-ups about the status of women. For the pagan Celt, the essence of the universe was female, and women were the spiritual and moral pivot of culture. Even after their ways were greatly altered by Christianization, women became priests and even bishops.

Celtic goddesses were in charge of the traditional female areas of love, fertility, childbirth, harvest, domestic crafts, healing and fate, but their powers ranged well beyond that.  One of the best-known deities was the crow goddess Morrigan, whose area of influence was battle frenzy and death. She was often found in a triple aspect, and chose who would live and who would die. She was also the queen of phantoms, demons, and shape-shifters.

The Gaulish dog goddess was the patron of patron deity of sea traders. The Welsh Olwen, “the golden wheel”, was the goddess of sunlight. The Scottish Scathach (“she who strikes fear”) was a warrior goddess and prophetess who taught martial arts. The Irish Badb was a shape-shifting warrior goddess who symbolized the cycles of life and death, wisdom and inspiration. The Welsh Ceridwen was the keeper of the cauldron of renewal, as well as goddess of the moon, magic, agriculture, science and astrology.

Celtic women were free to become warriors, druids, judges, poets, physicians or political leaders. Their female stereotypes did not include passive victims, shrinking violets, or empty-headed beauties. They could own property, and retained it when they married. They were free to choose their own partners, divorce, and claim damages if molested. They often had outstanding abilities. Boudicca, the famous warrior queen, was chosen as war leader by all the tribes who banded together to fight the Romans. Meave of Connaught, a mythological warrior queen in the first century AD, bore thirteen children by five husbands and a consort, and boasted of sleeping with thirty men in one day. Queen Sgathaich headed a famous military academy in Skye, where men came from far and wide to train.

One of Sgathaich’s pupils was Cuchulainn. The woman he wanted to make his wife, Emer, the niece of Ulster’s King Tetara, had refused to marry him unless he proved himself first. She did not want to marry a boasting youth, but a great champion. When Cuchulainn returned from Skye, he was equipped with magical weapons and amazing skills, including a compelling battle rage. (He also left behind an unborn child in the womb of Sgathaich’s sister Aoife, who later gained her revenge by tricking Cuchulainn into killing his son in combat.) Cuchulainn used his new skills to abduct Emer from her father’s stronghold and kill all the warriors who pursued him.

In a war of words to prove her worthiness, Emer described herself this way:
“There is no woman comes up to me in appearance, in shape, in wisdom; there is no one conies up to me for goodness of form, or brightness of eye, or good sense, or kindness, or good behavior.
“No one has the joy of loving or the strength of loving that I have; all Ulster desires me; surely I am a nut of the heart. If I were a light woman, there would not be a husband left to any of you to-morrow.
“And my husband is Cuchulainn. It is he is not a hound that is weak; there is blood on his spear, there is blood on his sword, his white body is black with blood, his soft skin is furrowed with sword cuts, there are many wounds on his thigh.”

This is a woman who knew her value! Later, when Cuchulainn had an affair with Fann, a fairy queen, he left her because he realized that he loved Emer more. He lost his life on the battlefield because he refused the love of the Morrigan. Though he was a great hero, females shaped his life.

The freedom of Celtic women serves as inspiration to feminists everywhere.  Perhaps a thousand years from now, similar legends will circulate about us.  Wouldn’t that be a huge improvement on the traditional jokes about dumb blondes?

A selection of resources:
http://www.pabay.org/skyeviews.html
Women of the Celts

http://www.shee-eire.com/
a guide to ancient Ireland, with over 17,500 pages