The world Celtic comes from a word of Greek origin: Keltoi, which was a term used to describe the majority of their northern neighbors. The Celts are of Indo-European origin, and their impact on the modern world is incredibly deep, from the celebration of Samhain, and the final harvest, to the names of many of the European Rives: The Danube, The Rhine, The Thames.

At their height, the Celtic population stretched from the islands of Ireland and England, to the Alps, and as far south as Rome, and invading for a short period of time, Egypt. So why does the world Celt bring forth images of the England and Ireland? Because they’re island countries. As such, they remained relatively secure and pure in their origins up until the invasions of Saxons. In Ireland, the Ancient Celtic life existed past the invasions of Vikings, and refused to fade away until the arrival of the English centuries after the rest of the Celtic world had become unknown.

Often, the role of women in the pre-Christian world is downplayed. It is assumed that the way they were treated later in history, was the same way that they were treated earlier in history, but this is not always entirely true.

In Egypt, women were nearly equal to men. No, they were not completely equal and they were not a head of the men, but they were not a down trodden member of society, and in fact, an Egyptian woman had complete control over her house hold.

In Ancient Sparta, women did nearly everything but go to war and rule politically. While their husbands or their fathers were nearly always absent, due to the military service they performed to the Spartan state, the women were left at home to run their households, be in charge of their family, and help make decisions for their villages and towns. Spartan women received the same education as their men- in some cases, better, because they were expected to be able to do the financial figuring while their husbands were absent. They received the same physical education as the men, and held onto the concept that a strong and healthy woman would give birth to strong and healthy children. Again, not quite equal, but not downtrodden in the society either.

In Germanic tribes, the women were far from equal, however, as with the other nation-states, they still held their own power. They were the driving force for their men to become warriors, they raised their children, and they went to war with their men. No, they were not expected to fight, but their very presence would remind their men of everything that would be destroyed if they lost. It has been said that Germanic women would stand on the outside of a battle and yell reminders to the men about this, as well as insults at the enemies.

Celtic women were not only equal, but on some occasions, the ones holding the upper hands. As with the other countries, one only looks at the myths to be surrounded by images of the strong woman, but unlike in any other mythology, every deity of war is in the image of the woman. It has been noted historically that women often fought with their men, and the concept of a ruling Queen was generally accepted. One needs only look to the myth shrouded figure of Queen Maeve to see a warrior. Or Aine, who was said to be the Faery Queen of Munster, and who was known to be vindictive and strong, and more intelligent than most men.

There are few documents that survived from this primarily oral culture, but most of the myths and legends were passed down in a form that was nearly complete. Ireland provides the idea of the celts because the Celtic society existed there, longer than any other country. This is due to a combination of their own efforts, and the added bonus that they are a separate island from Briton.

There, myths, legends, and stories have been passed down that document women as Druids and Priestesses, Warriors, Goddesses, Queens and working women. On top of all that, the strongest deity in the pan-Celtic beliefs, was of Danu, or The Mother Goddess. Again, the concept of a mother Goddess showing that a woman can and does give birth. It might not be her entire purpose in life, but it is what keeps a society, be it nation or state, growing in population, and something only a woman can do. This gives her and added edge over the men. Women could train as druids, they could rule countries, they could go to war, they could fill occupations, and they could give birth.

This, of course, changed completely with the arrival of Christianity. The arrival of Patrick, and the English brought with it the belief that women were inferior, and the decline of the Celts was complete.