Anann

:"Not to be confused with Annan."

In Irish mythology, Anann (Anu, Ana, Anand) was a goddess. ‘Anann’ is identified as the personal name of the Morrígan in many MSS of "Lebor Gabála Érenn". With Badb and Macha, she is sometimes part of a triple goddess or a triad of war goddesses.R. A. Stewart Macalister. "Lebor Gabála Érenn". Part IV. Irish Texts Society, Dublin, 1941. § VII, First Redaction.] As such, she may be a Celtic personification of death, and is depicted as predicting death in battle. As a goddess of cattle, she is responsible for culling the weak. She is therefore often referred to as "Gentle Annie", in an effort to avoid offense, a tactic similar to referring to the fairies as "The Good People". [Black Annis, Gentle Annie [http://www.whitedragon.org.uk/articles/blackann.htm] ]

She may be identical with Danu or Aine. She has particular associations with Munster: the twin hills known as the Paps of Anu ("Dá Chích Anann" ot "the breasts of Anu"), near Killarney, County Kerry are said to have been named after her. She was a goddess of fertility, cattle, and prosperity, and was known for comforting and teaching the dying. Fires were lit for her during Midsummer.Fact|date=February 2007 __NOTOC__

Etymology

This name may be derived the Proto-Celtic *"Φanon-". [http://www.wales.ac.uk/documents/external/cawcs/PCl-MoE.pdf Proto-Celtic—English lexicon] and [http://www.wales.ac.uk/documents/external/cawcs/MoE-PCl.pdf English—Proto-Celtic lexicon] . University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies. (See also [http://www.wales.ac.uk/newpages/EXTERNAL/E4504.asp this page] for background and disclaimers.) Cf. also the [http://www.indo-european.nl/cgi-bin/query.cgi?root=leiden&basename=%5Cdata%5Cie%5Cceltic University of Leiden database] .]

ee also

Bibliography

*Ellis, Peter Berresford, "Dictionary of Celtic Mythology"(Oxford Paperback Reference), Oxford University Press, (1994): ISBN 0-19-508961-8
*MacKillop, James. "Dictionary of Celtic Mythology". Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998. ISBN 0-19-280120-1.
*Wood, Juliette, "The Celts: Life, Myth, and Art", Thorsons Publishers (2002): ISBN 0-00-764059-5

Works cited