Origins of Irish Folklore
About
The Abharacht is only a singular tale in the vast collection of enthralling and mythological legends that have been told for centuries. These heroic and tragic stories take influences from different aspects of Irish society to create though-provoking stories.
Relation to Religion
Irish folklore has many widely recognizable characters that have served as inspiration for many facets of advertising and production. These figures that we all know and love are folklore tales surrounding the Leprechaun and the Fairies are still prominent in society today. After the Celts of the 4th century converted from worshiping Pagan gods to full Christianity, we can see many folklore tales with religious figures. This can come in the form of origin stories, like how fairies were the result of angels laughing at God after he threw the Devil out of Heaven. Or, in the case of the Abharacht, the villain can be a hellish creature such as a vampire. Many of the Fairies engage in rituals, and this is heavily influenced by the religion and the society around the religion at the time. It makes sense that many mythological stories had religious undertones, as religion was one of the most important parts of a society centuries ago. While religion is still important today, it’s significance in the earlier centuries is undeniable.
Fun Facts
1. In 1997, a crew was tasked to remove the tree that Abharacht was said to be buried. A number of things went wrong during this operation, like the chainsaw malfunctioning three times while cutting, and when they tried to remove the stone from the ground, a worker cut his hand off when a steel chain snapped, and the blood soaked into the ground immediately.
2. The tree still stands in a place called Slaghtaverty Dolmen in Ireland. That roughly means 'Giants Grave', which is ironic due to the dwarf being buried in there.
3. The image to the right is Slaghtaverty Dolmen in its entirely, and its large and empty nature gives off an ominous tone once an individual knows the folklore associated with the region.
