The Ancestors From Newgrange to 2000

by Sítheag Nic Trantham bean Bochanan

When faced with the enigma of our ancestors, the modern day Celtic Studies student or Gaelic Restorationist has many important facets to consider. The ancestors of the modern day Celtic people, who were they? Why do they play such an important rôle in folk custom and tales, even today? Why are the ancestors such an intregal part of the Tribal Gaelic Restoration movement? How do we, today, honor the memory of our ancestors, both recent and ancient? These questions are vital to unravelling the puzzle of the ancestors, and to accepting the wisdom they wish to share with us as students and the hopeful progeny which will forge the future of Celtic cultures in modern society.

The Prehistoric Evidence

The enigma of our ancestors, as we know it today, actually begins well before the Celts arrived in Ireland. The central European Celtic people have been documented as worshipping primarily in groves and at watersides. Later on, with Roman influence, the Celtic peoples began to erect temples in which to worship their deities, complete with sculpted icons of their respective gods and goddesses. Yet the only clues we have of possible ancestor veneration on the part of the continental Gael are burial practices, which begin to take shape with the Únêtice, Tumulus, and Urnfield cultures of the central European Bronze Age.

These cultures emerged from a blending of late Bronze Age (circa 2000 B.C.) infiltrations from the south and east by what archaeologists term as the Iberian Beaker and Carpathian Battle-Axe peoples (so called because of the evidence found in their graves). The Beaker and Battle-Axe infiltrations and the subsequent assimilation of their burial practices into the previously unorganized burial practices of the Central European Celt indicate strongly that the outside cultures greatly influenced the class structure of the Celtic people, exalting the development of a possible warrior aristocracy. Previous to the invasions, Celtic graves, for the most part, were mass in nature and contained virtually no evidence of the status of their inhabitants.

Upon the assimilation of the Beaker and Battle-Axe peoples, marked by the beginning of Únêtice culture, heavy axe-heads, flint arrow tips, and indication of class structure became evident in the mass graves. Later on, during the Tumulus period, the Central European tribes began interring their dead under earthen mounds, still en masse, and the practice of burying weapons and ornaments continued. However, it is with the beginning of the Urnfield Culture that we find indications of the first "proto-Celtic" peoples, in that they are thought to have spoken an early version of Celtic, as is suggested by the evidence of place-names. The Urnfield culture distinguished itself by cremating its dead, placing the remains in cinerary urns, and burying these urns without any covering mound. Scholars believe this is due to the development of the culture, as little or no evidence supports outside influence. Why, then, the change? Nora Chadwick refers to the change as "a largely internal modification of ritual thought associated mainly with the disposal of the dead". Evidence supports the fact that the Central European Celt took funerary pains with its dead, however, extrapolation beyond that point is merely that.

The lack of evidence pertaining to actual veneration of the ancestors, in and of themselves, leads the student to believe that the influential body of this cultural development may have originated apart from the Central European Celt. After all, the items found in Central European proto-Celtic graves were not that different than the items found in the graves of corresponding barbarian cultures of the time. However, if we turn our eyes to Ireland, and rewind the archaeological tape back to the Neolithic Era of the late Stone Age, well prior to the invasion of the Celts, we find some interesting signs of actual ritual ancestor veneration.

So, the student looks to monuments such as NewGrange, Knowth, and Dowth as some of the more prominent Neolithic sites in Ireland. Alison Sheridan writes, on page 47 of Irish Archaeology Illustrated:

"If one interprets these (Neolithic) tombs as monuments to the ancestors, one can see from recent ethnographic parallels that the ancestors (and by extension, the elders of a community) could have been treated as a seat of power and authority...A Community could justify its claim to a piece of land, for example, by arguing that its ancestors were buried there."

"Newgrange, Knowth, and Dowth are undoubtedly the product of a (later) highly stratified society, and one can argue that the construction and use of these tombs was a major means of maintaining control over the local populations. In these tombs we see a sophisticated fusion of the concepts of ancestral power, celestial power, and everyday power; and those who were able to manipulate these concepts to their advantage had a formidible tool at their disposal."

Here we have the archaeological community acknowledging the monuments of Stone Age Ireland as possible venues of ancestor worship. After all, the evidence purports it: remains of mass burials therein, ritual art on the walls and carved into the stones of the structures themselves, in some cases there are stone hemmed courtyards to facilitate public gathering and funerary ritual, and the remarkable effect of the Winter Solstice celestial alignment at Newgrange. There are also consistencies in the materials with which the dead are interred; pieces of pottery and personal affects are found throughout the burial cists of the monuments.

There are four classifications of Irish Megalithic burial monuments which need to be considered in the light of ancestor worship: the court tombs, the portal tombs, the passage tombs, and the wedge tombs. The sheer abundance of these sites, especially in Northeasern Ireland, is indicative of some sort of cultural phenomenon on the part of the pre-Celtic inhabitants of the island.

There are some 400 odd court tombs in Ireland today, so called because of the stone-hemmed courtyards outside the entrance to the monument proper. The tomb itself is characterised by an entryway of three huge stones - one on each side of the entry, and a third laid across the top to form the sill - surrounded by stone walls resembling a cairn. Seán Ó Nualláin writes, in Irish Archaeology Illustrated, that these tombs served two functions, "sepulchural and ritual", and notes that the majority of the bodies found within the walls of court tombs have been cremated. Portal tombs are found mostly on lowand siting, and close to major rivers and their tributaries.

There are over 170 portal tombs in Ireland today. Seán Ó Nualláin ventures that, due to the contents of the tombs and their situation, mixed faming economies utilised these monuments as burial places. Portal tombs are very much like court tombs, but without the outside court area. The dead within the walls of portal tombs are both cremated and unburnt.

Passage tombs are some of the most elaborate megalithic structures in all of Ireland. These were sited on hilltops, and there are about 200 of these in Ireland today. Passage tombs are called such due to their passages formed with large slabs of stone that create hallways into different areas of the monument. The most notable of passage tombs is Newgrange, and the majority of bodies found therein have been cremated.

Finally, the wedge tomb is the most prolific of megalithic burial monument in Ireland, with over 460 sites accessable today. They are found mostly in the Northeast of Ireland, north of the line between Antrim and Cork Harbor. The entrances to the majority of wedge tombs face southwest, with a large three slab entrance that forms the thick angle of the wedge. The cairn surrounding the entrance diminishes in height and width as the tomb recedes, with the burial remains at the far end of the tomb, encased in stone cists. Wedge tombs enjoy upland siting, most of the time on dry, well drained soil. The bodies found in Wedge tombs have been both cremated and unburnt.

So here the student finds the first true leanings toward veneration of the ancestors, in the pre-Celtic peoples of Ireland, whose society became inextorably mingled with those Celts when they arrived during the Bronze Age. Interestingly enough, when the invasion occurred and the two societies mixed, a notable change was found in the burial rites of the dead. The indigeonous tendency toward mass graves in tombs and the Central European Celtic tendency towards cremated remains in urns slowly evolved into a new fashion of smaller, more family-sized plots. Most of these "new graves" were found to be lined with stone, and approximately 2 1/2 by 3 feet rectangular. Bodies inside were not cremated, but instead, were buried unburnt in a crouching position with hands over the head - a posture which may have had spiritual significance during life. There erupted the fashion of placing bowls near the heads of the dead, sometimes face up, sometimes upside down. Seán Ó Nualláin postulates that food or mead may have been placed in the bowls to aid the relative along the path of death, or, he suggests, the bowls may have been a temporary "home" for the spirit until it reached the otherworld. There is also evidence of what archaeologists call the Vase people in Ireland, no doubt a holdover from the continental Celtic Urnfield people. The vase people cremated their dead and buried them in vases - sometimes upright, sometimes upside down. And finally, in Scotland and in Northern England there arose the Cordoned and Collared Urn People, who were much like the Vase People, except their urns had particular designs on them.

Nora Chadwick writes on pg 173 of _The Celts_:

Of the purely native Irish gods who are not known outside Ireland, it is natural to think first of the cthonic gods, especially as they occur most often in the heroic sagas. These are most commonly associated with the great pre-historic tombs of the Neolithic period, such as the tumuli of the ancient dead in the valley of the Boyne-and at Newgrange.

So the mix of the Celtic and indigenous peoples in Ireland created a new form of ancestor veneration. The two methods of burial mingled, and with the mingling arose some interesting new rites associated with death. Could the Celts have embraced the extreme veneration of the ancestors held close by the indigenous tribes of Ireland? Could this assimilation explain why the folk customs of the Irish people deeply respect the ancient and recent dead? Lets take a closer look at these customs, some of which are viable even today.

The Historical Evidence

The cultural practices of the historical Celtic peoples is of prime importance to the student wishing to find out more regarding ancestral respect and votive worship. This is true, for much of the sentiment, if not the actual ritual, particular to the rites of the Stone and Bronze Age people of Ireland regarding the subject is found echoed in documented folk practice.

For instance, if one were to look at the very structure of Celtic society beginning in the Iron Age, one would find a definite focus on the cenedl, or extended family. Brehon law states that the cenedl of an offending party is responsible for his or her actions for up to four generations down the line. So, not only was respect for the ancestors inherent, but if an offense was not cleared up via eric fine or honor price statutes before the offending relative passed on to ancestorhood, the extended family was responsible for the reparations all the way down to the great-great grandchildren of the offender. The ancestor and the offense which they committed was still very real and alive in the court of the living. There are other instances in which the viability and accountability of the spirit is echoed down through folktales and practices - even today. Countless folktales still told in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and even Nova Scotia recount how a dead ancestor haunted their living progeny until a certain outstanding debt was paid.

Another aspect of Celtic culture which points toward a definite veneration for the dead are the rituals which surround the death of a relative. Documentation by a great many sociologists show that certain pains are taken with the body itself, cleaning it and preparing it for the grave. In certain rural areas of Ireland particularly, the body is still showcased for public viewing at the home, usually in the parlour. A great wake surrounds the death of a relative, during which people bring food, tobacco, and drink from all over. All participants of the wake are encouraged to eat and drink and smoke as much as they can for the dead man or woman, as each bite, sip, and puff counts toward expediting the soul heavenward. Salt is placed on the windowsills and doorstops of a home that is hosting a wake, to keep evil spirits and the fey folk from spiriting the soul of the departed away.

The funerary procession that follows is usually marked by the Celtic custom of the caoine (pronounced keen). The caoine is a eulogy of sorts, delivered in a characteristicly high, mournful chant, usually by the female relative closest to the departed. Some cases of professional caoine - ing women being hired for funerals have been documented. The caoine can be solitary, or it can be a chorus of women from the community, depending upon the tastes of the locale and the beloved nature of the departed. The hard and fast rule of the caoine is that it contain only lauditory remarks, for death is not a time for the Celtic love of satire. Professional caoine - ing women have lost their respect and their titles in the community due to tactless performances during the funerals of less than beloved villagers.

Though many of the graveside rites have been rolled over into those established by the Christian church, we see the layman customs of ancestor veneration preserved through not only what happens before interrment, but also what transpires after. Once the body of a relative is in the grave, that relative becomes an ancestor, and subject to the rites and customs associated with ancestors in the Celtic paradigm. The power of the ancestor may manifest itself through "hauntings", on which a particularly favorite genre of Celtic folktale is based. Or the ancestor may only make appearances when it is invited back to the hearth it enjoyed while living during Samhain Eve (Oct. 31st, Nov. 1st), or in the case of more Christianized Celtic folk, on Nov. 2, All Saint's Day. Others, according to Y.B. Yeats in Fairy and Folktales of Ireland, pg. 117:

"The souls of the dead sometimes take the shape of animals. There is a garden at Sligo where the gardener sees a previous owner in the shape of a rabbit. They will sometimes take the shapes of insects, as well, especially butterflies."

One of the classical references that points toward All Saint's day being an attempt toward the Christianisation of Samhain is the case of The Feast Of The Dead, a supernatural occurance cataloged in ancient texts transcribed by monks in which the respected departed of a king's court gather at his feast hall on Samhain. However, we see by some folk practices that the conversion only worked to an extent. Kevin Danaher, in The Year In Ireland, states that a widespread Irish belief is:

"It is not uncommon on Samhain night to see the returned dead of the family seated around the kitchen hearth."

But such happenings were not considered frightening in any way. Danaher remembers as a child asking an elderly storyteller why the old man was unafraid to visit a local haunted house. The storyteller replied:

"What would I be in dread of, and the souls of my own dead thick as bees around me?"

Though many of the traditional Samhain customs regarding the ancestors have indeed been rolled over to Nov. 2nd, All Saint's Day, the customs have been found to criss-cross to and from both holidays. In regards to All Saint's Eve, some families light one candle for each departed household member, and place these candles in the windows so that the spirits might find their way home in the dark. Household lights are extinguished at dusk, so as not to confuse the travelling spirits. One Rose Shaw, of County Tyrone, is documented in Carelton's Country, pg 26, as saying:

"All Soul's Eve is sacred to the memory of the departed. After the floor has been swept and a good fire put down on the hearth, the family retires early, leaving the door unlatched and a bowl of springwater on the table so that any relative who had died may find a place prepared for him at his own fireside."

Others, on the other hand, find the thought somewhat frightening. Patrick Kennedy recalls, in Evenings in the Duffey, a memory of a county Wexford woman, about 1820:

"'Glory be to God', said one of the old women,'wouldn't it be an awful thing if the souls of all the people that ever lived in this house were now sitting on the shelves of the dresser, and the bars of the bacon rack, and everywhere they could find a seat, and looking at what we we're doing? Some people do be saying that happens on every All Saint's Eve!'"

In all, Danaher sums it up quite nicely, without any frills:

"The widespread belief is that dead members of the family returned to visit their old home on this night, and that care should be taken to show that their visit is welcome."

The day is reserved for visits to graveyards to tidy the graves and to pray for the souls of the departed. Some light candles at the graves and leave them burning, others extinguish the flames before leaving.

In conclusion, it is safe to say that ancestor veneration is still a very important factor not only to those seeking a Gaelic Restorationist path, but also to the Celtic communities that still participate in the sentiments associated with more formal ritual of the distant past. The above documentation is to help light a fire of understanding, and to, perhaps, provide the kindling it takes to keep these unique customs alive and thriving today.

Sources:

Folktales of Ireland, compiled by Sean O' Sullivan, University of Chicago Press, 1968

The Year In Ireland, compiled by Kevin Danaher, Mercier Press through Irish Books and Media, 1972
The Celts, by Nora Chadwick, Penguin Books, reprinted 1991

Fairy and Folktales of Ireland, compiled by Y.B. Yeats, Collier Books, 1983 reprint copyright Benedict Kiely

Irish Archaeology Illustrated, edited by Michael Ryan, Country House Dublin, 1994

prepared by Sítheag Nic Trantham bean Bochanan

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