Definition of Brythonic

[Blackbird]

It has come to my attention that there are lots of people out there who haven't got a clue what Brythonic means. I find that when I'm asked, it can be quite complicated to explain all the ideas that the word encompasses for me, and to convey that in a simple and concise fashion.

Here is something that I wrote in response to that question on an email list recently:

What are Brythonic traditions? It encompasses many things. Firstly, the word is used to describe the earliest surviving written language of Britain. So 'Brythonic' can refer to those early British peoples and their language, and to the Bardic poetry which came out of that - though most of the old poems survive in later language forms, such as Early and Middle Welsh, and dating is a nightmare.

Secondly, and more broadly, I use the word to describe the early British peoples and also the things that have been influenced by that culture. So I would call writers like Iolo Morgannwg Brythonic. I would call the poetry of Dafydd ap Gwilim Brythonic... I would include the lore of various places around Britain, the megaliths, the legends of Arthur. Folksongs composed in the Cornish or Welsh languages. Some of modern Druidry, and all of the ancient

See, these days, we think of Wales and Cornwall as 'Brythonic' as they have retained the language. But the Brythonic languages were spoken throughout Britain, right up into Scotland. And there is much lore surviving, if you know how to look for it :-)


What do you all think about that definition? Does that about cover it? Can you suggest anything that I have left out, or a better way of phrasing what is already there?

I am thinking of including a definition like this in the home page of the site, and all suggestions and contributions are welcome.

[Brochfael]

My definition of Brythonic (in this context) would be "of concerning or relating to language, culture, religion tradition and population in the British Isles (excluding Ireland and the channel Islands from the late Bronze age until the Roman conquest and some aspects through to about AD 600 ish

It's not great but it does tend to emphasise that in my studies I want to concentrate on British material using Irish and Gallic material only as a secondary resource

[siaron]

I would concur with Brochfael's definition. That is almost exactly how I would have described Brythonic.

[Blackbird]

I like your definition. However, would you agree that 'relating to or influenced by' would be an alternative for the initial phrase?

Though I'm not arguing for 'survivals', there are themes which continue to inspire later writings and ideas, even into modern times, which could be said to be wholly 'Brythonic'.

I'm thinking of the continued popularity of the Arthurian tales. Of books like Alan Garner's 'Owl Service'. Modern Eisteddfodau etc., all of which are directly inspired by older themes. In addition, if we don't acknowledge that this earlier period continued to inform later times, then we can't even include the later Mabinogion tales

[siaron]

Good points Blackbird.

[Blackbird]

OK, I'd forgotten about this - but I shall get started on it over the next few days. The APT (Association of Polytheist Traditions) is looking for short pieces on various trads for information leaflets, so it would be a good idea to combine the two.

So this is our chance to actually get some good information out into the public domain. With that in mind, I'll post a draft up for comment asap.

[Blackbird]

So - what do you think? Bear in mind that this is going to be the information leaflet for the APT, so this is your chance to make alterations/additions before the general public gets their hands on it...

The Brythonic Tradition

Mention of the phrase ‘Brythonic Tradition’ induces a glassy-eyed incomprehension among many members of modern society. So what exactly does it mean? And what do we do?

Brythonic basically means British. It is the name given to the language spoken by the Romano-British, the ancestor of modern Cymraeg (Welsh language).It is related to words describing the early inhabitants of Britain and the island itself – i.e. Prettanic, Prydein, Pretani.

The first person to record this name was Pytheas, writing somewhere around 325BCE . He was a merchant and explorer, who recorded the name of the British Isles as ‘Prettanike’, amended by Diodorus Siculus to the more familiar ‘Pretannia’, which most other Classical writers followed.

These days, the general public associate ‘Brythonic’ (or perhaps ‘Celtic’) with Wales and Cornwall. But the Brythonic languages were spoken throughout Britain, right up into Scotland, and elements do survive in areas outside of the obvious places. For example, here in North Nottinghamshire and up into Derbyshire, there is a cluster of surviving Brythonic place names such as the towns Mansfield and Carburton and the river Derwent .

In a nutshell, we are talking about traditions that relate to the language and culture of the inhabitants of Britain from prehistory through to around 600CE. The traditions also encompass later expressions of that lore, such as the medieval bardic material, the Matter of Britain, the poetry of Dafydd ap Gwilim and even the writings of Iolo Morgannwg. It encompasses some of modern druidry and all of the ancient.

The next statement offered is usually along the lines of ‘So you are druids, then’. To which the answer is both yes and no. Not everyone in ancient Britain was a druid, and the same applies to those who are now working within the Brythonic traditions.
Some of us are called in that direction. Others are smiths, bards, harpers, jewellers – and some do not practice any art, but are drawn to the gods and the stories of the land.

Another difference between the Brythonic traditions and other revivalist and traditionalist ‘Celtic’ groups is the emphasis, which as set out above, is focussed directly upon the British lore, rather than upon the Irish or Scottish.

There is no fixed set of beliefs within the Brythonic traditions, and various practitioners approach the material in different ways. Some take their inspiration from archaeological finds, while others enjoy the word-craft of linguistics and poetry. Some are bound strongly to the gods and the land where they live, while others work in a more abstracted way.

We also approach the lore in various ways. Some would consider themselves to be traditionalists, perhaps working within living traditions in areas or as part of families in which Brythonic languages are spoken. Others may see themselves as revivalists or reconstructionists, while others work unconditionally with the lore as it has come down through modern forms of druidry. However we choose to work within it, the Brythonic tradition is as alive as it ever was, informing our present just as it did our past.

[branynos]

I'd suggest adding something about British folklore as a source along with the archaelogical and the poetry, or within the paragraph about 'language and culture'. It's sort of implied but might do with being more explicit.