Also known as Emerald Island due to the light green color of its planes, this place once housed exuberant forests (unfortunately, today it’s one of the most deforested areas in Europe). Those woods were the home of the Tuatha Dé Danann, group responsible for the organization of the first peoples of Ireland – Éire, in Irish. The word that names the country derives from Ériu, one of the three sisters part of the powerful triumvirate of goddesses that, according to Celtic mythology helped the Gaelic people (also called Gaels) to conquer the island. All those who spoke the Gaelic and Celtic languages were considered Gaels. Despite the strong oral tradition, the Gaels had the Ogam alphabet, originally restricted to the druids And so, the inscriptions of the “Tree Celtic alphabet” started to appear around the 1st century.
The Christianization of Ireland changed a lot of aspects of the country’s primitive peoples, but also contributed for the remaining of its mythology and laws through the introduction of writing, making the Irish Gaelic the oldest language in Western Europe with a vernacular literature.
Exactly one year ago, the project Celtic Book was in Glendalough, Ireland, to celebrate the LITHA – 6th festival of the Celtic Year Wheel, which takes place during the summer solstice.
At the feet of the Wicklowna Mountains, it was possible to feel the magic of the land where the Celtic legends survives due to a linguistic system that originally wasn’t part of its culture. But when it was implemented, it became a great ally for the preservation of its history.
The Celtic Book
1 year of documentation and research in 8 European countries.
Created by: @dommagalhaes
Directed by @brunogarci