Why did the Celts have so many gods of poetry?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Fervor
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I actually only know one goddess of poetry of the Celts...Brigid (also know as Brie, Bride, Brigit, Brigante) She is considered the Irish goddess of Inspired Poetry, Healing and the patroness of Goldsmiths. Taliesin is considered a major bard, but not a true god, the same is true of Amergin the Druid. "Celts" is an umbrella term, are you speaking of the Irish Celts only? Or all the peoples that can trace ancestry to the Celts? If you are doing that, then, of course there are many gods as these are all separate tribes and nations.
The Irish are a nation of poets, it's true. It is part of the Celtic nature and make up. I know, I have Celt blood within me myself.
 
I can't comment about any other Celtic groups, but the Irish have always had a strong poetic tradition that lasted from pagan right through Christian times. The bards were the storytellers and history keepers and were greatly honored. The medieval Irish sagas contain many sections that are told in verse. Warriors were often poets as well. Since their tradition was almost entirely oral (the stories were recorded after the coming of Christianity) the power and beauty of words was important to them. I am guessing here, but it was also probably easier to memorize all that history and all those stories as poems rather than prose.
 
The Celts were not really a war like people, so it's not surprising about the number of artistic gods that they had.
 
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