The Celtic Heroic Age (None) [Paperback]

John T Koch (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2003 | ISBN-10: 1891271091 | ISBN-13: 978-1891271090 | Edition: 4

A new edition of an invaluable collection of literary sources, all in translation, for Celtic Europe and early Ireland and Wales. The selections are divided into three sections: the first is classical authors on the ancient celts-a huge selection including both the well-known-Herodotos, Plato, Aristotle, Livy, Diogenes Laertius, and Cicero-and the obscure-Pseudo-Scymnus, Lampridius, Vopsicus, Clement of Alexandria and Ptolemy I. The second is early Irish and Hiberno-Latin sources including early Irish dynastic poetry and numerous tales from the Ulster cycle and the third consists of Brittonic sources, mostly Welsh.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

John Koch is Senior Fellow at the University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies, and Project Leader of The Celtic Languages and Cultural Identity Project.

Product Details

• Paperback: 488 pages
• Publisher: Celtic Studies Publications; 4 edition (August 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1891271091
• ISBN-13: 978-1891271090
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 6.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #857,293 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good literal translations, many source texts in one central place, December 25, 2005

By 

Raven (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Celtic Heroic Age (None) (Paperback)

"The Celtic Heroic Age" is billed as an introductory text for Celtic studies, but I would be nervous about that without more of an understanding of the world in which it's set. It's a series of translations of Celtic texts and references to them in Classical lore. In almost all cases, it's just English, though some of the shrine inscriptions have the original tongues side by side. The translations are very prosaic, as far as I can tell. They convey the information just fine, but for poetic resonance, Kinsella eats them for breakfast. The focus here seems to be on rendering the text as literally as possible, not in telling a good story. That's fine by me -- the book is intended as a reference, and it's often extremely useful to have a minimally interpreted version.

Reading the Classical sources, it helps *immensely* to have an understanding of the biases and agendas of the Classical world, and to have read some of the archaeological references. It helps you separate historical fact from Roman propaganda. The text does not do this for you; it's your job to figure out that Caesar was trying to conquer Gaul, and that these missives were his newsletters to home. There's no background on what the Greeks thought of barbaroi in general, or what qualities they esteemed before they condemned people in entirely unflattering terms. Knowing these things will help set the texts in perspective.

I enjoyed rereading new (to me) translations of many familiar stories. I still have a hard time wading through all the repetitive descriptions of each warrior's clothes, chariot, leg hair, etc., but it's at least less dull now that I catch some of the allusions and intended associations/meanings each time through. I would recommend this book as a reference to Celtic geeks -- it is damn handy to have so many source texts in one place. It's predominantly Irish texts, so it's most useful to insular Celtic folks, but there are Welsh texts and a scattering of Continental inscriptions and references in there too.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Reference Misses the Mark in Some Cases, April 18, 2009

By 

Jason R. Sprick (Denver, CO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Celtic Heroic Age (None) (Paperback)

The Celtic Heroic Age combines together writings from Classical authors, Irish monks, and Brittonic storytellers in a fine collection of important mythological and heroic reference material. Koch and Carey use several good translations of the texts, including some of their own, to weave together a story as it may have been told in an earlier era. However, I was a bit disappointed that some of the primary sources of the mythological cycle, such as Cath Maige Tuired, were absent. Even missing some crucial mythological information, this is the best resource I have found so far for Celtic mythology and culture, brought together in readable language for modern audiences.