Galahad/Galehaut
Calliope
While they're spelled very differently, they sound very similar (to my
ear; I freely admit I may be mispronouncing one or the other. Or both!).
Can anyone tell me if they are variations on the same name or two
completely different names? Thanks!
Calliope
(pam...@yahoo.com)
hrj...@socrates.berkeley.edu
: I am interested in the origins of the two names Galahad and Galehaut.
Both Flutre's index to names in French romances, and Ackerman's index to
names in Middle English Arthurian texts treat the two names and characters
as distinct.
--
*********************************************************
Heather Rose Jones hrj...@socrates.berkeley.edu
**********************************************************
Czaerana
>: While they're spelled very differently, they sound very similar (to my
>: ear; I freely admit I may be mispronouncing one or the other. Or both!).
>: Can anyone tell me if they are variations on the same name or two
>: completely different names? Thanks!
>
>Both Flutre's index to names in French romances, and Ackerman's index to
>names in Middle English Arthurian texts treat the two names and characters
>as distinct.
>
>
In the Vulgate "Galahault the Haut Prince" is a close friend of Lancelot. Also,
Lancelot's baptismal name was "Galahad"!
Cynthia
Calliope
> Both Flutre's index to names in French romances, and Ackerman's index to
> names in Middle English Arthurian texts treat the two names and characters
> as distinct.
Did it give any origins for the names? I know that one of the elements
in Galehaut's name ("Haut") means "high" in French, but I don't know if
Galahad's name has a similar element. The characters are indeed distinct
from each other. Galehaut is the song of the Giantess (whoever she is!)
and a prince in his own right. Galahad is the illegitimate son of
Lancelot and baptized with his father's own Christian name. But the
names do seem similar, and I wondered if perhaps they were related.
Did Galehaut show up in any other texts besides the Vulgate? That's
another question I've been wanting to ask. He seems an interesting
character, and I'd be interested in reading more about him.
Thanks for your help!
Calliope
hrj...@socrates.berkeley.edu
: hrj...@socrates.berkeley.edu wrote:
: > Both Flutre's index to names in French romances, and Ackerman's index to
: > names in Middle English Arthurian texts treat the two names and characters
: > as distinct.
: Did it give any origins for the names? I know that one of the elements
: in Galehaut's name ("Haut") means "high" in French, but I don't know if
: Galahad's name has a similar element. The characters are indeed distinct
Neither book delves much into possible origins -- they're both pretty much
strictly indexes. French etymology isn't something I'm very comfortable
doing, but the various spellings that Galehaut appears in somewhat
undermine the hypothesis that the ending was perceived as being the common
word "haut". (That is, if people thought of the name as containing the
element "haut" then it's hard to understand why the name would mutate
into forms that don't contain this word.) There are a _lot_ of Arthurian
names begining (roughly) in "Gal-". One possible origin is the Frankish
prototheme "Gala-", and some of the literary names can clearly be
identified with ordinary names containing this element. Others _may_ be
adaptations of Breton or Welsh names beginning with "Gual-/Gwal-". It's
hard to tell in any particular case unless the literary name has clear
origins in the regular name pool.
: from each other. Galehaut is the song of the Giantess (whoever she is!)
: and a prince in his own right. Galahad is the illegitimate son of
: Lancelot and baptized with his father's own Christian name. But the
: names do seem similar, and I wondered if perhaps they were related.
: Did Galehaut show up in any other texts besides the Vulgate? That's
: another question I've been wanting to ask. He seems an interesting
: character, and I'd be interested in reading more about him.
Flutre lists the following occurrances:
as: Galehault
- Giron 213a
- Percef. V, II
- Trist. Sala
as: Galehaut
- Merl. S
- Percef. IV 20
- Proph. M.
as: Galehaz
- Merl. S. 222, 7
as: Galehot
- Meliadus (apparently a different character)
- Nouv. (apparently a different character)
under the heading "Galehot" (son of Brunor and 'la Jaiande', prince of
Sorelois and the 'Lointain Isles', friend of Lancelot)
as: Galehous, Galeohoth, Galeoth, Galleost
- Artur
- Floriant 4767
as: Gaalehot, Galaath, Galahaut, Galahot, Galahout, Galehaud, Galehault,
Galehaut, Galehaz, Galeheud, Galeholt, Galehors, Galeoth, Galhaut, Galios,
Galohault, Galoholt
- Lanc. pr.
- Meliador
- Mort A.
- Percef. IV, 20
- Trist pr.
as: Galehault, Galeholt, Galehost
- Giron 5 b (et al.)
as: Galeholt, Galehout, Galaoz, Galeoz
- Proph. M.
- Merl. S.
- Trist pr.
as: Gaheloth, Galeholt, Galehors, Galhot
- Proph. M.
abbreviations:
Lanc pr = "Le livre de lancelot del Lac" in the Vulgate
Merl S = "L'Estoire de Merlin" from the Vulgate
Mort A = "La Mort le roi Artu" in the Vulgate
Nouv = "Nouvelles francaises inedites du XVe siecle"
Proph M = "Les Prophecies de Merlin" by Maitre Richard d'Irlande
Percef = (long title I decline to type in -- a 16th c. edition)
Trist pr = "Le roman en prose de Tristan"
Trist Sala = "Tristan" by Pierre Sala, 16th c.
Of the unabbreviated citations, only "Artur" is from the Vulgate, although
the others appear to be from later dates.
Of the Middle English sources, the name appears in:
Malory: Galahalt, Galadah, Galahaut, Galahault, Galahaud
Arthur and Merlin, Merlin: Galaous, Galeus, Galahos, Galaost, Galehaut
Lancelot of the Laik: Gallot, Gallyot, Galot
Cbaldry
Galahad could come from Welsh, or the place name Gilead. He doesn't give an
origin for Galehaut.
Best regards,
Cherith
Peter Ewing
Calliope <pam...@yahoo.com> wrote in message news:3723CD...@yahoo.com...
> I am interested in the origins of the two names Galahad and Galehaut.
> While they're spelled very differently, they sound very similar (to my
> ear; I freely admit I may be mispronouncing one or the other. Or both!).
> Can anyone tell me if they are variations on the same name or two
> completely different names? Thanks!
>
> (pam...@yahoo.com)
I don't know of any suggested origins for the name 'Galehaut'. (By the way,
I seem to remember that Dante damns him for his complicity in Lancelot and
Guinevere's adultery. Is this true?)
I have seen two suggestions for origins of the name 'Galahad', from the
Biblical 'Gilead' or the Welsh 'Gwalchafed' (Hawk of Summer). I don't think
there's much evidence for either claim.
But all this led me on to thinking about the Vulgate, and the Lancelot in
particular. Neither Galehaut nor Galahad seem to have much of a profile
outside the Vulgate. (Though I notice that Heather has provided a complete
index in another posting - I assume the other romances are post-Vulgate.) It
has been widely assumed in the past that the character of Galahad was
introduced from nowhere by the Christianising Cistercians who are supposed
to have written the Queste del Saint Graal; hence the theory about Gilead.
But I'm not sure this quite stacks up with the story. Why then is he born
from an unsanctified union. (Very much so, as it involves deception.) And
from where did the really peculiar aspects of the story come? There is the
Siege Perilous, the floating stone bearing Galahad's sword, the death of
Perceval's sister and the Sword with the Strange Hangings (what a name!).
And there is the curious fact that Lancelot's original name was Galahad
which is also alluded to elsewhere in this thread. This strikes me as very
unlikely to have been inserted by the author of the Vulgate as it serves no
obvious purpose.
What I am hypothesising is that the Vulgate springs from an older tradition
which is actually more or less separate to the principal romance tradition.
I think we are blinded to the strangeness of the Vulgate story because,
through Malory, it is so familiar to us. But it really seems to be very
different to the majority of the medieval material to me. Lancelot rather
than Gawain as top knight; Galahad rather than Perceval as Grail Knight and
whole strands of myth apparently unknown to Chretien and the majority of
other romancers.
Any views?
Peter
Calliope
> Neither book delves much into possible origins -- they're both pretty much
> strictly indexes. French etymology isn't something I'm very comfortable
> doing, but the various spellings that Galehaut appears in somewhat
> undermine the hypothesis that the ending was perceived as being the common
> word "haut". (That is, if people thought of the name as containing the
> element "haut" then it's hard to understand why the name would mutate
> into forms that don't contain this word.) There are a _lot_ of Arthurian
> names begining (roughly) in "Gal-". One possible origin is the Frankish
> prototheme "Gala-", and some of the literary names can clearly be
> identified with ordinary names containing this element. Others _may_ be
> adaptations of Breton or Welsh names beginning with "Gual-/Gwal-". It's
> hard to tell in any particular case unless the literary name has clear
> origins in the regular name pool.
Thanks! That was interesting!
>
> : Did Galehaut show up in any other texts besides the Vulgate? That's
> : another question I've been wanting to ask. He seems an interesting
> : character, and I'd be interested in reading more about him.
>
> Flutre lists the following occurrances:
And thanks for the list of sources, too! I didn't realize that Galehaut
turned up in so many different places!
Calliope
(pam...@yahoo.com)
Calliope
>
> According to Ronan Coughlan's Encyclopaedia of Arthurian Legend, the name
> Galahad could come from Welsh, or the place name Gilead. He doesn't give an
> origin for Galehaut.
Thanks! I've gotten some great replies to this question. Thanks to all
of you!
Calliope
(pam...@yahoo.com)
Calliope
> I don't know of any suggested origins for the name 'Galehaut'. (By the way,
> I seem to remember that Dante damns him for his complicity in Lancelot and
> Guinevere's adultery. Is this true?)
It's true that in the Vulgate cycle, Galehaut does indeed help Lancelot
and Guinevere get together. It's been so long since I've read Dante, I
really don't remember if he's in there or not...
> I have seen two suggestions for origins of the name 'Galahad', from the
> Biblical 'Gilead' or the Welsh 'Gwalchafed' (Hawk of Summer). I don't think
> there's much evidence for either claim.
Thanks! That's very interesting!
> What I am hypothesising is that the Vulgate springs from an older tradition
> which is actually more or less separate to the principal romance tradition.
> I think we are blinded to the strangeness of the Vulgate story because,
> through Malory, it is so familiar to us. But it really seems to be very
> different to the majority of the medieval material to me. Lancelot rather
> than Gawain as top knight; Galahad rather than Perceval as Grail Knight and
> whole strands of myth apparently unknown to Chretien and the majority of
> other romancers.
>
> Any views?
Hmmm... that's interesting. I do know that some episodes come almost
directly from Chretien. The one that springs instantly to mind is the
abduction of Guinevere by Meleagant, which is lifted from The Knight of
the Cart. Many of the other episodes in the Vulgate are familiar to me
as I read it, because I read them first in Malory... which of course
came much later than the Vulgate. I'm really not sure what the sources
for the Vulgate were... Anyone else?
Calliope
(pam...@yahoo.com)
Cbaldry
>I don't know of any suggested origins for the name 'Galehaut'. (By the way,
>I seem to remember that Dante damns him for his complicity in Lancelot and
>Guinevere's adultery. Is this true?)
Yes, it is. In the Prose Lancelot and works derived from it, Galehaut furthers
the relationship because of his love for Lancelot (!) because he cannot bear to
see Lancelot so unhappy. He subsequently dies of grief because he believes
Lancelot to be dead.
>What I am hypothesising is that the Vulgate springs from an older tradition
>which is actually more or less separate to the principal romance tradition.
I'm not enough of an expert on Grail romances to comment in detail here, though
it's possible to trace a gradual degeneration in Gawain through French romance,
while in Britain he tended to keep his heroic stature (e.g. in Sir Gawain and
the Green Knight, rather than Malory, who derived a lot of his material from
the French). I also believe on the grounds of internal evidence that the
Vulgate writer had another source as well as Chretien for the Chevalier de la
Charette story.
Best regards,
Cherith
Todd Jensen
>
> Peter writes:
>
> >I don't know of any suggested origins for the name 'Galehaut'. (By the way,
> >I seem to remember that Dante damns him for his complicity in Lancelot and
> >Guinevere's adultery. Is this true?)
Well, not quite. The mention of Galehaut is in the famous Francesca
da Rimini scene in the Inferno, but the man himself is not outright
condemned. Rather, Francesca blames the story of Lancelot and
Guinevere for bringing her and Paolo together to commit adultery,
saying that it was their "Galeotto".
Dante also places Tristram among the adulterous lovers in the second
circle of Hell alongside Francesca and Paolo, and indicates that
Mordred is in Caina, that section of the lowest circle of Hell where
those who betrayed their family are punished, but that's as far as he
goes with the fates of the Arthurian cast. (Actually, the bulk of the
people whom he meets in the Commedia are relatively obscure - to us -
medieval Italians, rather than well-known figures of the ancient and
medieval world).
Todd Jensen
Peter Ewing
Todd Jensen <mer...@ninenet.com> wrote in message
news:3726F2...@ninenet.com...
Thanks - it's Paolo and Francesca I'm thinking of, I'm sure. I imagine that
at the time the damned would have been very well known, giving the Inferno a
somewhat satirical edge. (This is getting way off topic!)
Peter
John W Kennedy
> I'm really not sure what the sources
> for the Vulgate were... Anyone else?
>
As far as I know, while there were bits and pieces (Chretien and the
Graal continuators and Geoffery, mainly) that went into the Vulgate's
stewpot, it is essentially an original work, in the way that most
20th-century Arthuriana are.
--
-John W. Kennedy
-rri...@ibm.net
Compact is becoming contract
Man only earns and pays. -- Charles Williams
John W Kennedy
> Thanks - it's Paolo and Francesca I'm thinking of, I'm sure. I imagine that
> at the time the damned would have been very well known, giving the Inferno a
> somewhat satirical edge. (This is getting way off topic!)
Not satirical, really. Remember, the Inferno is only the first third of
an integrated work of art. Dante was, in fact, equal to putting a dear
friend into Hell, if he thought (regretfully) that he belonged there.
(As Sayers said, thinking you know the Comedy because you're read the
Inferno is like thinking you know Paris because you've seen the sewers.)
bbservices
two different characters. Galehaut can be defined as follows:-
Also known as the High Prince, he ruled the District Isles and a place
called Surluse. His Mother was a well known giantess (as mentioned in a
previous message) called Bagota and his father was Brunor. He became a
knight of the Round Table through is friendship with Lancelot
Regards T
John W Kennedy wrote in message <37288BA7...@ibm.net>...
Peter Ewing
meant to be? Or, for that matter, all the other Arthurian countries? Does
anyone have any opinions?
bbservices <ta...@bbservices.demon.co.uk> wrote in message
news:925412475.10377.0...@news.demon.co.uk...
Todd Jensen
>
> And this opens up another area I find interesting. Where might Surluse be
> meant to be? Or, for that matter, all the other Arthurian countries? Does
> anyone have any opinions?
Nobody's quite sure where Surluse is (or most of the other Arthurian
locations in the romances); Malory does make an effort to locate a few
of them (Camelot at Winchester, Astolat at Guildford), but the bulk of
them are left unexplained. A few attempts have been made: Phyllis Ann
Karr's "King Arthur Companion" does make some efforts to put locations
on the map for the various places in Malory, although not all of her
ideas work (she tries identifying Sarras with the Isle of Man, for
example, although the context in Malory indicates that Sarras is
supposed to be in the Middle East, far from Britain). The Chaosium
role-playing game "King Arthur Pendragon" makes similar efforts.
An alternate attitude was taken by a relatively little-known Arthurian
retelling that I once read, by Anthony Mockler, which interpreted
Arthur's kingdom as not Britain at all, but a presumably fictional
"fantasy kingdom" which simply happened to have some of the same
place-names that the British Isles do, but with the possibility that
the Cornwall, Ireland, Orkney etc. of Arthurian romance are not
supposed to be the geographical locations of that name.
Todd Jensen
Cbaldry
>An alternate attitude was taken by a relatively little-known Arthurian
>retelling that I once read, by Anthony Mockler, which interpreted
>Arthur's kingdom as not Britain at all, but a presumably fictional
>"fantasy kingdom" which simply happened to have some of the same
>place-names that the British Isles do, but with the possibility that
>the Cornwall, Ireland, Orkney etc. of Arthurian romance are not
>supposed to be the geographical locations of that name.
This would fit in with what Professor Gwyn Williams said, in calling Camelot a
'Never-Never land', or the delicious quotation from Thomas Berger's 'Arthur
Rex': 'In that time, when the laws of Geography were lenient...'
Best regards,
Cherith
Czaerana
>a
>'Never-Never land', or the delicious quotation from Thomas Berger's 'Arthur
>Rex': 'In that time, when the laws of Geography were lenient...'
Another Berger quote I like is "King Arthur, who was never historical, but
everything he did was true." The man has a way with words, no?
Cynthia