Banshee 650

[Mariela Laflam]

Abanshee (/ˈbnʃiː/ BAN-shee; Modern Irish bean s, from Old Irish: ben sde [bʲen ˈʃiːʲe], "woman of the fairy mound" or "fairy woman") is a female spirit in Irish folklore who heralds the death of a family member,[1] usually by screaming, wailing, shrieking, or keening. Her name is connected to the mythologically important tumuli or "mounds" that dot the Irish countryside, which are known as sde (singular sd) in Old Irish.[2]

Sometimes she has long streaming hair, which she may be seen combing, with some legends specifying she can only keen while combing her hair. She wears a grey cloak over a green dress, and her eyes are red from continual weeping.[3] She may be dressed in white with red hair and a ghastly complexion, according to a firsthand account by Ann, Lady Fanshawe in her Memoirs.[4] Lady Wilde in her books provides others:

The size of the banshee is another physical feature that differs between regional accounts. Though some accounts of her standing unnaturally tall are recorded, the majority of tales that describe her height state the banshee's stature as short, anywhere between one foot and four feet. Her exceptional shortness often goes alongside the description of her as an old woman, though it may also be intended to emphasize her state as a fairy creature.[5]

Sometimes the banshee assumes the form of some sweet-singing virgin of the family who died young, and has been given the mission by the invisible powers to become the harbinger of coming doom to her mortal kindred. Or she may be seen at night as a shrouded woman, crouched beneath the trees, lamenting with a veiled face; or flying past in the moonlight, crying bitterly: and the cry of this spirit is mournful beyond all other sounds on earth, and betokens certain death to some member of the family whenever it is heard in the silence of the night.[6]

"hence bean-sghe, plural mn-sghe, she-fairies or women-fairies, credulously supposed by the common people to be so affected to certain families that they are heard to sing mournful lamentations about their houses by night, whenever any of the family labours under a sickness which is to end by death, but no families which are not of an ancient & noble Stock, are believed to be honoured with this fairy privilege".[7]

Irish legend speaks of a lament being sung by a fairy woman, or banshee. She would sing it when a family member died or was about to die, even if the person had died far away and news of their death had not yet come. In those cases, her wailing would be the first warning the household had of the death.[8][9] The banshee is also a predictor of death. If someone is about to enter a situation where it is unlikely they will come out alive she will warn people by screaming or wailing, giving rise to a banshee also being known as a wailing woman. The banshee was also associated with the death coach, being said to either summon it with her keening or to travel in tandem with it.[10]

When several banshees appear at once, it indicates the death of someone great or holy.[11] The tales sometimes recounted that the woman, though called a fairy, was a ghost, often of a specific murdered woman, or a mother who died in childbirth.[3]

In some parts of Leinster, she is referred to as the bean chaointe (keening woman) whose wail can be so piercing that it shatters glass. In Scottish folklore, a similar creature is known as the bean nighe or ban nigheachain (little washerwoman) or nigheag na h-th (little washer at the ford) and is seen washing the bloodstained clothes or armour of those who are about to die. In Welsh folklore, a similar creature is known as the cyhyraeth.[12]

Accounts reach as far back as 1380 to the publication of the Cathreim Thoirdhealbhaigh (Triumphs of Torlough) by Sean mac Craith.[13] Mentions of banshees can also be found in Norman literature of that time.[13]

Did Halloween originate in ireland? The banshee is a female spirit and is considered to be an omen of death. The banshee roams the countryside and can be heard wailing when she predicts a death. The word banshee comes from the Irish bean s (pronounced ban-shee) which translates as woman of the fairy mounds. She can appear in a number of guises, as a young beautiful woman, a stately matron or as an ugly frightening hag. She is usually dressed in a grey or white hooded cloak. While not always seen, her mourning cries can be heard usually at night when someone is about to die. Those who claim to have seen her describe long hair which she runs a comb through, similar to tearing the hair out in anguish.

It is believed by many that she only appears to select number of families, namely the main Irish families the O' Neills, O' Connors, O' Briens,O' Gradys and Kavanaghs although this list varies depending on who is telling the story! Coincidentally, I heard of an O' Connor who had a brush with the banshee. He was cycling between Ballylongford and Tarbert in Co.Kerry when he heard the cries of the banshee by the ruins of Lislaughtin Abbey. I created a custom silver pendant of the Lislaughtin Abbey Window you can see that reminded me of the story. While the banshee will not harm the person she encounters there is another Irish female spirit who isn't nearly as benign! The Lianhan Sdhe (pronounced lan-hawn shee) is a beautiful woman who attracts men but this love will lead to their downfall. W.B. Yeats described her in his book Fairy and Folklore of the Irish Peasantry

Mythology is a complex and fascinating part of Irish culture that has always been of interest to us. Some of the fairy stories and legends are so complicated they're practically a historical dynasty! There are leprechauns, pcas and fairies that make up countless children's stories as well as a host of more sinister creatures. In every part of the country there are different variations, omens and tales (some more believable than others) about each creature, particularly ways to keep them away or cause them to do harm to others (known as piseogs). Certain fairies were associated with certain powerful families throughout the country and their appearances have made their way into Gaelic folklore.

The Banshee is one of the more intimidating fairies. She is a fairy woman who appears at the site of an imminent death in the middle of the night and lets out a chilling, high pitched wail. As with all mythological stories and figures, she also appears in Scottish, Welsh, Norse and even American folklore in many different forms and doing many different death related things. Occasionally she is also known as the 'Bean Chaointe', or 'crying woman'.

The Banshee comes in three possible guises depending on who you talk to or where the stories come from. More often that not she is a crouching hag with a horrible wrinkly face, although in other stories she is a beautiful, ethereal young woman or a stately matron type. In yet more stories she is referred to as the ghost of a murdered woman or a woman who died in childbirth. The three typical guises of the Banshee may respresent the three aspects of the Celtic goddess of war and death; Badhbh, Macha and Mor-Rioghain.

In almost all cases, the Banshee has long silver hair that she is sometimes seen brushing with a comb. For this reason, some people would never pick up a comb lying on the ground for fear of being taken away by fairies. She wears a grey hooded cloak or the white sheet or grave robe of the dead, and her eyes are red from crying. Many believe that she can in fact take on any of the above forms and change from one to the other as she pleases.

Her cry seems to be the subject of much debate; in Leinster, it is said to be so shrill that it shatters glass. Further north in Tyrone she sounds more like two boards being struck together, while in Kerry her call is 'low, pleasant singing'. Whatever she sounds like, everyone agrees that she can be heard from a great distance. Some report hearing her cry for several nights in a row before a death occurred, while others say they heard her just once, on the night of the death. Her cry rises and falls and lasts for at least a few minutes, varying in intensity.

There have been alleged incidents when the Banshee cried for a person who was in perfect health, but was found dead within a week from some freak accident. The majority of her visits are paid at night, with a small few taking place at noon. The Banshee was usually thought to have once been a normal woman who enjoyed life, was incredibly beautiful and radiated happiness, but some great sorrow overcame her at some point in her life and she became a haggard old woman. She was seemingly very weary of mortals and would disappear at the first sign of any human activity. In fact, she didn't seem to enjoy the company of anyone, mortal or not, and travelled as a solitary fairy.

When the Banshee moved from place to place, witnesses have heard a fluttering sound similar to birds flying. When she disappeared, all that would be left behind was a cloud of mist. There are several purported 'Banshee Chairs' around Ireland; wedge shaped rocks where she would sit and cry for general misfortunes, if there was no death to be attended to that is! When a family emigrated, legend has it the Banshee would follow, or if she didn't, she would stay at the family's seat and lament their leaving there.

The Banshee was relatively harmless. Apart from the dread people felt at hearing her cry, the only other fearsome activities she seemed to get up to were knocking on doors or windows. However, there is a legend that her sister spirit, the Lianhan Sidhe or 'sweetheart fairy', was somewhat more malicious. She sought the love of mortal men, and their desire for her was so intense that they were driven to madness and ultimately destroyed.

There was also a similar manifestation of the Banshee known as the Bean Nighe, or 'washing woman', although this is more attributed to Scottish folklore than Irish. Instead of wailing and crying at night to warn someone of a death, she would instead wash the bloody clothes of the person about to meet their doom in a local water source. Her appearance was generally thought to be the same, although she was sometimes washing her own bloody clothes instead of someone else's.

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