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Cythraul (formerly also Kythreul and Cythrawl[1]) is a Welsh language word for the Devil or other incarnations of evil spirits. The word appears in Medieval Welsh literature and bardic poetry but has a wide variety of uses in modern Welsh and popular culture.
Etymology
editCythraul probably deriving from Latin 'Contrarius', 'the Opposer, Enemy'. Contr- would go to Welsh cythr- straightforwardly according to historical phonology, and the form 'cythraul' not *cythraur is the result of dissimilation. It is likely to be an early Christian borrowing from Ecclesiastical Latin, like numerous other words in the Welsh and Irish languages. Diawl (from Latin diablos) is usually used for the Devil (Satan) today, cythraul usually being used as a pejorative, e.g. "y cythraul bach!" '(you) little devil/rascal!'.
Modern Druidic interpretation
editCythraul has been identified as a 'spirit of Chaos' by some modern Druids, an interpretation which dates back to Iolo Morganwg's Barddas. According to this view, "Cythraul" may be used to designate the same condition of primordial chaos or limitlesness which appears in, for example, Plato's Timaeus at 30A or Genesis 1. As the contemporary Druidic tradition springs from the Druid Revival, which began in the 18th century, and is unconnected with the ancient Druids except in viewing the latter as a source of inspiration, it is perfectly justified in this interpretation.
In popular culture
edit
The modern Welsh word for the Anglerfish is Cythraul y Môr (Cythraul of the seas).
The Cythraul is the name of a character in the MMORPG video game, World of Warcraft produced by Blizzard Entertainment.
A creature named the Cythraul appears as one of the three Apocalypse Kings in the Skulduggery Pleasant fantasy novels by Irish author Derek Landy.
Further reading
edit- Piggott, Stuart (1975) The Druids. London, Thames and Hudson
- Aldhouse-Green, Miranda (1997) Exploring the World of the Druids. London, Thames and Hudson
- Fitzpatrick, A.P. (1997) Who were the Druids? London, Weidenfeld & Nicolson
- ^ MacKillop, James (1 January 2004). "cythraul". A Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-860967-4.