Place-lore in the Mélusine Narrative from Irish Tradition

Abstract

The Mélusine story is an international migratory legend (“Migratory Legend Suggested Irish Type”, MLSIT 4081), whose essential ingredients are an Otherworld bride and an interdiction. First attested in medieval Irish literature (Macha), the narrative has survived in modern Irish folklore, with possible influences from the French Romance of Mélusine. This article examines both medieval written and modern oral forms of the narrative from a novel perspective: their place-lore dimension.

Keywords

• mélusine
• macha
• place-lore
• lakes
• goddess