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Author Topic: Celtic Ancestry  (Read 8172 times)

Celtag

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Celtic Ancestry
« on: October 05, 2011, 06:05:52 pm »
I was just wondering if you thought that to practice the tradition and religions of the Celts that you needed to be of Celtic Ancestry. I myself have relatives from Scotland & Wales, but I was just wanted to know some of your thoughts on that subject.
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Lonstar

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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #1 on: October 05, 2011, 06:16:19 pm »
Quote from: Celtag;24148
I was just wondering if you thought that to practice the tradition and religions of the Celts that you needed to be of Celtic Ancestry. I myself have relatives from Scotland & Wales, but I was just wanted to know some of your thoughts on that subject.

 
I don't think you need to be of Celtic ancestry. It's kinda like saying to be a Muslim you must be from the middle east, or to be roman catholic you must be from rome etc etc.
« Last Edit: October 05, 2011, 06:17:03 pm by Lonstar »

Sage

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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #2 on: October 05, 2011, 06:39:02 pm »
Quote from: Celtag;24148
I was just wondering if you thought that to practice the tradition and religions of the Celts that you needed to be of Celtic Ancestry. I myself have relatives from Scotland & Wales, but I was just wanted to know some of your thoughts on that subject.

 
Nope. As far as I'm concerned, we're all humans and mythology and religion is part of our human heritage. The gods call whom they will. My most recent heritage is a mix of north and west Europe (Scottish Celts who stayed in Canada for a bit from my dad, and English/German/possibly some French from my mom), but some of my most profound experiences have been with Greek, Egyptian, Hindu, and Native American deities.
Maker, though the darkness comes upon me,
I shall embrace the light. I shall weather the storm.
I shall endure.
What you have created, no one can tear asunder.

-Canticle of Trials 1:10

Sage and Starshine (my spiritual blog): last updated 2/25.
Friday Otherfaith Blogging: last updated 2/27
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monsnoleedra

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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #3 on: October 05, 2011, 07:49:43 pm »
Quote from: Celtag;24148
I was just wondering if you thought that to practice the tradition and religions of the Celts that you needed to be of Celtic Ancestry. I myself have relatives from Scotland & Wales, but I was just wanted to know some of your thoughts on that subject.


I have Scotish ancestry but odds are they are Nordic not Celtic in bloodline as they originated on the Outer Hebridies Islands.  That's one of the issues when you look to Scotland, there are other peoples there who are not of Celtic descent.  Then you also have to look at the frequent migration to / from Ireland to Scotland and between the two places.

The other thing is that "Celtic" is a language grouping but not a pantheon type structure where you can say this or that is "Celtic" in tradition or religion.  So Irish Celtic influence may have nothing that resembles a Celtic practice from mainland Europe or even Celtic influence in Britian much less Wales.  That doesn't even really get into the "P" & "Q" difference in the language groupings.

Personaly I do not think one can lay claim to a Celtic heritage and say that is the sole reason for being Celtic.  As a people there were so many various tribal groupings and nearly as much border borrowing that it would be extremely hard to say you do or do not have Celtic blood.  Heck one might be Roman by descent but also be Celtic because of the interactions between those two peoples alone.

Micheál

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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #4 on: October 06, 2011, 01:54:01 am »
Quote from: Celtag;24148
I was just wondering if you thought that to practice the tradition and religions of the Celts that you needed to be of Celtic Ancestry. I myself have relatives from Scotland & Wales, but I was just wanted to know some of your thoughts on that subject.

Not at all really. 'Celtic' is a very broad grouping, and mostly accepted as relating to a language classification, today relating to the 6 Celtic Nations. Celtic therefore is a cultural identity&affiliation, and not a genetic one.

In genetics the term 'Celtic' couldn't be more diverse. The Irish, for example, have little in common with the rest, and recent DNA tests have hinted that although it appears 1/5th of modern males are descendants of Niall of the Nine Hostages, genetic drifts in population among Neolithic farmers is most common among Ireland, and Basque Country also found in Northern Spain.
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Aster Breo

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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #5 on: October 06, 2011, 01:57:58 am »
Quote from: Celtag;24148
I was just wondering if you thought that to practice the tradition and religions of the Celts that you needed to be of Celtic Ancestry.

 
I believe the Gods call who They will.

Who am I to argue with that?  ;)

~ Aster
"The status is not quo."  ~ Dr. Horrible

sailor

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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #6 on: October 06, 2011, 07:12:53 am »
Quote from: Lonstar;24151
I don't think you need to be of Celtic ancestry. It's kinda like saying to be a Muslim you must be from the middle east, or to be roman catholic you must be from rome etc etc.

 
Poor examples I think. Both are universalist religions who look for converts without regard to culture or such.

A better example would be whether a person believes they have to be of Nordic descent (ie white) to be Asatru.

Celtag

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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #7 on: October 10, 2011, 11:07:26 am »
Quote from: Aster Breo;24225
I believe the Gods call who They will.

Who am I to argue with that?  ;)

~ Aster


Thats my belief as well. I believe the Gods can contact who they want and lead them down the path.
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gwynwas

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Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #8 on: October 10, 2011, 06:20:58 pm »
I have to agree that it is hard to compare Universalist religions from urban agro societies with older beliefs and practices inexorably tied to land and ancestor.

On the other hand I'm not sure if postmodern neopagan recreationist practices really have anything to do with what people believed in some illiterate backwater Pictish village 2000 years ago.  Hope that doesn't sound too cynical.

Vella Malachite

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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #9 on: October 15, 2011, 01:01:38 am »
Quote from: Aster Breo;24225
I believe the Gods call who They will.

Who am I to argue with that?  ;)

~ Aster

 
That's quite similar to what I believe; I believe that if you're willing and able to live the life your path requires, and the gods have accepted you, then why not?  If I'm wrong, I'm in a lot of trouble, my heritage is English/German and I'm following an entirely Irish path ;)
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Celtag

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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #10 on: October 15, 2011, 04:36:18 pm »
Quote from: Vella Malachite;25489
That's quite similar to what I believe; I believe that if you're willing and able to live the life your path requires, and the gods have accepted you, then why not?  If I'm wrong, I'm in a lot of trouble, my heritage is English/German and I'm following an entirely Irish path ;)


I have Scottish, Welsh, & German ancestry so I could have gone two different ways. But I always felt drawn to the Celtic side of things more so than the German side. I;m actually more Scottish than Welsh, but I mainly follow a more Welsh path instead of a Gaelic path. But I do add some Gaelic influences in my practice.
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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #11 on: October 15, 2011, 10:54:54 pm »
Quote from: gwynwas;24730
I have to agree that it is hard to compare Universalist religions from urban agro societies with older beliefs and practices inexorably tied to land and ancestor.

On the other hand I'm not sure if postmodern neopagan recreationist practices really have anything to do with what people believed in some illiterate backwater Pictish village 2000 years ago.  Hope that doesn't sound too cynical.

 
Nothing personal, but if you don't quote and cite with every post, you WILL be banned on this forum.  Also, be sure that all your opinions are absolutely politically correct or RandallS will track you down and punish you.

Please understand, I am simply trying to be helpful.

PhantomQueen

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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #12 on: October 20, 2011, 10:54:44 pm »
Quote from: Celtag;24148
I was just wondering if you thought that to practice the tradition and religions of the Celts that you needed to be of Celtic Ancestry. I myself have relatives from Scotland & Wales, but I was just wanted to know some of your thoughts on that subject.


I think it would be nice to find out the basics of your ancestry, but if you're called to another tradition, then that's whre you're meant to be.  My background is English, Irish, Welsh and Finnish.  I've never been interested in the Finnish tradition except to learn the language and maybe visit the country.  I wouldn't mind learning more of the Welsh part, but it's the Irish that's always drawn me closer.  I don't bother looking elsewhere as this calling will haul me back by the seat of my pants and plop me down to keep me in awe and wonder over something new.

Tamina

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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #13 on: October 21, 2011, 12:24:53 pm »
Quote from: Celtag;24148
I was just wondering if you thought that to practice the tradition and religions of the Celts that you needed to be of Celtic Ancestry. I myself have relatives from Scotland & Wales, but I was just wanted to know some of your thoughts on that subject.

 
I didn't read any of the other replies, because I felt like this was a personally addressed broad question. So, I hope I'm not stepping on anyone or anything. I'm so totally new here.

For most of my life I've been drawn to many different things Celtic. Some I knew were, and some weren't. I'm only recently come to finally searching out my path, mostly because of a revelation I had about this a few days ago.

I was in my kitchen, reading a book that I've read since then isn't one I should be reading but I’m still reading it anyway. It's a Paganism book by the Higginbotham sisters. I was constantly drawn to the Celtic side, and there isn't much in the book to go on. Regardless, I didn't want to do that because I felt that I wasn't allowed. I don't have any Celtic relatives that I know of.

I didn't want to see the Greek Gods, which are the other set of things that I'm drawn to because I've written a fictional story about them and I felt that if I could fictionalize them, trivialize them in that way, then they weren't what I could find myself really believing in.

So I sat down and decided to find out where my father's name came from. I know they came over on a boat in the last hundred years. My maternal line has been here in the US since before the Declaration of Independence. So, I hopped on Google. Searched dozens of sites and kept finding the same information. My father’s surname originates in Scandinavia and was passed to the Irish, Scottish, and British after that.

Suddenly, when I read that, I remembered that ‘duh, my dad told me once that he’s got Irish and Scottish in his blood’ and didn’t the Celts travel around everywhere.  After that, I felt much better about it. I don’t know why it was so important to me, but it was. Now, I don’t feel bad at all about it, I don’t feel like I’m doing something that I’m not entitled to.

Also, I’m floundering in a lot of information that doesn’t seem keyed to what I want. It’s like sifting through sand for some grains of salt and sugar when you’re trying to find out about the Celtic beliefs and pantheon on a Paganism site.

Micheál

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Re: Celtic Ancestry
« Reply #14 on: October 21, 2011, 01:06:18 pm »
Quote from: Tamina;26789
My father’s surname originates in Scandinavia and was passed to the Irish, Scottish, and British after that.

I'm not nitpicking, but just elaborating on a common misconception. "British" describes the Scottish, Welsh, and Irish(in Northern Ireland, but before 1922 was the United Kingdom of Great Britain&Ireland, which covered a good part what would have been immigrated ancestors) as well as the English.
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