Ceridwen is an enigmatic figure for whom we have very little traditional lore, but who has nevertheless captured the imagination of modern Pagans to become one of the most well-known and widely honored Celtic divinities. Today, she is predominantly considered a goddess of magic, but to the bards of medieval Wales, she was their primary Muse; from her cauldron she bestowed upon them the gifts of Awen (divine inspiration), and these bards considered themselves the children of Ceridwen—the Cerddorion. Although Ceridwen is mentioned in several medieval Welsh poems, chiefly in her role as muse and mother to Taliesin, the only tale we have about her is found in a work called Ystoria Taliesin (The Story of Taliesin). The earliest extant version we have of the story comes from a sixteenth-century manuscript, however, linguistic analysis of the story has determined that it dates back to the ninth century, at least in its written form..
The meaning of Ceridwen’s name is not entirely clear, in part because of all of the variant spellings of her name in early Welsh poetry, which leave us with several possible etymologies. Some possible meanings of her name include: “Holy Song,” “Crooked Woman,” or “Bent White One.” “Holy Song” is clearly in alignment with Ceridwen’s role as muse, with cerdd meaning “song, poetry,” while “Crooked Woman” has connotations perhaps of a bent-backed crone or one who is stooped over to gather herbs. Interestingly, the Welsh cwr, which means “hooked” or “crooked,” has a common root with the Irish corrán, which means “hook” or “sickle”—the sickle being a tool used for the harvesting of herbs.8 The meaning of “Bent White One,” similar in energy to “Crooked Woman,” also suggests the shape of the crescent moon, leading some to believe that she may have been a goddess with lunar associations. In Ystoria Taliesin, Ceridwen is not identified as a goddess at all but rather as a sorceress or a witch. However, the etymology of her name and the description of her nature play an important role in reclaiming Ceridwen’s divinity. In this case, the presence in her name of the feminine terminal deific -wen, which means “bright, shining, holy,” makes a strong argument that this shape-shifting woman who dwelt on an island in (or perhaps under) a lake, with the power to brew elixirs of wisdom and dispense Awen from her cauldron, had likely once been somewhat more than a sorceress.
8. Rachel Bromwich, ed. and trans.,Trioedd Ynys Prydein: The Welsh Triads (Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 2006), 312–313.