Mabinogi
/mabɪˈnɔɡi/noun
A collection of four medieval Welsh prose tales known as the Four Branches of the Mabinogi.
Did you know?Although Mabinogi is often translated as “tales of youth,” the traditional explanation is disputed, and the surviving medieval manuscripts themselves use the term in complex ways.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*makʷos
“A reconstructed word associated with son or offspring.”
Proto-Celtic
Celtic
*makʷos
“Son or child; the ancestral form behind Celtic words such as Welsh mab and Irish mac.”
Old Welsh
Old Welsh
map
“Son or boy; an early Welsh form later developing into mab through regular sound change.”
Middle Welsh
Middle Welsh
mab
“Son, boy, or youth; a central element in the traditional interpretation of mabinogi.”
Middle Welsh
Middle Welsh
mabinogi
“The term appearing in medieval Welsh manuscripts and later applied to the four-branch tale cycle; its precise original sense remains debated.”
Modern English
English
Mabinogi
“The conventional English name for the Four Branches, a foundational body of medieval Welsh literature.”