Aine
Aine is an Irish fairy goddess of Munster, tied to the hill of Knock Aine beside Lough Gur, remembered both as a bride taken by force and as the fairy ancestress of the Earls of Desmond.
At a glance
- Tradition
- Irish folklore
- Region
- Ireland (place of origin)
- Trait family
- The Water-Beckoners
Near this figure
Symbols
Judged against the description by a model. Meanings are our own paraphrase.
- Cloak bears The cloak denotes protection, dignity, and rank, but also concealment, withdrawal, disguise, villainy, invisibility, mourning, and the masked outer personality.
why
… Desmond, saw her, seized her cloak, and by holding it gained …
- Hair bears image-domain Hair denotes vitality and the state of the head it grows from, ordered or wild, shorn in renunciation, and red for ardour and suspicion alike.
why
As she sat combing her hair at the edge of Lough Gur, Gerold, the Earl of Desmond, saw her, seized her cloak, and by holding it gained power over her and made her his bride.
Traits
Read from the figure's description, which a model wrote. Open "why" for the sentence a trait came from.
Behaviour
- Captured by stealing wings veil or hair
why
As she sat combing her hair at the edge of Lough Gur, Gerold, the Earl of Desmond, saw her, seized her cloak, and by holding it gained power over her and made her his bride.
Sight and sound
- Combs golden hair by water
why
As she sat combing her hair at the edge of Lough Gur, Gerold, the Earl of Desmond, saw her, seized her cloak, and by holding it gained power over her and made her his bride.
Omens
- Progenitor of a royal dynasty
why
Aine is an Irish fairy goddess of Munster, tied to the hill of Knock Aine beside Lough Gur, remembered both as a bride taken by force and as the fairy ancestress of the Earls of Desmond.
Roles
Judged from the works' own entries, not from the description. Carries: the figure holds the role. Meets: the role is in its stories, held by something it meets.
- Anima carries both readings
3 citations
- Carol Rose, Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins, s.v. "Aine."
- Katharine Briggs, An Encyclopedia of Fairies, s.v. "Aine."
- Maria Leach, editor, Funk & Wagnalls Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend, s.v. "Aine."
- Circle carries
3 citations
- Carol Rose, Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins, s.v. "Aine."
- Katharine Briggs, An Encyclopedia of Fairies, s.v. "Aine."
- Maria Leach, editor, Funk & Wagnalls Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend, s.v. "Aine."
- Earth carries both readings
3 citations
- Carol Rose, Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins, s.v. "Aine."
- Katharine Briggs, An Encyclopedia of Fairies, s.v. "Aine."
- Maria Leach, editor, Funk & Wagnalls Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend, s.v. "Aine."
- Queen carries both readings
3 citations
- Carol Rose, Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins, s.v. "Aine."
- Katharine Briggs, An Encyclopedia of Fairies, s.v. "Aine."
- Maria Leach, editor, Funk & Wagnalls Standard Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend, s.v. "Aine."