Cian
Encyclopedia
In Irish mythology
, Cían (kʲiːən, "ancient, distant, legendary, amazing"), son of Dian Cecht
of the Tuatha Dé Danann
, is best known as the father of Lug
by the Fomorian princess Ethniu
.
He was born with a caul
on his head, and was turned into a pig as a boy when struck by a druid
's wand. Thereafter he could transform into a pig at will. In other versions he could transform into a dog.
According to a prophecy, Balor
, the king of the Fomorians
, was to be killed by his grandson. He locked his daughter, Ethniu, in a tower made of crystal to keep her from becoming pregnant. However, Cían, with the help of the druidess Birog
, managed to enter the tower. Ethlinn soon gave birth to three sons. Balor threw them into the ocean, and two either drowned or turned into seals, but one, Lug
, was saved by Birog and became the foster son of Manannan mac Lir
.
According to one version of the legend, Cían seduced Ethniu in revenge after Balor stole his cow.
Cían was killed by the sons of Tuireann
, Brian, Iuchar
and Iucharba
, after trying unsuccessfully to escape from them in the form of a pig. Lugh set them a series of seemingly impossible quests as recompense. They achieved them all, but were fatally wounded in completing the last one. Despite Tuireann's pleas, Lug denied them the use of one of the items they had retrieved, a magic pigskin which healed all wounds. They died of their wounds, and Tuireann died of grief over their bodies.
The name Cian is also recorded in Nennius
's Historia Britonum
as an early Welsh poet contemporary with Aneirin
and Taliesin
.
Irish mythology
The mythology of pre-Christian Ireland did not entirely survive the conversion to Christianity, but much of it was preserved, shorn of its religious meanings, in medieval Irish literature, which represents the most extensive and best preserved of all the branch and the Historical Cycle. There are...
, Cían (kʲiːən, "ancient, distant, legendary, amazing"), son of Dian Cecht
Dian Cecht
In Irish mythology, Dian Cécht , also known as Cainte, Canta, was the God of healing to the Irish people. He was the healer for the Tuatha Dé Danann and the father of Cian, Cú, and Cethen...
of the Tuatha Dé Danann
Tuatha Dé Danann
The Tuatha Dé Danann are a race of people in Irish mythology. In the invasions tradition which begins with the Lebor Gabála Érenn, they are the fifth group to settle Ireland, conquering the island from the Fir Bolg....
, is best known as the father of Lug
Lugh
Lug or Lugh is an Irish deity represented in mythological texts as a hero and High King of the distant past. He is known by the epithets Lámhfhada , for his skill with a spear or sling, Ildánach , Samhildánach , Lonnbeimnech and Macnia , and by the...
by the Fomorian princess Ethniu
Ethniu
In Irish mythology, Ethniu or Eithne ; also Ethliu, Ethlinn, and a variety of other spellings – see below) is the daughter of the Fomorian leader Balor, and the mother of Lugh....
.
He was born with a caul
Caul
A caul is a thin, filmy membrane, the amnion, that can cover a newborn's head and face immediately after birth.-Obstetrics:A child "born with the caul" has a portion of the amniotic sac or membrane remaining on the head. There are two types of cauls. The most common caul is adhered to the head...
on his head, and was turned into a pig as a boy when struck by a druid
Druid
A druid was a member of the priestly class in Britain, Ireland, and Gaul, and possibly other parts of Celtic western Europe, during the Iron Age....
's wand. Thereafter he could transform into a pig at will. In other versions he could transform into a dog.
According to a prophecy, Balor
Balor
In Irish mythology, Balor of the Evil Eye was a king of the Fomorians, a race of giants. His father was Buarainech and his wife was Cethlenn...
, the king of the Fomorians
Fomorians
In Irish mythology, the Fomoire are a semi-divine race said to have inhabited Ireland in ancient times. They may have once been believed to be the beings who preceded the gods, similar to the Greek Titans. It has been suggested that they represent the gods of chaos and wild nature, as opposed to...
, was to be killed by his grandson. He locked his daughter, Ethniu, in a tower made of crystal to keep her from becoming pregnant. However, Cían, with the help of the druidess Birog
Birog
Biróg, in Irish mythology, is a leanan sídhe or fairy woman. A folktale recorded by John O'Donovan in 1835 relates how the Fomorian warrior Balor, to frustrate a prophecy that he would be killed by his own grandson, imprisons his only daughter Eithne in the tower of Tory Island, away from any...
, managed to enter the tower. Ethlinn soon gave birth to three sons. Balor threw them into the ocean, and two either drowned or turned into seals, but one, Lug
Lugh
Lug or Lugh is an Irish deity represented in mythological texts as a hero and High King of the distant past. He is known by the epithets Lámhfhada , for his skill with a spear or sling, Ildánach , Samhildánach , Lonnbeimnech and Macnia , and by the...
, was saved by Birog and became the foster son of Manannan mac Lir
Manannán mac Lir
Manannán mac Lir is a sea deity in Irish mythology. He is the son of the obscure Lir . He is often seen as a psychopomp, and has strong affiliations with the Otherworld, the weather and the mists between the worlds...
.
According to one version of the legend, Cían seduced Ethniu in revenge after Balor stole his cow.
Cían was killed by the sons of Tuireann
Tuireann
In Irish mythology, Tuireann was the father of Creidhne, Luchtaine and Giobhniu by Brigid.His other sons, by his daughter Danand, included Brian, Iuchar and Iucharba, who killed Lugh's father Cian...
, Brian, Iuchar
Iuchar
In Irish mythology Iuchar was one of the sons of Tuireann, of the Tuatha Dé Danann, and Danand. He and his two brothers Brian and Iucharba murdered Cian, the father of Lugh, one of the greatest of the Tuatha Dé Danann. They also dismembered his body and tried to cover up their crime...
and Iucharba
Iucharba
In Irish mythology, Iucharba was one of the sons of Tuireann, of the Tuatha Dé Danann, and Danand. He and his two brothers Brian and Iuchar murdered Cian, the father of Lugh, one of the greatest of the Tuatha Dé Danann. They also dismembered his body and tried to cover up their crime...
, after trying unsuccessfully to escape from them in the form of a pig. Lugh set them a series of seemingly impossible quests as recompense. They achieved them all, but were fatally wounded in completing the last one. Despite Tuireann's pleas, Lug denied them the use of one of the items they had retrieved, a magic pigskin which healed all wounds. They died of their wounds, and Tuireann died of grief over their bodies.
The name Cian is also recorded in Nennius
Nennius
Nennius was a Welsh monk of the 9th century.He has traditionally been attributed with the authorship of the Historia Brittonum, based on the prologue affixed to that work, This attribution is widely considered a secondary tradition....
's Historia Britonum
Historia Britonum
The Historia Brittonum, or The History of the Britons, is a historical work that was first composed around 830, and exists in several recensions of varying difference. It purports to relate the history of the Brittonic inhabitants of Britain from earliest times, and this text has been used to write...
as an early Welsh poet contemporary with Aneirin
Aneirin
Aneirin or Neirin was a Dark Age Brythonic poet. He is believed to have been a bard or 'court poet' in one of the Cumbric kingdoms of the Old North or Hen Ogledd, probably that of Gododdin at Edinburgh, in modern Scotland...
and Taliesin
Taliesin
Taliesin was an early British poet of the post-Roman period whose work has possibly survived in a Middle Welsh manuscript, the Book of Taliesin...
.