The Celtic Hound

by Kym Lambert (copyright 1998-2012 © Kym Lambert, all rights reserved do not republish anywhere)

The Greyhound has long been believed to have originated in the Middle East and to have been the dog of  Egypt, then ranging through Europe including among the Celts. Earlier versions of this essay reflected, that belief, while pointing out that such hounds were well  known among the Celts early on and the Roman's knew the rose-eared sighthound known as the Vertragus, the predecessor to the modern Greyhound as well as the Galgo, the Scottish Deerhound, the Irish Wolfhound and the Borzoi (and, it seems, several herding breeds),  as "Celtic Hounds."  Arrian (Flavius Arrianus) wrote extensively about the Celtic Greyhound, noting that the Elder Xenophon's work did not include such dogs as they were unknown to him, a further hint that they were of a more western/northern European origin.  (Arrian on coursing : the Cynegeticus of the younger Xenophon) We now know from genetic studies that these hounds have a separate lineage from the Middle Eastern Saluki (once thought to be the predecessor of all Sighthounds) and do, in fact, originate with the Celtic culture. (Everything You Know is Wrong, Genetic Structure of the Purebred Domestic Dog) (Popular claims that the Greyhound was so popular in the Middle East that it is the only dog mentioned in the Bible do not hold as only the King James version, and perhaps some following suit, translated this as "Greyhound" due to the King's love of racing Are Greyhounds Really Mentioned in the Bible?)

Arrian speaks of the love the Gauls had for coursing and hunting their hounds and we certainly see this in the stories and iconography of the British Isles and Ireland as well. We also see that these hounds might have been seen to have more to offer than just hunting or warfare, there are links to healing, travel and possibly Otherworldly connections. We see a connection between hunting, and perhaps warfare, and healing exemplified within the dog, as Davidson considered that the dual nature of dogs, to be both faithful, loving companion and fierce, destructive guardian mirrors the dual nature of many of the Goddesses (pg  50,  Roles of the Northern Goddesses). Green similarly speculated that while dogs were linked to death through hunting, they had three beneficial characteristics "...fidelity, the guarding instinct and the perceived ability of the dog to heal itself with it's saliva." ( pg. 198, Animals in Celtic Life and Myth)  The Goddess Nehalenia, who is either German (Davidson) or Gaulish (Green), linked to travel, is often shown with varying sizes of dogs, from small lap dogs to large hunting hounds, as well. (pg  47-50  Roles,  pg. 200-201 Animals, pg. 176-180 Celtic Goddesses, pg. 10-16 Symbol & Image in Celtic Religious Art)   The obvious link that dogs might have to travel is nodded to by Davidson (pg. 47) as possibly offering safe travel, yet dogs ability to find their way should perhaps be taken more seriously as something humans have long been aware of, although their usefulness in the sea travel that Nehalenia is linked to might be more puzzling. Mother Goddesses are often depicted with smaller dogs, according to Green these lapdogs are often interchangeable with fertility symbols of grain or babies and may themselves represent fertility, while Davidson notes that they may have represented protection of the home. (pg. 201 Animals, pg. 29 Symbol,  pg  47 Roles) Green also notes a link between dogs and the underworld, as death guides which does make sense again in their associations with "finding ones way" and therefore links the Mother Goddess connection with rebirth. (pg. 29 Symbol) Those of us aware that most "lapdogs" started out as vermin catchers, even before being flea catchers, might tend to speculate that protection from the rodents which might eat the grain or nip the babies might have been a consideration as well.

Gods also are depicted with or as dogs, especially healers. The British God Noden, who Himself may relate as a "Celtic Mars" as well as possibly cognate to the Irish God Nuada, was never depicted anthropomorphically but dogs of all sizes were commonly found at His healing shrines. (pg. 199 Animals,  pg. 40, 115, 144 Symbol ) Green also notes that Gaulish healing Gods were also depicted with dog such as a "Celtic Mars" in Mavilly and Apollo Belenus at Saint Sabine. (pg. 198 Animals) Hammer-Gods are also shown with dogs, both hounds and smaller terriers in Burgundy. This could link to healing as well, but also abundance and may indicate a hunting connection, according to Green.(pg. 199 200 Animals
The image of the hound  continued to be an important motif well into Christian times, in Scotland we find Greyhounds depicted in hunt scenes on Class III Pictish stones of Scotland such as the Hilton of Cadboll and Aberlemno stones.   The Book of Kells contains many images of dogs, apparently both of hound and alaunt type. Many of the Kells images are popular to day including in some of the clip art I'm using here.

 It is in the tales of  Irish heroes where we perhaps come across the strongest evidence of the importance of hounds to any Celtic culture. The most popular ones, Fionn MacCumhal and Cú Chulainn, in fact in both cases there are signs that warrior and hound were totally intertwined. This is most obvious with Cú Chulainn, who himself became "The Hound of the Smith" when the boy Setanta killed Culainn's (the Smith's) hound as a child.  He followed Conchobar's party but his patron, having forgotten the boy was coming, told the smith the dog could be released to guard, when young Setanta arrived the animal attacked him and he ended up killing it. (pg 140-142 TBC Rec 1 English, pg. 17-19 Irish)  It, of course, brings to question what sort of hound might be described in this story, which is referred to as árchú which is translated in the eDIL as "war-hound" or "slaughter-hound" and is translated in this translation of the tale as '"a blood hound,  [i.e. a hound brought from overseas, i.e. the whelp of a mastiff.]' (pg 141 TBC). Given the tendencies of the Greyhounds, of all sizes, to be hunters but not attack dogs, one might question if this hound, which is said to come from Spain  (which does seem to generally just mean "somewhere else" in the tales) was indeed perhaps a mastiff-type, as we'll discuss shortly. This tale does show the importance of such an animal to it's owner, as it would take time for a pup to be raised to take over the dead hound's duties which meant the boy had to do so in the meantime. Cú Chulainn held a lifelong connection with hounds, his death coming, in part, due to the breaking of a geas that he never eat dog meat; as he was also prohibited from refusing hospitality offered by a woman, it was an unavoidable breaking of one or the other. ( O'Grady, The Great Defeat...,  Stokes, The Tragical Death...." in  Hull, ed., The Cuchullin Saga in Irish Literature: (English translations), van Hamel Compert Con Culainn and Other Stories (Irish))

Fionn's association is more obviously connected to hunting hounds as the Fianna were hunters as well as warriors, so these,were most likely of the Greyhound variety. And his own and the rest of the Fianna's connection with canines, both hounds and wolves, is something which seems to have been of great importance. Best known, of course, are his nephews or cousins, Bran and Sceolan.  Fionn's aunt, or sometimes sister, Tuiren, was transformed in the Otherworld to a hound bitch and gave birth as such, her sons remaining for life in the form and loyal companions to their uncle/cousin. In some later tales only Bran seems to travel with Fionn, and he now has a poisoned claw which is kept covered by a special shoe. (Nagy, pg. 197-205 The Wisdom of the Outlaw  There were, however, many other hounds associated with Fionn, and the Fianna would have likely run deer with packs. In fact, Fionn and the rest of the Fianna's associations with canines, both domestic hound and wild wolf, is quite vast. The members of the Fianna, díberga, went fáelad or "wolfing." (Nagy pg. 44, 244 n20 Wisdom, McCone Werewolves, Cyclopes, Díberga and Fíanna: Juvenile Delinquency in Early Ireland",  West Aspects of díberg in the tale Togail Bruidne Da Derga) Fionn's foster-father Fícail mac Conchinn's patronymic marks him as "son of Dog-head" and Fionn's own father's name "Cumall" is noted by Nagy as possibly relating to "cú" and is the same as part of the name of Conaire's dog in Togail Bruidne Da Derga. Nagy admits that the name may originally have been "Umall" but finds that the transformation may be significant.  Fionn's grandfather also shares a name with a dog of Medb's and Nagy finds it notable that Fionn refuses the offer for his nephews to be changed to human considering it better they remain hounds. (pg. 243-244, n19 Wisdom) The fénnid Conán mac Morna's name means "little dog."(pg. 44, 154-155 Wisdom) and the fénnid Cáel is so entwined with both his hounds and horses that when he is killed they died with him. (pg. 245, n22 Wisdom)  Throughout all the tales "dog" names flourish among warriors, the name cú glas was a legal term for exiles, who often served as mercenaries, form other lands. (pg. 244, n21 Wisdom)

The Story of Mac Da Tho's Pig, tells of a rivalry started for a spectacular hound, Ailbe, belonging to Mac Da Tho. Both Medb and Ailill of Connacht and Conchobar of Ulster want this hound and Mac Da Tho, at the prompting of his wife, promises it to both. As both parties arrive at the same time, a champion's boasting match develops between those of both sides in regards to the Champion's Portion of the giant pig, hence the title. The Hound is allowed to choose, and choosing Ulster begins killing the warriors of Connacht. The battle that ensues does not fair well for the reason for it, the hound, is killed and it is said that Mag nAilbe (Ailbe's Plain) is named for this hound.

Perhaps the best known later legend is that of Llewellyn 's Greyhound Gellert. The hound, his favorite, stays behind one day when Llewellyn goes hunting, and upon his return Llewellyn finds his son's crib overturned and the dog bloody. Horrified that the beloved animal killed his son, Llewellyn kills the hound then and there&..the dying cries of the faithful Greyhound are echoed by the cries of the baby, hidden beneath the upturned crib. A bit away the body of a wolf is found. Gellert had saved the child from a wolf attack, only to be repaid by death. It is said that "Beth Gêlert" means "Gellert's Grave" and is named for him. The literal truth of this tale can be brought into question by the number of similar tales, including an Aesop's' Fable and an Indian tale of a heroic mongoose, as well as almost identical Greyhound tales. It remains, of course, a n important lesson in the loyalty of the dog and the suspicious nature of the human. The latest telling of such a story is found in Le Moine et la Sorcière ( The Sorceress), where the Greyhound which saves his master's son from a snake becomes the local Saint of a small French village that so scandalizes the visiting Monk of the title.

What breed many of the hounds above were is difficult to determine as such the concept of breeds as we have today is quite modern....what a dog did was how it was often grouped. Today many think only of the Irish Wolfhound and the Scottish Deerhound as "Celtc Sighthounds" and seem to consider them a different breed from the Greyhound. Ultimately, as shown in Genetic Structure of the Purebred Domestic Dog these all originated as the same hound, as did the Galgo and the Borzoi. With the Galgo Español we still see that both hair types, smooth and wiry, can be found within the same breed and this smaller, less extreme in all the ways the others might be, hound may indeed represent the closest to the old-type Vertragus. (Galgo Español) At some point the smooth coated Greyhound and the wiry coated Deerhounds and Wolfhounds seemed to have parted ways; it may be that the softer long fur of the Borzoi was also found intermixed but later diverted with specific breeding. The smooth coat of the Greyhounds is believed by many to come at least partially from Lord Orford's alleged crossing of Greyhounds with Bulldogs (which would be more like American Bulldogs than the modern English), however this likely never took place and the resulting loss of speed that would have resulted makes it incredible. ( Everything You Know Is Wrong, Part II, CZARINA - Bulldog Legend or Mythology?) It's far more likely just to be part of the selective breeding, possibly only a side effect of breeding the smaller hounds primarily to run hare and while larger ones to run deer, boars and wolves.

The Irish Wolfhound is problematic, of course, in that it is a fairly recent reconstruction, the original having been essentially wiped out and was recreated by Captain George Augustus Graham of Scotland from supposedly a few remaining originals, Scottish Deerhounds and Great Danes. (Captain Graham and the resuscitation of the breed) Certainly there were sizable hounds that hunted wolves, boars and deer  (but not Irish Elk as some IW enthusiasts have claimed *) in Ireland although actual size of these dogs could have been large especially compared to other Greyhounds of the day (which were more likely the size of Galgos). And we can trust that there were dogs that were fierce war-dogs and guards. Whether they were the same, considering the general nature of Greyhounds towards humans, it something to be debated. It seems more likely that were many sorts of dogs in Ireland for some time, including Alaunt/Mastiff types as well. It is doubtful there was but one dog in Ireland then any more than now.  We do know, after all, that both Sighthounds and Alaunts were commonly worked together to hunt larger prey in many other areas it's likely this also took place in Ireland and Scotland too. (Cummins, pg.12-14, The Hound and the Hawk)

It is, of course, precarious to try to figure out the actual breeds mentioned during this time for "breed" is a fairly modern concept and dogs were known for what they did, not their breed. A "sighthound," "gazehound" or "Greyhound" simply hunted by sight and were fast, the Alaunt was big and brought things down with strength, however, as the Alaunts also ran prey down before dropping it, they too were often referred to as "gazehounds." (pg.15, The Hound) Therefore while "cú" in Irish is often seen as being a "sighthound" it may well have covered any dog of any breeding which ran down prey, while "árchú" might relate to any dog which showed a talent for guarding. Likewise, when one speaks of "deer" hounds or "wolf" hounds it would originally have been what the hound hunted, not necessarily a breed. The "wolfhound" would become a "deerhound" after the wolves were hunted to extinction.

The images of Celtic warriors surrounded by hounds is evocative to many Celtic Polytheists today, I know many who have noted their desire to someday have an Irish Wolfhound or a Scottish Deerhound which they envision as the ultimate Gaelic dog. These are also dogs which are expensive and seldom found in rescue (and rather short lived and with small, problematic gene pools) . I admit to having always had a bit of an agenda with this article, to remind those who might be in  a position to actually give their lives to a dog, or a few dogs, not to forget that the "lowly" ex-racing Greyhound has just as much of a Celtic heritage as they their hairier kin. While it's not a reason to get a dog, a huge and serious responsibility, if one is in the place to give a good forever home there is no reason to wait for "the day" when so many Greyhounds are waiting to be adopted. If someone is already considering a commitment to a Sighthound, which may require considerations that some other breeds do not due to prey-drive and lack of call-back, then the Greyhound is certainly the one I would consider first even if one still holds out to someday have something larger and hairier as well. There is still a need, although it seems less interest lately, for adoption. The Galgo too is still endangered in it's own country where it's been considered a "garbage dog" and is also a "proper Celtic hound."

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