#ok googled it and it is Welsh

[catfishofoldin99colours]

personally I think curly's real name is actually Cuthbert and he Hates it so much and curly is his attempt to seem somewhat cooler and less of a bullying target (Jimmy knows his real name and on Pain Of Death he is never allowed to speak it ever)

[phagodyke]

the most unrealistic part of this whole thing is that a welshman would become pm lol

this episode is genuine horror for ppl with rsd I'd be killing myself within a week if that happened

[g00seg1raffe]

A Very Long Thought about Elrond's Names and Titles

This is the product of at least 15 hours of work, ok, so please be nice.

Scene: Tirion, Valinor. Elrond Peredhel has arrived at his first formal diplomatic meeting. Eönwë looks at the guest-list, does a double take, takes a deep breath, goes through all five stages of grief and starts inventing new ones, shoots a quick prayer to Manwë, and clears his throat.

Elrond’s names and titles in Quenya: Aþëafinwë Elerondo Pereldar, Nelyafinwion Canafinwionyë, néya Orrósurë Taurénë, Eärnedilion Elenvingionyë. Heru Fëanálië, Sánendoredainion, Hísilómedainion, Indor Arcimbele, Aryon Lestanórë Ondolindyë, Tercáno Hildyë Aranion Ílë-Calima, enquëa Noldóran.

(Also Elros’s names in Quenya: Arafinwë Elerossë, Andúsírë Taurildë)

Elrond’s names and titles in Sindarin: Athaefin Elrond Peredhel, Maedhrosion a Maglorion, ni Sûlamrûn Taurín, Gaerdilion a Elwinion. Hîr Nost Fëanor, Bar Beorion a Hadorion, Hîr Imladris, Hîl Dóriath a Gondolin, Taicyll a Hîl Erenion Gil-Galad, enchui Golodharan.

(Also Elros’ names in Sindarin: Arafin Elros, Sîrannûn Tauréd)

If, like me, you're just gonna skim right over all that - try plugging the elvish into Google Translate and getting it to read it aloud for you. Spanish or Italian for Quenya and Welsh for Sindarin. It's not 100% correct and some sounds will be wrong, but it'll give you the general idea.

SECTION 1: names from Maedhros and Maglor

Aþëafinwë Elerondo Pereldar, Nelyafinwion Canafinwionyë

(Arafinwë Elerossë)

Athaefin Elrond Peredhel, Maedhrosion a Maglorion

(Arafin Elros)

Quenya names have three parts: a father name or ataressë (plural ataresser), a mother name or amilessë (plural amilesser), and an optional nickname or epessë (plural eresser).

Ataresser chosen based on my Quenya translation of the hands of a king are the hands of a healer, which I attribute to Maedhros: aranya mát síve aþaya mát. Translated using fin as equivalent to Finwë, as with Curufin.

Aþëafinwë = healing herb Finwë. The root of aþëa is aþaya, to heal, and aþëa aranion is the Quenya name for athelas/kingsfoil. Aranion is also a Quenya translation of Erenion. Sindarin cognate of aþëa is athae, hence Athaefin.

(Arafinwë = noble Finwë. Ara- was chosen as a shortening of Aranye, in tribute to Arafinwë the High King of the Noldor in Valinor, who did an objectively better job - insofar as a king is a healer - at being a king than any of his entire extended family until Gil-Galad and Elros himself. Ara has a similar meaning in both Sindarin and Quenya, hence Arafin.)

Note: thankfully the twins ended up with actually meaningful names after long consideration, unlike Maedhros’ first, sarcastic suggestion of Yet-Another-Finwë and Still-More-Fucking-Finwës. Which, following on from Finwë, Smart-Finwë, Wise-Finwë, Noble-Finwë, Finwë No. 3, Loud-Finwë, Buff-Finwë, Emo-Finwë, Smarter-Finwë, Tiny-Finwë, Valar-Let-This-Be-The-Last-Finwë, Look-Mom-Grandkids!-Finwë and Even-Tinier-Finwë... this is objectively hilarious.

(I'm including Celebrimbor - Inyofinwë Tyelperinquar, grandchild-Finwë silver-fist - and Gil-Galad - Vinyafinwë Aranion, new-Finwë son-of-kings - in this list.)

The twins' amilesser wer almost certainly given by Maglor in Quenya (Maglor being the one who cared to name them first), based on where they were kidnapped from in various drafts of the Silmarillion, before ever being used in Sindarin.

Elerondo = Quenya of the Sindarin Elrond.

(Elerossë = Quenya of the Sindarin Elros.)

The shared epessë runs in the same vein as calling Maedhros, noted red-head, Russandol or copper-top.

Pereldar = Quenya of the Sindarin Peredhel.

The suffix -ion is used in both Quenya and Sindarin to say son of -.

Nelyafinwion in Quenya & Maedhrosion in Sindarin = son of Nelyafinwë & son of Maedhros - Quenya and Sindarin names for the same elf.

Canafinwion in Quenya & Maglorion in Sindarin = son of Canafinwë & son of Maglor - Quenya and Sindarin names for the same elf.

-yë suffix on Canafinwionyë in Quenya & a in Sindarin = and in their respective languages.

SECTION 2: names from Eärendil and Elwing

néya Orrósurë Taurénë, Eärnedilion Elenwingionyë

(néya Andúsírë Taurildë)

nî Sûlamrûn Taurín, Gaerdilion a Elwinion

(nî Sîrannûn Tauréd)

Most Sindarin names appear to be a single name with an optional nickname. However, as a Noldo, Eärendil gave his sons ataresser, and so the names given by Elwing become amilesser.

Ataresser given by Eärendil hint at some form of directions to find Valinor.

Sûlamrûn = the wind east. Sindarin sûl or wind & amrûn or east. Translated into Quenya using the orró- prefix, referring to sunrise and east, and súrë, meaning wind, to make Orrósurë.

(Sîrannûn = the stream west. Sindarin sîr or river/stream here used to refer to an ocean current & annûn or west/sunset. Translated using the andú- prefix, meaning sunset and west and used in Andúril, and sírë, the Quenya of the Sindarin sîr, to make Andúsírë. Annûn is also linked to the Sindarin dûn, as in Dûnedain. See what I did there?)

Amilesser given by Elwing in memory of her brothers, Eluréd and Elurín, who were killed by Fëanorians in a forest, taur meaning forest in both Sindarin and Quenya. A massive guilt-trip, and the reason why both Elrond and Elros refuse to use their original Sindarin names, instead going by their translated Quenya names. 

Taurín = remembrance of the forest. The Sindarin rîn, remembrance, is translated as rénë, memory - thus Taurénë.

(Tauréd = heir of the forest. The Beorian rêda or heir is used, as in Eluréd. Instead of the Quenya for heir aryon, the alternative hildë is used in translation, meaning heir, follower or child. Hildë is the root of the Quenya word for Men: Hildor, which is more fitting for Elros - hence Taurildë.)

The suffix -ion is used in both Quenya and Sindarin to say son of -.

Eärendilion = son of Eärendil. Eärendil is unusual in that we are more familiar with his Quenya name. However it can be translated as Gaerdil - hence, in Sindarin, Gaerdilion.

Elwinion = son of Elwing. The -g is dropped because Elwingion is clunky. Elwing is translated into Quenya as Elenvingë - el and elen both meaning star, and gwing and vingë both meaning foam or spray. Hence, Elenvingion. A side note - the Quenya of Eärendil’s ship is the Vingilótë (Sindarin Vingelot), perhaps named after his wife, Elenvingë?

Néya in Quenya and nî in Sindarin = once, at one time or was, here used to show that they were formerly known by the following names, but these are no longer in use.

-yë suffix on Elenvingionyë in Quenya & a in Sindarin = and in their respective languages.

SECTION 3: Elrond’s Houses

Heru Fëanálië, Sánendoredainion, Hísilómedainion, Indor Arcimbele

Hîr Nost Fëanor, Bar Beorion a Bar Hadorion, Hîr Imladris

Heru = lord. Used in various phrases as a title. Sindarin equivalent - hîr. Both capitalised when written in the Latin alphabet, though elvish doesn’t capitalise letters.

Nost Fëanor = the House of Fëanor. Nost, meaning family, clan or house, also used to describe Nost Finarfin, so it works perfectly. Translated into Quenya as Fëanálië, the company of Fëanor (or rather, the Quenya version of his name, Fëanáro). Lië, meaning folk, is added to the name Tata to make Tatalië, the company of Tata, so the same rule is applied.

The suffix -ion is used in both Quenya and Sindarin to say son of -. The Quenya endain refers to the race of Men, as used to refer to the Men of the West, the Dúnedain. A in Sindarin = and.

Bar Beorion = son of the house of Beor. The Sindarin bar Bëora refers to the house of Bëor. The Beorians are also known as the Men of Dorthonion; Dorthonion, Sindarin for land of the pines, can be translated as Sánendor - hence Sánendoredainion means son of the Men of Dorthonion.

Bar Hadorion = son of the house of Hador. The name Hador is substituted for Beor, with the same meaning: son of this house. The Hadorians are also known as the Men of Hithlum; Hithlum in Quenya is Hísilómë - hence Hísilómedainion means son of the Men of Hithlum.

Indor = a niche Quenya term used specifically for the lord or master of a house - seemed to fit with the way Imladris is referred to as the House of Elrond and the Last Homely House. There is no Sindarin equivalent as far as I can see, so hîr is used again.

Imladris = Rivendell, the name of Elrond’s house. Rivendell in Quenya is Arcimbele.

SECTION 4: Heirships

Aryon Lestanórë Ondolindyë

Hîl Dóriath a Gondolin

Hîl = heir in Sindarin. There are two potential translations into Quenya: hildë, meaning heir, follower or child, but also used as descendant; aryon, a noun meaning heir or prince - literally son of property. In this case, Elrond is heir to the throne of two cities, so the royal aryon is most appropriate, as opposed to the more personal inheritance of a legacy implied by hildë.

Dóriath = Doriath, the Land of the Girdle, ruled over by Elu Thingol and Melian. The Quenya translation is Lestanórë. (Does being descended from Melian deserve a title in and of itself? Melianion?)

Gondolin = Gondolin, literally hidden rock, a city ruled by Turgon. The Quenya name for Gondolin is Ondolindë, meaning singing stone. (Being an heir to the royal House of the King of Gondolin could also add another layer of complexity...)

-yë suffix on Ondolindyë in Quenya & a in Sindarin = and in their respective languages.

SECTION 5: connection to Gil-Galad

Tercáno hildyë Aranion Ílë-Calima, enquëa Noldóran.

Taicyll a Hîl Erenion Gil-Galad, enchui Golodharan.

Tercáno = herald in Quenya, ter being through and cáno being commander. With no direct Sindarin translation, tain or message and cyll or bearer are combined into Taicyll.

Hîl = heir in Sindarin. There are two potential translations into Quenya: hildë, meaning heir, follower or child, but also used as descendant; aryon, a noun meaning heir or prince - literally son of property. Usually, the heir to a throne would be aryon, whilst a person’s next-of-kin or descendant is hildë. Thus Elrond is making a deliberate choice when he translates hîl in this case as hildë rather than aryon - he is Gil-Galad’s chosen next-of-kin, but not a prince or heir to the throne, miss me with that royalty shit.

Erenion Gil-Galad = Sindarin name meaning son of kings and star of radiance. A potential Quenya translation is Aranion - from ara, king, and -ion, son of - Ílë-Calima - form ílë, star, and calima, luminous.

Noldóran = noldor-king, the Quenya term for High King of the Noldor. The Sindarin version is Golodharan.

Enquëa = Quenya for sixth. Sindarin Enchui.

-yë suffix on hildyë in Quenya & a in Sindarin = and in their respective languages.

(FINAL NOTE:  Gil-Galad’s full name in Sindarin and Quenya:

SINDARIN: Finwain Erenion Rôdnaur Finellach Gil-Galad

QUENYA: Vinyafinwë Aranion Artáno Findenár Ílë-Calima

This proof that I’ve just invented means that Gil-Galad has to be Russingon’s lovechild because ain’t no way Irrelevant Estranged Cousin Orodreth the Politically Correct named his kid ‘new-finwë’ and also two other names to do with fire.)

Anyway I'm sure various people will pull more titles out of their asses and make everyone's day even worse (I'd love to hear what you guys come up with) but that's me done for now.

[littlekingstarss]

discussing the prewett familys canon info and speculating off of it !! (and also a tangent about felix rosier and google being ridiculous)

people headcannon gideon and fabian to do pranks as well as the marauders… that was mentioned in atyd and i posted about the quote and i started rambling about them… came up with an idea i actually like and have been thinking about them nonstop.

so the prewetts consist of gideon and fabian (twins), and molly. HOWEVER the harry potter wiki itself says that billius prewett could be another sibling, or is a sibling in law. not sure, but something to keep in mind bc we can’t have another lost sibling.

(referring to felix rosier… ive looked this up before and google told me that YES, they are brothers. i have been living my life since thinking that YES they are brothers. i’ve even seen people saying YES they are on tiktok. but i googled it just now to make sure… and with what i’m reading right now it’s saying that felix rosier is evan rosiers son. and um?? if we’re continuing with the hc that evan was in regulus’ year…. that would have made evan be a father at age 8. so i’m saying that’s false and that they’re still just brothers.) (that was not at all necessary to this post but thought it was interesting and funny.)

anyway, i said yesterday that what if molly was involved with her brothers pranks… and maybe were even her idea, who knows? and with her living through both of their deaths, pranks remind her of them and she grows to resent said pranks. explains fred and george stuff in canon. and she maybe blames part of herself for their death because of it… “if i hadn’t been such a distraction to them, maybe they would’ve studied harder, could’ve been stronger and protected themselves” type of deal? explains more with fred and george. terrified history would repeat itself!! i think thats so interesting and i would love to just build upon any idea of them.

so the three of them are literally cousins to sirius and regulus through marriage. lucretia black (orions sister) married ignatius prewett (who is gid, fab, and mollys uncle) sirius could hate them just because they’re related and it could start an amazing prank war and friendship. like hello?? its right there.

and very interesting fact !! LUCRETIA WAS NOT DISOWNED FOR MARRYING HIM? even though alot of the prewetts would’ve been considered blood traitors (bc they are sacred 28) which is weird because the black family marries through status. which makes me thinkkk that maybe ignatius himself could have been REALLY powerful and therefore known as himself and not just a prewett or wtv so he was accepted in??? maybe he joined their side of the war and that helped… that could be so interesting…

molly named her son after him literally?? percy ignatius weasley. so assuming they were close at one point?? maybe he just meant a lot to her in life but after the wedding there was a falling out… she realizes how much he truly had changed. so we could say she names percy after him to commemorate the person he used to be?

and maybe molly resents lucretia for “changing” her uncle…. and therefore by extension has a distaste for sirius because that’s his aunt. it adds depth to her yelling at him in canon….

and the last name prewett is welsh in origin and i know not everyone enjoys the welsh remus headcannon… but a connection could be there!! imagine remus knowing them before school? i like to think they’re a tiny bit older than all the marauders, so imagine an older sibling dynamic? them all taking scrawny little loser nerd boy remus under their wings. and not at all a good influence, but we love them regardless. (and i say loser and nerd affectionately, i am one too ok… hes so me)

hope lupin would LOVE them. molly coming over to help hope bake. that’s an adorable thought.

and because of all of that !!! this is more wolfstar with the prewetts, but imagine a fic where welsh prewetts and welsh remus are friends and remus is at their house…

now imagine that walburga is just SO done with sirius that she sends him off to live with his aunt lucretia for a bit because she and ignatius don’t have kids of their own and they can handle it ig?? (never had kids in canon either btw)

and maybe sirius is acting out… doesn’t want to be there either obviously. he doesn’t like his aunt, and doesn’t like ignatius in relation.

and imagine ignatius still trying his best to still have some type of relationship with his niece and nephews despite the differences…

and so he goes to visit them and he takes sirius because 1 he isn’t trusted to be on his own right now because mr chaos and trouble follows me everywhere and 2 because maybe it’ll be good for him to spend a little time around people closer to his age. and he meets remus and they fall in love and blahblahblah kicking my feet and blushing !

going to try and make an actual headcannon post later, this is just stuff i found in canon that could link into the marauders so there’s a start yk? i would love love love to see them as super depth heavy characters

[violetsarepurple-fuckyou]

Tag Game: People I'd like to Know Better

Thank you for tagging me @rapha-reads! I'm flattered! Hope your day is going well!

Last song: The Horse and The Infant, Epic the Musical (because I am a) obsessed with musical and b) was reading @nellie-elizabeth's excellent analysis of it and needed to compare with my ears and screech)

Last book: I tend to read multiple books at the same time so I'll give ya a handful lol! Beowulf: A New Translation, by Maria Dahvana Headley (very interesting, uses extremely modern language to tap into the energy of "bar story" that is under explored in a lot of Beowulf translations to my knowledge. I finished it last night), The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (first time reading, but obviously I know how it ends. I'm doing so ok right now.), Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (finished last week, I wrote an essay on Miyazaki for my film class last semester and wanted to check out the source material after years of watching the movie. It was very charming fun! And also I was listening to it in audiobook form, which meant that I got to listen to the welsh accent, which please me greatly.) and Ancient Greek Civilization by Jeremy McInerney (not sure if this counts as a book because it is in fact just a professor lecture via the Great Courses, but it is an audiobook on Libby so I am counting it lol).

Last TV show: Cunk on Earth last night with my family, Dimension 20 (Time Quangle) today while taking a lunch break, and last tv show BINGED would be The Magicians last week.

Sweet/savory/spicy: Sweet all the way!!! Every time!

Relationship status: Single, open to casual smooching of my friends and/or a ten year slow burn but low-key possibly aro-ace spec and not too worried about it atm

Last thing I googled: I'm not 100% sure because I have about 30 windows and 5 million tabs open right now and have been bopping between them all day screwing up my history thoroughly, but I think either petteia (search term something like "ancient greek equivalent for chess") or like... my school website.

Looking forward to: The Magicians Fanworks Extravaganza Welcome Home Week 1! I've been trying to get some writing done today and yesterday for it :D Also walking in the woods tomorrow, fingers crossed it isn't too snowy for that.

Current obsession: The Magicians, Epic the Musical/The Iliad and Odyssey, Dimension 20, and a dnd character I made that I got way too obsessed with and now cannot bear to risk the character development of through collaborative improv. I must write a book about her now, such is life.

No pressure tagging if anyone else would like to do this :) @eliotqueliot @nellie-elizabeth @portraitofemmy @ameliajessica @spiders-hth-is-an-outlier @hmgfanfic @bellamyblakru @unlifeira

[dontcallpanic]

Hi!! How are you doing?

Ok so I ran across this post and was wondering do you celebrate the new year on the 13th? I looked it up because your welsh posts and tags always so interesting to me. I am still working through the folklore book you recommend. But I saw that a small village and other surrounding villages celebrate the New Year on the 13th instead of the 1st.

Hey!! I'm so sorry this is late!?! Haaaaa

Also it's a great question but it totally threw me because we've always celebrated on the 1st (we actually, as a family, do First Footing which is a Scottish tradition but there you go! I'm a quarter Scottish so hopefully that counts!)

Anyway that got me thinking because I've definitely not heard of it being celebrated on the 13th before and this is so cool and I want to know more! I heard the Gower do Mari Llwyd on the 13th? But I wasn't sure if that was just when an event was planned... So I went digging...

Initially I was thinking it was linked to Plygain which is essentially a Welsh Carol service where they sing between 3 and 6am! I think there's some alternative religious calendar they use too and I THINK this is done on the 12th of Jan.

That then made me go ohhhh okay so maybe the original Welsh new year was on the 13th after Plygain... And the original calendar they're using is technically the right one because it's pre-roman? Maybe?

So then I googled it and I was like OHhh it's a south Walian thing!! (For context I grew up near the border and I lived the past 14 years in the North which might explain how I missed this!) I don't Think it's a thing in North Wales but I'm totally happy to be corrected! Anyway I have been delighted to find out that it's North Pembrokeshire local AND it's a big thing in the Cwm Gwaun which is hilariously close to where I currently am! And I'm so happy to hear that Hen Galan is very much alive and well! AND that they still do Calennig (which IS done in the north too!)

Ah this has been a real rabbit hole but I LOVE hearing about old traditions that have not only survived but that are still being practiced. Something I really love about Wales is that the traditional practices vary wildly from area to area and the way that people celebrate is deeply integrated into the local identity! I'm so glad that they are continuing these traditions and/or reviving them!

Also for your contextual fun and because I actually have this picture here's one side of the Cwm Gwaun, it's that long snake of trees (sorry it's a bit blurry, I had to crop out family members!)

This might have gotten a bit out of hand as a reply but this is just to the best of my knowledge! If anyone happens to know anything more about this, please let me know!

Thanks for this ask! I've learned SO much! (I hope you have too! Hope you're doing alright!)

[resident-idiot-simp]

Bit of a twist on the regular hybrid aus

A small percentage of people hybridise as their national/state animals because magic got reintroduced into the world a couple generations back

Soap is a Unicorn, Price, Gaz and Ghost are Lions and Roach is a Welsh dragon.

Graves and Alex are either bald eagles or long horns and Laswell is either a bald eagle, a calico cat or an Astrodon (a mother fucking dinosaur)

Farah is Phoenix and Hadir is a snow Leopard.

Alejandro and Rudy are Golden eagles and Valeria is a rattle snake.

Nick is a Eurasian brown bear

People didn’t think Soap would do well in the military because of how Unicorns are traditionally viewed, sometimes he still cops flack for it.

People hate losing mythic hybrids so Soap Roach and Farah are treated differently then regular hybrids.

Shepherd is jealous of the hybrids and Makarove wants magic extinguished from the world again. 

Maryland has a fucking DINOSAUR as one of its state animals wtf

Urzikstan and Las almas don’t actually exist so I Just went with what I thought fit (and what information I could google)

Sorry if this is too much/weird I got a bit carried away 😅

GREAT PREMIS LOVE THIS!!! This is a perfect idea with how to do hybrids.

Soap as a unicorn is based as FUCK!! Idk about Gaz, Ghost, and, Price all being lions but I don't hate it. I see Roach as Irish but a Welsh dragon is just as good.

Graves is a bald eagle, Alex is a long horn, and Laswell HAS to be the dinosaur I don't make the rules.

Farah as a phenix is perfect for a number of reasons and Hadir as a snow Lepard makes sense as well because of well...Russians.

Alejandro and Rudy as golden eagles is smart and Valeria as a rattle snake is good but also maybe a cobra/viper.

Nik a brown bear is great however here me out polar bear.

No your right people don't suspect for Soap to be as good as he is and that's perfect. and mythic hybrids being treated different is amazing because of course they would be.

Makarov and Shepard have perfect motivations to cause issues.

I did know about the Maryland's state bird lol it's so cool isn't it.

(No your fine it looks about right also it's fiction it's ok)

You are fine lol I love this kind of ask! I would love to hear more of your thoughts on this.

[assortedvillainvault]

ok if acceptable I'm dropping one more before closing time

"I remember you" with a reader being the reincarnation of someone the Horned King once loved

*Clutches chest* ROOOSSEEE-

This hurts me. In like, the best way. Here we go, modern reincarnation because I low-key would like to get lost in the Welsh Mountains forever (I have deadlines).

Also please forgive the Google translated Welsh at the end I did not have the time to look up proper medieval Welsh and asking someone real to translate would have been good to think of before I started operating on 5% brain. If anyone following me is a native Welsh speaker pls DM me or leave a comment and I'll correct Google's attempt.

The Horned King x Reincarnated!Reader : 'I Remember You'

You have no fucking clue why you're here.

'Here' being the Ass-End of Nowhere, Wales. No phone reception, no services, no people and no tourists. Except, uh, yourself. Obviously.

You got up, drove out, picked a random direction between two hills and. Started walking. You don't even know why.

You just know that there's something further into the mountains that your soul is ITCHING to get to. You've always felt it, but recently ignoring it has started to feel like being pulled through barbed wire.

The ground is rough and uneven, tussocks and hidden rocks threaten to turn your ankles every other step. The trees that twist their way along the crevices of the high moorland are all but draped in moss and thorns. The mountains arching up behind them are unwelcoming, cold and cragged.

It's...eerily quiet. No birds, no people...even the sheep seemed to stop at some hidden border a few miles back. Just the low moan of the wind accompanies you.

As you walk, you find yourself stealing glances at the sky. You tell yourself it's for birds - Kites and eagles maybe - but you have to keep a strange disappointment down that it's nothing larger. What are you expecting for fucks sake? Dragons??

You're so busy scanning the skies that you topple arse over tea kettle down the next scree slope like a graceful spaghetti mannequin with a screaming feature.

You manage to scrabble and hiss to a stop, skin on your arms and legs scraped raw. And upon looking up suck in a breath that has nothing to do with your sliced up hands.

It's as though a giant scooped the earth away and set it on fire for good measure. Bare reddish black rock contends with a bitter snarl of dead grasses and lonely tree corpses. Beyond lies a dessicated crevass that looks like a lake drained away overnight.

Beyond that, is a castle.

You blink and tear the vision that seared across your eyes - of a fully fleshed gothic fortress - away. What lies before you is a ruin. The bones of the structure, at best.

The barbed wire in your soul is all but yanking you toward the ancient structure. You don't notice that the path you tread towards it is one you can find without looking, despite the terrain.

The bridge, rotted and rusted as it is, is mostly secure. You keep your weight to the bolted metal crisscrossing the wood as you make your way across, slow and steady and feeling as though phantom archers have their sights on you from atop the wall.

As you pass under the archway to the courtyard, you shiver violently. The feeling of passing under so familiar that it almost clawed it's way out from your skin.

The very air seems to hold it's breath as you make your way deeper into the crumbling structure. Water drips from the stonework, the doors all long since rotted from their hinges. Tools lie forgotten on the cobbles. If it wasn't so creepy it would be an archaeologists dream.

Why does no-one around seem to know this is here? Why is this place so undisturbed?

You stumble into what must have been the Great Hall.

Cold sunlight shafts through holes in the ceiling, the corners in absolute darkness. Skeletons lie in piles across the floor, roughly around where large tables should have been, weapons scattered akimbo as though they didn't even get a chance to use them before they fell.

Your eyes are dragged to the dias. There's a body on the throne.

It's slouched, slumped, as if whoever this was had thrown themselves back on the seat and collapsed in exhaustion. The mothbitten red robe and fur stole is strung with spiderwebs connecting them him to the throne, but this isn't what yanks on the barbed wire in your soul.

The pair of great, regal thorn like horns protuding from the figures hood are angled towards you.

Your feet carry you forward.

The figures face is obscured but you know it, the fingers curled loosely still with flesh, after all this time, no weapons around the dias but no evidence of wounds on the body as if he would need them, as if they could ever lay a finger on their King-

Your hand trembles, reaching out to touch the nearest horn irrestisably, not even daring to breathe.

The corpse lurches.

An arctic vice closes on your wrist, bones grinding as he yanks you to your knees on the stone. His fist is impossible to pry loose even as you scrabble at it, nails ripping at leathery hide- heart pounding-

His second hand closes on your neck and you freeze.

Twin red lights blaze from under the hood. Pupils in a black socket that focus hazily on your face, blinking as if rising from a dream that still has its hooks in him. The hand on your neck squeezes and you gasp, eyes bulging, wrist forgotten as you plead with your hands against the unstoppable force around your neck.

Brows twitch as he watches you struggle. Marginally, the fingers loosen and you suck in air, sounding like a broken bellows compared to the cathedral-esque empty quality of the air passing through his chest.

Gently, reverently, knarled fingers parse hair from your forehead. You didn't even realise he'd released your wrist. Your throat remains in his grip.

You meet his gaze as the last of the fog clears from his sockets. His voice, rusted and broken from disuse, still rumbles from his throat like a shuddering landslide.

"Rwy'n eich cofio, fy annwyl."

"I remember you, my dear."

[butmakeitgayblog]

Am Scottish n we have not one but TWO towns called Twatt here (I think idk I’ve only been to one of em). Also my Welsh auntie lives in a town called Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, which I can fully pronounce. Aye can confirm the UK ain’t real

I was like pfft ok this is a joke so I googled it

And I will be God fucking damned if it ain't real

I want to throw up

[wawek]

I'm actually from South Wales, speak Welsh, and have an ok knowledge of history. Let me know if I can help 🇵🇱💖🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

Omg thats super cool :0!!! I dont think i have any specific questions rn bc my knowledge is very basic so im watching foraging videos and googling the plants atm and thats providing me a whole lot of previously unknown info dkdndk but if you have a fav local recipe (or a few) id love to see :D for the dnd im mostly interested in stuff made with ingredients that werent brought over from americas but in general id also love to hear whatever you think is nice ^_^

[knightofhylia]

sometimes I google my spirits names just to see if anything comes up and it's always like some weird newspaper archive HTML

random spew but it still

has THE RIGHT LETTERS like idk if they are speaking to me in code or smth but it's like hm.... what are the chances that some random webpage would have the name Llolineu?? and more weirdly it shows up again it's supposed to be the word holiness in the article???

the interesting thing about this Spirit is that I got the name spelling a lot time ago and just was like 'ok cool random spirit letters'. then my husband starts learning welsh and tells me about the double L letter and I'm like oh???? huh. funny how the spirit who claims to be from the UK would have a random welsh letter thrown in. also huh his nickname (Puka) is a lot like the Pooka, you know, the old English goblins? Oh, and it's kinda funny, his little group of spirits are called the goblins.... huh.. hahah....

[therubyreader]

My Review of The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

See a full list of my book reviews here

*Disclaimer: there will be spoilers later on in the review*

Review Word Count, non-spoiler: 1,008 Review Word Count Total: 1,692

Am I writing a review for a book I just finished yesterday instead of waiting for weeks and by the time I get to writing I’m already done with the whole series??? Looks like it, but don’t get used to this because I know I’m going to be back to my horrible habits soon enough. In the first ever installment of “a book review written about a book a real person in my real life recommended to me” (or another much catchier title) I bring you a review of The Raven Boys.

The book brings us to the fictional town of Henrietta, Virginia (yes I did just Google if it was real, I am multiple shades of not the smartest) where we are introduced to Blue Sargent, the daughter of the town psychic, or well one of them, and she lives with her aforementioned mother, aunts, and cousin. The women of 300 Fox Way are all psychically gifted, except for Blue, who is only able to amplify their gifts but has none of her own. On the night of St. Mark’s Eve it is tradition that Blue and her mother go to an abandoned cemetery and watch the spirits of the townspeople who will die that year walk through, though Blue can’t see them this year is different, she sees the spirit of a boy named Gansey meaning he is either her true love or he dies by her hand (she’s fated to kill her true love with a kiss so, it could be both). Parallel to this, Gansey is looking for the mythical Welsh king Glendower who is prophesied to grant a wish to the person who wakes him and his search brings him, unknowingly, to Blue. Together they, as well as Gansey’s friends Ronan, Adam, and Noah, search for the ley line that runs through Henrietta in hopes it leads them to where Glendower’s body is hidden.

I’m going to be totally transparent with you all and let you know that my friend has been trying to get me to read the Raven Cycle books for a solid amount of years, probably almost as long as I’ve known them (which has been almost seven years now) but I finally caved when they said they would read the Shadow and Bone trilogy in exchange, and I can’t pass up a good deal. I was hesitant to read the book because the summary doesn’t really do it justice, and also it just didn’t appeal to me even after my friend explained it. I think it just felt a lot like something I would’ve read in middle school, but not in a fun nostalgic way, and this was most likely because I did read another of Maggie Stiefvater’s books in middle school, Shiver, and my werewolf phase is a dark past I’m not trying to remember. And I honestly had this apprehensive feeling throughout the first half of the book where I couldn’t shake that vibe of middle school negativity but I forced myself to read it and to endure because I made a deal with my friend and they were nice enough to let me borrow their copy of the book complete with the author’s autograph and my mother didn’t raise a quitter. I think this feeling was made worse because I literally couldn’t stand any of the raven boys, save for my boy Adam, and eventually Noah, throughout the whole first half which in hindsight is good writing. Stiefvater did a great job writing entitled rich boys who are horrible in their own unique ways but I actually started to like (or well, be ok with) the other two boys by the end of the book.

I think once the action of the story really got going then I actually started to enjoy it, though it is a little annoying that I had to read about half the book before anything with consequence or excitement started happening. But, then again, I’m someone who really likes more action and conflict heavy books no matter how much they trigger my anxiety so this style of book where all of the world building and setting up the conflict take up the first half of the narrative without much consequential action isn’t super my thing. That being said, once I got over that (and myself) I actually enjoyed the book quite a bit, sorry for doubting you [insert friend’s name here for privacy reasons]. I enjoyed how each of the children’s (they’re teenagers but I’m an adult so they’re children to me) back stories and life circumstances are woven into the story, that it’s not just them looking for this mythical king but also them experiencing the hardships of life while on this quest. These characters are all very real with very real problems so you can relate to them all in one way or another which definitely adds to the story so it doesn’t feel like a run of the mill fantasy story that doesn’t have any depth or humanity. The question of “don’t these kids have school?” that a lot of stories with teenage protagonists makes you ask isn’t really necessary in this book because they do have school and their plans have to be put on hold until the end of their school day on top of the plot heavily revolving around Ronan’s horrible academic behavior.

Though this isn’t my favorite book ever it definitely exceeded my expectations (which, let’s be honest, were very low and that was entirely my own doing) and I’m very excited to continue reading the series, I already got my hands on the second book (public library beloved) and I only read the prologue as of right now which is already very intriguing. I will say if you’re interested in this book I do recommend giving it a chance but you will have to power through a solid chunk of it before it really gets good but overall a very Stranger Things but for a different breed of nerds vibes out of ten.

Spoilers Below!!

There are a lot of things I want to talk about in terms of the specifics of this book that I don’t know what I want to talk about first so I’ll just go in order of least complicated to most. First, Gansey calling Blue “Jane” because he thinks her name is stupid, rude. He’s right but like, that’s her name dude, she likes it, stop being mean. Another thing that doesn’t require many words is that it isn’t really explained how so many people are just presented with this idea of magic and are cool with it. I know Adam kind of touches on him being convinced by Gansey that magic is real and so is Glendower but I feel like in our day and age (which this is supposed to be set in, just ten years ago) not many people would be on board with it. I don’t know, it might just be me, but if you told me at seventeen that you were looking for a mythical king and a ley line I would think that you’re insane and probably not talk to you very often after that. But then again this could probably just be chalked up to their version of our reality being more accepting and open to magic and I could just be overthinking it, which wouldn’t be out of the ordinary for me. 

I also wanted to talk about the absolute plot twist of Noah being a ghost this whole time. I texted my friend about it as soon as I read that part and they told me it was stated right at the beginning of the book when Declan is introducing the raven boys to his newest girlfriend. I honestly didn’t remember it and so I went back and there it was, she made a comment about his hands being cold and he responded something along the lines of “I’ve been dead for seven years so that’s about as warm as they get” and then it isn’t acknowledged by literally anyone or the book itself. I think I just laughed it off as an angsty teenage boy joke but he was being serious. When Gansey and Blue found his body (which, why was it near the cemetery, did we ever address that?) I figured it would be the body of Czerny, just process of elimination, but when the ID said Noah, I was shocked. Then I thought it was like that thing where Ronan from the future wrote a note on the rock for Ronan from the past and this was going to be Noah’s future but nope, he was a ghost. I did think the ending where they dug up his bones and reburied them on the ley line was funny in a cute endearing way, especially with how Noah immediately started patting Blue’s hair. 

I am going to take this moment to pour one out for my homie Adam, that boy is too pure and kind for this world and he just receives the worst end of the stick possible. First, his dad is absolutely awful, he is a scholarship kid at a rich private school which probably feels horrible, and then he likes Blue and he doesn’t even know he’s going to get his heart broken in the future because Gansey is obviously Blue’s true love. I do hope Adam is able to have a happy ending at the end of the series because that’s what he deserves, life keeps beating him up for no reason. Justice for my man Adam. 

I think the thing I’m most excited to see is how the whole Blue and Gansey relationship is going to pan out, especially since she’s supposed to kill him, which sounds morbid but I know they’re going to find a loophole to keep him alive somehow and I just want to see what it is. Watch me be wrong and he just straight up dies, the end. Anyways, the moral of the story here is that you should trust your friend when they recommend a book because you’re going to like it.

[goldenfharry]

Prynhawn da, cariad!

You're probably fed up of hearing (reading?) it but how are you in yourself? Hope things are looking up and if not now, that they soon will.

I doubt you watch it but we have a programme here called Britain's Got Talent and last night a Welsh male voice choir called John's Boys sang Falling by Mr Styles. Sounds so different being sang by a choir but they did it beautifully. Google it if you get chance. If you ever wanted to hear a beautiful version of a Welsh song, Google "Only Boys Aloud BGT" also a Welsh male voice choir that someone set up for boys aged 14-19 from the Welsh Valleys to keep them out of trouble and keep the tradition of Welsh male choirs going. They sing a song called Calon Lan which means 'Pure Heart'. A beautiful song done so very well.

Anyway, signing off now,

Llawer o gariad I chi (lots of love to you)

Mama Dragon 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿😘

Hi Mama Dragon!

If anxiety was a person right now, that would be me. I am anxiety. Anxiety is me. But, even if I cry like hell, I’m still doing it, so I’m ok. 💛

Fun fact: every talent or reality show that the UK produced, it’s broadcasted in Portugal ahahahah so I’ve seen it all, you name it: Britain’s Got Talent, X Factor, Love Island… don’t tell anyone, but the last one is my guilty pleasure. 🫠

I’ve actually heard about that version, but I haven’t seen it yet. After your review I will absolutely search for it and tell you about it after!!!

🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂🫂

[hanghenfil]

How do you pronounce hanghenfil? And where does the name come from. If you don't mind explaining.

ang-gen-fill! or thats how me and google translate read it

anghenfil/hanghenfil is the welsh word for monster! :D 

anghenfil is definitely the more common (if not, more correct--despite being partly welsh i sadly cant speak the language :( ) but the url was taken so 

hanghenfil it is!! 👀

[nachoaveragejoe234]

OK, so one of the weirdest people who is pro-racebending is Tommy Ross. The only thing I like is how he defends redhead rep in another video (his Peter Pan video), saying that the racebenders need to stop removing the red hair which is good. And yes the casting for Lilo and Stitch is wrong.

I have a few problems with him that make him one of the worst.

When he shows a picture of Danish people and asks sarcastically if they look oppressed. Firstly, there is no such thing as an "oppressed look" idiot, secondly, they have technically been oppressed. The world likes Scandinavians but Denmark and Norway were two of the countries the Nazis invaded, so technically YES. Because the Nazis commited atrocitices against Danes and Norwegians. Secondly, as much as Ariel doesn't have many indications to Danish culture, Danish culture is real and it's just as rich as anyone elses. So you're inherently saying "Danish culture doesn't exist".

When he gets mad at POC who think racebending is leftovers. He's literally invalidating POC opinions and trying to GUILT and manipulate the POC who disagree into becoming part of the cult. It's gaslighting. And the irony of this here is that it's coming from a WHITE BRITISH MAN, so a WHITE BRIT, you know, the ENGLISH, some of the most oppressive people in history, is trying to speak for a certain group of POC to brainwash them into becoming internet idiots. Hmmmm, as the POC bigots say, "white saviour check your privilege".

I wonder what he really would say if they racebent Merida or Anna and Elsa in live action Frozen remakes. I hope he believes Europeans have culture, but that thing about Denmark makes me suspicious he'd mock and invalidate Scottish and Norwegian culture and say they're not oppressed. That would especially be disgusting in Merida's case because Scottish people have absolutely been oppressed and still somewhat are, just Google it or look at the Scots who want independence and keep their culture alive (same with the Irish and Welsh), as well as the fact that he's again, from England. England is the county that oppressed the Scots in the FIRST PLACE so for him specifically to deny Scots because of "POC" he's ultimately continuing England's attemtps to destroy Scotland and Scottish culture.

He retorts to the original content request with "you don't go and see it", when in reality, a lot of people do and will. The problem is not the audience but Hollywood and creators not promoting them enough, or when they're not at fault, it's when a bad situation is happening that is out of control such as a virus outbreak or strike or boycott.

He defends Rachel Zegler.

wow you really are an idiot aren’t you? no dipshit, they’re not making tiana white because that is /racist/. tiana is based on a real life black woman. changing the little mermaid, a fictional blonde book character, to a black girl for a new version of the story is however /not/ racist. y’all can let black girls have more than one (1) token princess without losing your shit you know.

Dude NOBODY has a problem with POC characters. 

What people have a problem with is the INTENT. Disney did this with an ulterior motive. They changed Ariel to Black because they knew the Disney live action remakes are always horrible and never measure to the original. They knew if they changed her race and anyone (even other Black people) criticized the remake, they could always deflect to calling critics racist and guilt people into seeing the film. It was the exact same strategy they did for Wrinkle in Time and everyone saw through it, which was why the movie flopped. 

When Tiana was created it was with genuine effort and WITHOUT this sort of ulterior motive. And guess what? Everyone loved her. Nobody cared when Finn from Star Wars was Black except for trolls. Nobody cares when movies with Black characters like Moonlight and Get Out are made, because in those stories there was no ulterior motive behind them being Black. 

Also there are so many African stories existing. They could have made an animated movie with an African story instead of lazily changing the race of an existing character. All that implies is original Black characters can’t exist and you have to change someone’s race to put Black people in stories. If you ask me that’s more racist. 

[evilwickedme]

This may be WILDLY belated considering when the books were published, but what’s the Raven Cycle about/why is it good in your opinion? Always heard a lot about it in the abstract but nothing actually about the plot.

I mean yeah it's a little belated but better late than never is real and especially applies to one of my fav books of all time

Ok so what is TRC about? In a literal sense it's about a girl named Blue, who isn't psychic but who lives in a house full of women who are including her mom, who's been told her entire life that if she kisses her true love, he will die. She then gets involved with a group of boys from the local prep school, Gansey, Adam, Ronan, and Noah, who - under Gansey's leadership - are looking for a dead (possibly not actually dead) Welsh King right there in West Virginia.

But that's just the story. Listen, this thing's got intrigue and murder and soft magic systems for days, but that's not what makes TRC one of my all time favorite books of all time.

So what is TRC about? As a whole, it's about family - in all its forms. Blood relations, for better and for worse, and friendships that are closer than blood. As a whole, it's about class - the ways class shapes us and the opportunities we do or do not get because of it and what it means about our past, present, and future and how it lets us relate to one another or prevents us from understanding one another.

But on an individual level, each character undergoes such specific arcs that are somehow so universal you can't help but empathize with all of them. It's about learning that you don't hate yourself, or at least learning to stop hating yourself. It's a coming out narrative. It's about getting out of an abusive situation and the many steps it takes to recover from that mindset. It's about chasing love. It's about desire. It's about wanting to plant your feet in the ground and still reach for the stars.

It's also about cars. And trees. There are so many trees.

Like seriously. A fuckload of trees.

Why is it good? It's well written, for one. All my copies, whether digital or physical, are covered in highlights and notes and google translations of latin. I've analyzed and analyzed again and read and reread these books and I always find something new in them.

There's something that's so homey about the minds of these characters. Especially having first read them as a deeply strange teen, they capture something about being a deeply strange teen that I simply haven't seen anywhere else. And this is the example of the found family trope, for me. These deeply strange teens who found other deeply strange teens to understand and love them.

The supporting cast here is also rich and varied. There's something like thirty POVs in the final book but it doesn't feel like it, because you've been existing alongside these characters for so many pages that getting to say goodbye to all of them is all that makes sense.

Beyond that a lot of the reasons I think are good are straight up spoilers or even veer into discourse. But yeah, TRC is worth your time. Several times over.

Also, the audiobooks are like, fine, and available for free on Spotify, which fucked up my stats for 2021 and also forever and ever in general, so there you go.

(I've only read each book in the sequel series, The Dreamer Trilogy, once each, so I'm not nearly as eloquent on it as I am this one, but I will say that it's also worth reading, but it deals with entirely different subjects, is a little darker, and I don't love it as much. I'm not unhappy with the end Maggie Stiefvater gave us for this world, however.)