The author's dissertation, defended on 26 June 2008.
abstract:The author offers a study of the ‘Celtic bestiary’ which is understood here as the sum of the reel species above all; an overall view of the function and role of animals in medieval Celtic literature will be given, analysing especially the mythological, heroic and hagiographical texts. The evolution of the role of antique and medieval cult animals will be dealt with. The symbolism of the other species will be studied as well. The corpus analysed here – medieval Celtic literature - will be presented, references will be made to other civilizations (Indo-European and others). The medieval tradition will be compared with the folklore of pre-modern times. Several aspects linked with the animal world will be dealt with as well: the complex question of shamanism and totemism and their applicability to Celtic beliefs; animal sounds and music and their relation to human music; animal metamorphosis, animal metaphors, faunal onomastic and anthroponomy including animal terminology as well as the classification / taxonomy of the animal world. The second part is a catalogue of the species known to the medieval Celts; their role and symbolism will be briefly discussed. The third part consists of an analysis of the bestiary contained in a well-known Breton hagiographical text: the Life of St. Malo. Some of the elements studied here clearly show that the medieval Breton literary tradition belongs to the Celtic insular tradition, together with the literature of Ireland, the Isle of Man, Scotland, Wales and Cornwall.
