Croeso! (Welcome!) to Welsh Paganism in the U.S.! Wales is a Celtic nation in the
southwest of the isle of Britain, and so this falls under the “Celtic Paganism” umbrella. This
course assumes a basic foundation in Paganism and/or witchcraft but zero prior knowledge
of Welsh culture, language, geography, or history. There will be some participatory activities
during class such as guided meditations and journeying as well as practices to try at home.
We will be learning the foundations of building a Welsh polytheistic practice, including:
1. recommended sources from modern practitioners in Wales,
2. core lore,
3. traditional observances,
4. folk magic and recipes,
5. the history of Welsh-centered Pagan practices,
6. Pagan-friendly and seasonal Welsh music, and
7. building a practice that is both relevant to you and respectful to the source culture.
Please note that I (your class host) am not Welsh. I am an American who practices
Welsh-centric polytheism and will be sharing with you what has worked for me. I have been
a dedicant of Rhiannon since 2013, lived in Wales for 1 year, visited 2 other times, and have
been studying Welsh and Gallo-Brythonic Pagan-relevant sources for over 10 years. I am
also currently undergoing both a masters in Celtic Studies at the University of Wales Trinity
Saint David (class of 2025) as well as the year-long membership course for the Anglesey
Druid Order headed by Welsh Druid and author Kristoffer Hughes (class of 2024). While I
cannot share specific materials and practices from those courses, I can share relevant
insights and publicly available sources. As for this course, some reading and at-home
practice will be needed for you to get the most out of it – citations and recommended
reading lists will be provided.
This course runs for 10 weeks. The schedule for 2024 is as follows:
● Day 1 - Monday 10 June: Welsh Gods & Spirits
● Day 2 - Monday 24 June: Welsh Lore Part 1: The Mabinogi Branches 1 & 3
● Day 3 - Monday 1 July: Welsh Lore Part 2: The Mabinogi Branches 2 & 4
● Day 4 - Monday 15 July: Traditional Observances: Folk Customs from Calan Mai
(Calends of May) to Calan Gaeaf (Calends of Winter)
● Day 5 - Monday 29 July: Welsh Lore Part 3: Culhwch and Olwen & Welsh Arthur
● Day 6 - Monday 12 August: Traditional Observances: Folk Customs from Winter
Solstice to Spring Equinox
● Day 7 - Monday 26 August: Welsh Lore Part 4: Hanes Taliesin, Cerridwen, & the
Awen
● Day 8 - Monday 9 September: The Physicians of Myddfai & Welsh Folk Magic
● Day 9 - Monday 23 September: Welsh Lore Part 5: Welsh Folk & Fairy Stories
● Day 10 - Monday 7 October: Cultural appropriation vs participation – crafting a
practice that is local while still respecting and rooting practice in the source culture
Classes will meet Monday nights at 7:00 pm on Zoom. Each class meeting will be recorded
for those who cannot make the scheduled live class time. The course is $10/class or $100
for the whole course (there is a half price sliding scale option for those who would have
difficulty paying the full course fee). Edrych ymlaen ato! (Looking forward to it!)
