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Revision as of 09:37, 15 March 2018
The bean nighe (Scottish Gaelic for "washer woman") is a female spirit in Scottish folklore, regarded as an omen of death and a messenger from the Otherworld. She is a type of bean sìth (in Irish bean sídhe, anglicized as "banshee") that haunts desolate streams and washes the clothing of those about to die.
Legends
The bean nighe, also known as the Washing Woman or Washer at the Ford, is seen in lonely places beside a stream or pool, washing the blood from the linen and grave-clothes of those who are about to die. Her characteristics vary depending on the locality, and differing traditions ascribe to her the powers of imparting knowledge or the granting of wishes if she is approached with caution. It is said that mnathan nighe (the plural of bean nighe) are the spirits of women who died giving birth and are doomed to perform their tasks until the day their lives would have normally ended.[1] It was also believed that this fate could be avoided if all the clothing left by the deceased woman had been washed. Otherwise, she would have to finish this task after death.[2][3]
On the Isles of Mull and Tiree she was said to have unusually long breasts that interfere with her washing so she throws them over her shoulders and lets them hang down her back. Those who see her must not turn away, but quietly approach from behind so that she is not aware. He should then take hold of one of her breasts, put it in his mouth, and claim to be her foster-child. She will then impart to him whatever knowledge he desires. If she says the clothing she is washing belongs to an enemy then he can allow the washing to continue, but if it belongs to himself or any of his friends then he can stop her from completing her task and avoid his fate.[3]
On the Isle of Skye the bean nighe was said to have a squat figure resembling a "small pitiful child". If a person catches her she will reveal to him his ultimate fate. She answers all his questions but he must also truthfully answer hers in return. If however the bean nighe sees him first then he will lose the use of his limbs.[3]
In Perthshire she was described as small and rotund and dressed in green, and can be caught by getting between her and the stream.[3]
The bean nighe is sometimes said to sing a mournful dirge as she washes the clothing of someone who is about to meet a sudden death by violence. If a person can seize hold of her after a stealthy approach then she will reveal who is about to die and will also grant three wishes.[4] She is sometimes described as having various physical defects including having only one nostril, a large protruding front tooth, or red webbed feet.[5]
One popular Highland story connected with the washing of death shrouds regards the so-called "Mermaid of Loch Slin". A maiden from Cromarty was walking along a path by the side of this loch one Sabbath morning, and after turning a corner she saw a tall woman standing in the water "knocking claes" (clothes) on a stone with a bludgeon. On a nearby bleaching-green she observed more than thirty smocks and shirts, all smeared with blood. Shortly following the appearance of this figure, the roof of Fearn Abbey collapsed during worship service, burying the congregation in debris and killing thirty-six people.[6] Historically, the abbey roof did collapse in 1742 with the death toll reckoned at nearly fifty.[7]
Etymology
A bean nighe ("washerwoman") is a specific type of bean sìth.[8]
Both the Irish bean sídhe and the Scottish Gaelic bean sìth (both meaning "woman of the sídhe", "fairy woman" or "woman of peace") are derived from the Old Irish ben síde, "fairy woman": bean: woman, and sídhe: the genitive of "fairy".
In Scottish Gaelic, bean sìth can also be spelled bean-shìdh. Both are correct.
Sìth in Scottish Gaelic (síd in Old Irish, also means "peace"), and the fairies are referred to as the daoine sìth (Irish, daoine sídhe) - the "people of peace". Sídhe, in its variant spellings, refers to the sídhe (mounds) where these beings dwell.
The bean nighe is sometimes known by the diminutives ban nigheachain ("little washerwoman") or nigheag na h-àth ("little washer at the ford").
See also
References
- ^ Briggs, Katharine (1976). An Encyclopedia of Fairies. Pantheon Books. pp. 19–20. ISBN 0394409183.
- ^ Briggs (1976). p. 15.
- ^ a b c d Campbell, John Gregorson (1900). Superstitions of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. Glasgow: James MacLehose and Sons. pp. 42–44.
- ^ Mackenzie, Donald (1935). Scottish Folklore and Folk Life. Blackie & Son Limited. p. 239.
- ^ Briggs (1976). pp. 16, 19.
- ^ MacGregor, Alasdair Alpin (1937). The Peat-Fire Flame: Folktales and Traditions of the Highlands and Islands. The Moray Press. p. 298.
- ^ "Fearn Abbey". Undiscovered Scotland.
- ^ Campbell, John Gregorson (1900, 1902, 2005) The Gaelic Otherworld. Edited by Ronald Black. Edinburgh, Birlinn Ltd. ISBN 1-84158-207-7 p.311: "A bean shìth is any otherworld woman; the bean nighe is a specific otherworld woman."
