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Manogan
A Cymric Ancestral God, also known as Mynogan, Minnocanus: Binding Song
Manogan (Mynogan, Minnocanus) is a Cymric (Welsh) ancestral god known from the patronymic of other deities. Manogan may not have been a corporeal entity and it was his song that brought the other deities into being. |
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Cym: Binding Song
Manogan is a very shadowy figure in Cymric mythos, the ultimate ancestor deity. He is known only as the patronymic of Beli Fawr as given in the lineage of Beli's daughter Penarddun in the Mabinogi of Branwen ferch Llŷr. In the Mabinogion of Cyfranc Lludd a Llefelys the father of Beli Fawr is again given as Manogan. In his Historia Brittonum Nennius gives Beli Fawr's parentage as Belinus filius Minnocanus which would seem to be a fairly obvious Latinization of the Cymric, though it may point to a Brythonic source for the name of Manogan/Mynogan as Minocanos which would make Manogan's name a derivative of the reconstructed proto-Cetic roots: *mi-nu- (to bind) and kan-o- (sing) giving us something like 'Binding Song'
Manogan may well not be a truly corporeal entity, which would make Beli the first corporeal entity; the father of all the gods and humans. Indeed, by way of his daughter, Penarddun (who became the wife of Llŷr, Beli could be described not only as the paterfamilias of the Plant Dôn but also the ancestor of their opponents, the Plant Llŷr. This would fit in with Manogan's name as 'Binding Song'; his being the voice that bound the first of the Cymric deities into being. It should be noted though that Manogan was not unknown as a personal name during the middle ages. The genealogy of the ruler of Gwynedd and Powys, Rhodri Mawr (the great) on the distaff side being given as Rhodri Mawr m Nest merch Cadell Powys m Brochvael m Elisse m Coleddawg m Beli m Seliff m Cynan Garwyn m Brochfael Yscithrog m Manogan m Pasgen m Cadell Deyrlloch m Cadarn m Gwyrtheyrn Gwrtheu. Mostyn MS 117 has also grafted the genealogy of the Cymric gods (Lludd m Beli Fawr m Manogan) into the midst of the ancestry of the house of Gwynedd giving Manogan's father as Dyfnwal Hen and tracing the lineage all the way back to Adam and god.
It does seem, however, that in early times Manogan was used as a personal name. The name Monocan occurs in the Cartulaire de Redon and there is also an Ogham inscription to MINNACCANNI (Minnocannos). Thus it would seem that Nennius' Minnocanus may well represent the elder form of the name making the etymology given above more likely that the usual interpretaton of Manogan's name as being derived from the same root that yields the Cymric mynawg (noble, curteous).
If you would like to try the foods of the time of the ancient Celts, then why not have a look at the ancient recipes section of this site. For the foods of the time when some of these tales were written down, take a look at the Medieval recipes section of the site and, in particular, the recipes from The Forme of Cury.
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