Banshee The banshee , from Irish: bean sí is a female
spirit in Irish mythology, usually seen as an omen of death and a messenger from the
underworld.
In legend, a banshee is a fairy woman who begins to wail if someone is about to die.
In Scottish Gaelic mythology, she is known as the bean sìth or bean-nighe and is seen
washing the bloodstained clothes or armour of those who are about to die.
Alleged sightings of banshees have been reported as recently as 1948.
Similar beings are also found in Welsh, Norse and American folklore.
Overview The story of the banshee began as a fairy
woman keening at the death of important personages.
In later stories, the appearance of the banshee could foretell death.
Banshees were said to appear for particular Irish families, though which families made
it onto this list varied depending on who was telling the story.
Stories of banshees were also prevalent in the West Highlands of Scotland.
Banshees are usually seen by a person who is about to die in a violent way such as murder.
Although not always seen, her mourning call is heard, usually at night when someone is
about to die and usually around woods.
The banshee can appear in a variety of guises.
Most often she appears as an ugly, frightening hag, but she can also appear as a stunningly
beautiful woman of any age that suits her.
In some tales, the figure who first appears to be a "banshee" is later revealed to be
the Irish battle goddess, the Morrígan.
The banshee may also appear in a variety of other forms, such as that of a hooded crow,
stoat, hare and weasel – animals associated in Ireland with witchcraft.
In 1437, King James I of Scotland was approached by an Irish seer who was later identified
as a banshee who foretold his murder at the instigation of the Earl of Atholl.
There are records of several prophets believed to be incarnate banshees attending the great
houses of Ireland and the courts of local Irish kings.
In some parts of Leinster, she is referred to as the bean chaointe (keening woman) whose
wail can be so piercing that it shatters glass.
In Kerry in the southwest of Ireland, her keen is experienced as a "low, pleasant singing";
in Tyrone in the north, as "the sound of two boards being struck together"; and, on Rathlin
Island, as "a thin, screeching sound somewhere between the wail of a woman and the moan of
an owl".
History and mythology In legend, a banshee wails nearby when someone
is about to die.
There are some special families who are believed to have banshees attached to them, and whose
cries herald the death of a member of that family.
Most, though not all, surnames associated with banshees have the Ó or Mac prefix.
They were also associated with the Airlie clan.
Accounts of banshees go back as far as 1380 with the publication of the Cathreim Thoirdhealbhaigh
(Triumphs of Torlough) by Sean mac Craith.
Mentions of banshees can also be found in Norman literature of that time.
The Ban Si was also known to wail at the crowning of the true king.
Such a cry was reported to be heard at the crowning of Brian Boru.
Traditionally, when a person died a woman would sing a lament (in Irish: caoineadh,
or, "caoin" meaning "to weep, to wail") at the funeral.
These women are sometimes referred to as "keeners" and the best keeners would be in high demand.
Legend has it that for great Gaelic families – the O'Gradys, the O'Neills, the Ó Longs,
the McCnaimhíns, the Ó Briains, the Ó Conchobhairs, and the Caomhánachs – the lament would
be sung by a fairy woman; having foresight, she would sing it when a family member died,
even if the person had died far away and news of their death had not yet come, so that the
wailing of the banshee was the first warning the household had of the death.
The Ó Briains' banshee was thought to have the name of Eevul, and was ruler of 25 other
banshees who would always be at her attendance.
It is thought that from this myth comes the idea that the wailing of numerous banshees
signifies the death of a great person.
In later versions, the banshee might appear before the death and warn the family by wailing.
When several banshees appeared at once, it indicated the death of someone great or holy.
The tales sometimes recounted that the woman, though called a fairy, was a ghost, often
of a specific murdered woman, or a mother who died in childbirth.
Banshees are frequently described as dressed in white or grey, often having long, pale
hair which they brush with a silver comb, a detail scholar Patricia Lysaght attributes
to confusion with local mermaid myths.
This comb detail is also related to the centuries-old traditional romantic Irish story that, if
you ever see a comb lying on the ground in Ireland, you must never pick it up, or the
banshees (or mermaids — stories vary), having placed it there to lure unsuspecting
humans, will spirit such gullible humans away.
Other stories portray banshees as dressed in green, red, or black with a grey cloak.
In other mythologies American folklore
Stories of banshees can also be found in America in the late 18th century.
The most prevalent of the American stories comes from Tar River in Edgecombe County,
North Carolina.
However, in this variation of the story, the banshee is simply a ghoul, as opposed to a
sign of misfortune.
In the badlands of South Dakota, a banshee is said to wail upon a hill near Watch Dog
Butte.
Like other American tales of banshees, this legend does not connect her to any particular
death (aside, perhaps, from her own).
Other Celtic cultures In Scottish mythology, a similar creature
is known as the bean nighe or ban nigheachain (little washerwoman) or nigheag na h-àth
(little washer at the ford).
In Welsh folklore, a similar creature is known as the Hag of the mist.
Origin One explanation for the origin of the banshee
is in the screech of the Barn owl (Tyto alba).
The nocturnal hunter is known for its chilling screech and has long been associated with
agricultural activities in Ireland, attracted to the rodent activity around grain stores
and barns.
In media The 1959 Disney movie Darby O'Gill and the
Little People contains a scene where the title character encounters a pernicious banshee.
(See note at end of this section, for information about banshee behaviour in American popular
culture and how it differs from banshee behaviour in traditional Irish folklore.)
The Real Ghostbusters episode "Banshee Bake a Cherry Pie?"
depicts a banshee masquerading as an Irish pop singer and aiming to use its voice to
take over the world.
In Marvel Comics, "Banshee" was the code name of Sean Cassidy, an Irish member of the X-Men
with superhuman sonic abilities that he used to fly with the aid of a glider suit as well
as for offensive purposes.
The codename is later carried on by his daughter, Theresa Cassidy, formerly known as Siryn,
who possesses similar superhuman abilities.
She later encounters the Morrigan who explains that she has been many women and has been
known by many names.
Theresa later becomes the Morrigan and the Banshee of legend.
The 2010 horror movie Scream of the Banshee is about an archaeology professor who unearths
a dangerous artefact, unwittingly releasing a monstrous banshee that kills with the power
of its bone-splitting scream.
The 1990s animated television series Gargoyles episode "The Hound of Ulster" is about Irish
folklore and features a banshee as the main antagonist.
Note: "Banshee" (in Gaelic bean sidhe) originally meant "woman of the fairies".
The banshees in old Irish folklore were often presented as grieving women who were keening
(weeping/mourning) for the dead.
This appears in the Darby O'Gill and the Little People DVD extra I Captured the King of the
Leprechauns (originally a Walt Disney Presents or Wonderful World of Disney episode, telling
viewers about the making of, and some of the folklore which inspired parts of, the movie
Darby O'Gill and the Little People), in which the banshee is "keening for the young O'Brien"
and is in no way a pernicious or threatening character, but merely seen as a dark or sad
omen because she appears before people die.
She does not cause deaths, she mourns for the dead (or, eerily, the soon-to-be-dead).
The banshee in American popular culture (possibly starting with Darby O'Gill and the Little
People, in which some characteristics of later American pop culture banshee behaviour can
be seen) is typically a threatening and/or menacing figure who causes death and/or destruction
(thereby taking on characteristics belonging traditionally more to the Morrigan than to
the banshees).