Brigid, also spelled Brigit, is a goddess from pre-Christian Ireland. Her name means "exalted one" and is pronounced "BRIJ-id" or "BREE-id." She is part of the Tuatha Dé Danann, a group of gods in Irish mythology. Brigid is the daughter of the god Dagda and the wife of Bres. Together, they had a son named Ruadán.

Brigid is linked to wisdom, poetry, healing, protection, metalworking, and caring for domesticated animals. A 9th-century text called Cormac's Glossary, written by Christian monks, describes Brigid as "the goddess whom poets adored." It also mentions two other Brigits: one who healed and one who worked with metal. This suggests Brigid may have been part of a group of three related goddesses. She is also believed to be connected to the British Celtic goddess Brigantia.

Saint Brigid shares many of the same traits as the goddess. Her feast day, February 1, was originally a festival called Imbolc. Some people believe Saint Brigid was created by Christians to replace the goddess, or that stories about the goddess were passed down to her. Imbolc was likely associated with the goddess before it became linked to Saint Brigid.

Name

The name Middle Irish Brigit [ˈbʲɾʲiʝidʲ] changed into early modern Irish Brighid [bʲɾʲiːdʲ]. After a spelling change in 1948, the name was officially written as Bríd [bʲɾʲiːdʲ]. This name influenced many forms in European languages. It began with Medieval Latin Brigida, then spread to English Bridget, French Brigitte, Swedish Birgitta or Birgit, and Finnish Piritta.

The name comes from Proto-Celtic Brigantī, meaning "the high one" or "the exalted one." It is related to the name of the ancient British goddess Brigantia, and Brigid may be connected to her. It is also related to the Old High German name Burgunt and the Sanskrit word Bṛhatī (बृहती), meaning "high," which describes the Hindu dawn goddess Ushas. The earliest origin is Proto-Indo-European bʰr̥ǵʰéntih₂, a feminine form of bʰérǵʰonts, meaning "high," from the root bʰerǵʰ- ("to rise"). Xavier Delamarre, using E. Campanile’s research, suggests that Brigid may be a continuation of the Indo-European dawn goddess.

In early Irish literature

Sanas Cormaic (Cormac's Glossary), written by Christian writers in the 9th century and using older information, includes a description of Brigit. It states she was a goddess of important poets and seers (called the filí) and that she had two sisters: one goddess of healing and one goddess of metalworking. All three were daughters of the Dagda.

The text explains that because of this, all the Irish people had a goddess named Brigit, which may have been a title rather than a personal name.

The Lebor Gabála Érenn, first created in the 11th century, also describes Brigit as a poet and daughter of the Dagda. It mentions she owned two oxen named Fea and Femen. These animals are linked to two plains: Mag Fea (on the River Barrow) and Mag Femin (on the River Suir). In other writings, these oxen are called the oxen of Dil, "radiant of beauty." The text also says Brigit possessed a boar named Torc Triath (from whom the plain of Treithirne is named) and a ram named Cirb (from whom the plain of Cirb is named). These animals were said to make loud noises whenever people stole things in Ireland. This suggests Brigit was a protector of farm animals.

The "Judgments of Bríg" (Bretha Bríg), written between the 8th and 9th centuries, are notes added to the Senchas Már, a collection of early Irish law texts. These notes describe changes to laws to better support women. The writings are attributed to the mythical Bríg Brethach ("Bríg of the Judgments"), who is described as the wife of the legendary judge and poet Sencha. In Ulster sagas, Bríg Brethach is part of a group of three women: Sencha’s mother, Bríg Briugu ("Bríg the hostel-keeper"), and his daughter, Bríg Ambue ("Bríg the propertiless").

In the story Cath Maige Tuired, Bríg is the wife of Bres and gives birth to a son named Ruadán, whose name is connected to the word "red." The story says she started the custom of keening, a mix of crying and singing, while mourning Ruadán’s death. It also credits her with inventing a whistle used for traveling at night.

Brigid and Saint Brigid

Historians believe that the goddess Brigid was combined with the Christian saint of the same name. According to medieval scholar Pamela Berger, Christian monks "took the ancient image of the mother goddess and gave her name and roles to the Christian figure," Brigid of Kildare. The saint's stories "mostly include tales and miracle accounts, some of which come from Irish pagan traditions." Dáithí Ó hÓgáin wrote that the mix of the pagan goddess and Christian saint can be seen in some of the saint's miracles, where she creates food, gives animals, controls weather, and is connected to fire or hot springs.

The goddess and saint share many similar connections. Saint Brigid is considered a protector of healers, poets, blacksmiths, workers who care for animals and milk them, as well as snakes (in Scotland) and the coming of spring. Kim McCone noted that Sanas Cormaic says the three Brigids were protectors of poetry/prophecy, healing/medicine, and metalwork. Saint Brigid is also linked to the poet Dubthach maccu Lugair, the doctor Áed mac Bricc, and the skilled blacksmith Conleth.

Fea and Femen, the oxen of the goddess Brigid, are connected to the area in southeastern Ireland where Ptolemy placed the Brigantes tribe in the 2nd century. In Britain, the Brigantes are linked to the goddess Brigantia, whose name is similar to Brigid. Saint Brigid is strongly connected to the province of Leinster in southeastern Ireland.

In the late 12th century, Gerald of Wales wrote that nineteen nuns took turns keeping a fire burning at Kildare to honor Saint Brigid, and that this fire had been burning since her time. Some believe this fire originally belonged to a temple of the goddess Brigit. The Roman goddess Vesta and the Greek goddess Hestia had fires that priestesses kept burning forever. Gerald wrote that the fire was surrounded by a fence that no man could cross, or he would be cursed.

The saint is linked to many holy wells and clootie wells in Ireland and Britain, where small pieces of cloth or ribbons are left as part of a healing ritual. Celtic healing goddesses, such as Sirona and Coventina, were often connected to sacred springs.

However, some scholars, including Elva Johnston, argue that the importance of the pagan goddess has been overstated compared to the saint. Johnston wrote that the idea that the goddess was more important than the saint depends on three points: first, that Saint Brigid is not real, second, that her stories are an attempt to explain a pagan goddess in a Christian way, and third, the belief that a goddess worship was more powerful for women in ancient and modern Ireland.

Saint Brigid's Day is on February 1. It was originally called Imbolc, the first day of spring in Irish tradition. Because Saint Brigid is linked to the goddess Brigid, the festival of Imbolc is often connected to the goddess.

A tholus on Venus was named after Brigit by the International Astronomical Union in 1985. Because planetary naming rules do not allow the use of national or modern religious figures, this name refers to the goddess, not the saint.

Neo-paganism

Brigid is an important figure for some modern pagans, who focus on her three different aspects. She is sometimes worshipped along with Lugh or Cernunnos.