Claddagh Legends

There are many questionable accounts of the origins and legends of the first Irish Claddagh rings.  These are some of the most questionable, and for that matter, some of the most unique.

Once there was a king who was in love with a common peasant woman.  Since he was royalty and she was of the lower class, they could not be married.  In an act of complete despair, the king killed himself and had his hands severed and placed around his heart as a symbol of his undying love for this woman.  (Undying, I realize is quite ironic)  It was this act that was said to represent love, friendship and loyalty, and was the precursor for the Claddagh rings that are now so popular throughout the world.

Another doubtful legend about the Claddagh is that the crown represents Beathauile.  The left hand is said to represent Anu, the ancestral mother of the Celts, who would later be called Danu.  The right hand was said to represent Dagda, the father of the gods, who had a club that could kill men or bring them back to life, and had the ability to make the sun stand still.  The heart represented the hearts of all mankind, which gave the unending music to Gael.

A somewhat more plausible account of the Claddagh ring tells of how the Claddagh symbol was painted upon the hulls and sails of ships, and was worn by the sailors of Claddagh.  If these sailors ran across other sailors plying their waters without this symbol, they would kill them.  This story highlights the fierce independence of the Irish people that has become so well documented.