The six territories recognized as Celtic nations are Ireland (Eire); the Isle of Man (Mannin); Scotland (Alba); Brittany (Breizh); Cornwall (Kernow) and Wales (Cymru). Each of these regions has a Celtic language that is either still spoken or was spoken in to modern times.
Some territories in north western Iberia, in particular Northern Portugal and Asturias and Galicia are sometimes included because of their culture and history. However no Celtic language has been spoken there in modern times. A significant part of Europe was actually Celtic before the expansion of Ancient Rome and the Germanic tribes.
Language
Each of the six Celtic nations has its own Celtic language still to this day and there are strong movements to keep these languages alive. The Celtic League and the Celtic Congress are organizations that campaign and lobbies for the language, cultural, political and social characteristics between the Celtic peoples.
There are many festivals in the annual calendar across the various territories that celebrate the culture of the Celtic nations. These include the
Festival Interceltique de Lorient in Brittany; the
Pan Celtic Festival in Ireland; the
Celtic Media Festival; the
National Celtic Festival and the
Eisteddfod in Wales.
Music
Music is another common theme and is one of the most binding forces between the areas, particularly with the use of the bagpipes and traditional instruments. There are many inter-Celtic music festivals aimed at keeping the Celtic sound alive and these include the energetic
Celtic Connections festival in Glasgow and another Scottish music festival, the popular
Hebridean Celtic Festival.
There are lively traditional Irish music festivals on throughout the year in Ireland of course, visited by people from all over the Celtic nations who come back to Ireland to share, refresh and enjoy their musical collaborations. The most noteworthy of these include the
Willie Clancy Summer School (5-13 July) in Milltown Malbay, County Clare; the
Fleadh Ceoil Sligo (10 – 17 August) and the
Dingle Trad Fest when musicians from around the world converge in West Kerry (11 – 14 September).
Celtic Tribes – Links With Germany, Austria And More
But the Celtic traditions are not just restricted to the six traditional areas – they have spread worldwide as far as the USA. The spread of Celtic tribes included a move to land in what is now Southern Germany and Austria. Many scholars have associated the earliest Celtic peoples with the Hallstatt culture. The Boii, the Vindelici and the Scordisci are some of the tribes that converged in Central Europe. These areas are now known as Serbia, Croatia, Slovakia, Poland and the Czech Republic as well of course as Germany and Austria.
For many decades, the main view among archaeologists was that the Celts lived only in southern Germany and Switzerland. But, following the discovery of a particularly significant sacred site (which has even been compared to Bru na Boinne in Ireland) at Hessen, it is now generally agreed that even Frankfurt was at the center of a Celtic settlement.
Sporting Tradition
A connecting theme between the Celtic nations has always been sport and one of the most prominent and well-followed is the Pro 12 rugby union (which was formerly known as the Celtic League) bringing the Celtic nations together in battle!
And it’s not just the geographical areas of the Celtic nations that are ensuring the traditions remain on – there are still many areas in the US, Canada and Australia keeping the Celtic traditions very much alive to this day!