Llyr

[W] The equivalent of the Irish Lir. Llyr seems to have two wives. The first was Iweriadd (Ireland), by which he fathered Bran and Branwen. Branwen seems to fill the role of a goddess of love. By Penardun, daughter of the mother goddess Don, he gave birth to Manawydan, god of the sea. Penardun then appears to have married Euroswydd and given birth to Nisien and Efnisien. Geoffrey of Monmouth’s mention of him as a king, King Leir, caused him to eventually be immortalised as Shakespeare’s “King Lear.” Llyr was widely venerated in Britain. It is argued that Leicester was Llyr (leir) ceastar, the Old English addition for a fort. Manchester is also argued to contain the name Manawydan with the addition of ceastar.

Llyr, Children of

[W] The second branch of the Mabinogi features Bran the Blessed, his sister Branwen, and Manawydan, the children of Llyr. They have two half-brothers, Efnisien and Nisien, but it is not clear whether they belong to the same father.

Loch

[I] Son of Mofebais and champion of Connacht who wounds Cúchulainn at the combat at the ford. Cúchulainn, however, slays him with the fabulous Gae-Bolg.

Lochlann

[I] The country of the Norsemen, “land of lochs.” This is cognate with the Welsh Llychlyn.

Lodan

[I] Son of Lir and father of the goddess Sinend.

Lot

[I] A Fomorii who is wife of Goll and mother of Cichol Grucenchos. She had bloated lips in her breast and four eyes in her back and led the Fomorii into battle against Partholón.

Luchtar

[I] God of carpentry, brother of Goibhniu and Credne.

Lugaid

[I] There were several characters bearing this name. One was the son of Ailill Mac Máta, who, at his father’s behest, killed the champion Fergus Mac Roth while he was swimming. Another was the son of Cú Roí and killed Cúchulainn’s charioteer, Laeg. Others give this name as Laoghaire. Another was Lugaid Riab nDerg (“of the Red Stripes”), whose body was divided into three sections by red stripes, each section resembling part of each of the three men who sired him by Clothra.

Lugh

[I] One of the most important of the Irish gods. The son of Cian and Ethlinn, daughter of Balor of the Evil Eye. Renowned for the splendour of his countenance, he is clearly a solar deity and cognate with Lugus in Gaul and Lleu in Wales. He is god of all arts and crafts. Rescued from death as a baby when Balor tried to thwart