31/10/2025
Nos Galan Gaeaf Hapus, or Happy Winter's Eve which is the traditional Welsh name for the celebration of Halloween!
Croeso!
Happy Halloween from the team here at the Penrallt Country House Hotel. With it being Halloween we decided to dive into some Welsh Folklore and the Hounds of Annwn.
Annwn is the Welsh Otherworld, often depicted as a realm of eternal youth and plenty, ruled by figures like Arawn or Gwyn ap Nudd. The Cŵn Annwn are the hounds of this realm, and they are associated with the terrifying phenomenon known as the Wild Hunt.
In the earliest written tales, such as the Mabinogion, the hounds of Arawn are described as having brilliant white bodies and shining red ears. This distinct colouration (white for the supernatural, red for death or the sacred) is a common marker for creatures from the Otherworld in Celtic mythology. In more recent folklore, the hounds often take on a much darker and more menacing form, aligning with the "black dog" legends of the British Isles.
Most often associated with high, lonely places in Wales, such as the mountain of Cadair Idris, where their baying in the night was believed to foretell death. They take part in the great spectral hunt that sweeps across the sky or the land, usually on specific nights like the eves of religious festivals. They are often seen as chasing lost souls, sometimes referred to as the Cŵn Cyrff.
While frightening, their original role in Celtic belief was not solely evil. They are the hounds of the Otherworld, and in some traditions, they act as escorts, herding the souls of the dead on their journey to Annwn.
