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Claíomh Solais (reformed spelling), Claidheamh Soluis (unreformed Mod. Ir.) (IPA:(:/kɫiːv ˈsɔɫɪʃ/); ''an cloidheamh solais'' (variant spelling〔, EIHM, p.68; Kennedy〕) pronunc. roughly /kleeve-solish/), is an Irish term meaning "Sword of Light", or "Shining Sword", which appears in a number of Irish mythological tales dealing with the otherworld. It also appears in numerous Scottish Gaelic folk-tales.〔, I, 24, "The sword of light is common in Gaelic stories;.." etc.〕 More recently, it is sometimes popularly equated with swords from Irish mythology (Cúchulainn's sword Cruaidín,〔"the Divine Hero overcomes his father the Otherworld-god with that god's own weapon, the thunderolt, known variously in story-telling by names such as the ''Gaí Bulga'' (Cú Chulainn's weapon), the ''Caladbolg'' (Arthur's Escalibur), or the ''Claidheamh Soluis'' of our halfpenny postage-stamps." G.M., review of (EIHM), in: ''Studies, an Irish Quarterly Review''; Vol. 35, No. 139 (Sep. 1946), pp. 420-422 (JSTOR ) p.421〕 or Nuada's sword, one of the Four Treasures of the Tuatha Dé Danann). == Overview == The folk tales featuring the ''claidheamh soluis'' typically compels the hero to perform (three) sets of tasks, aided by helpers, who may be a servant woman, "helpful animal companions", or some other supernatural being. The majority of are also bridal quests (or involve the winning of husbands in e.g., Maol a Chliobain). The adversary is usually described as a giant (''guragach'' or ''fermór''), who oftentimes cannot be defeated except by some secret means. Thus the hero or helper may resort to the sword of light as the only effective weapon against this enemy. But often the sword is not enough, and the supernatural enemy has to be attacked on a single vulnerable spot on his body. The weak spot, moreover, may be an external soul concealed somewhere in the world at large (inside animals, etc.), and in the case of "The Young King of Esaidh Ruadh", this soul is encased within a nested series of animals. The crucial secret to the hero's success is typically revealed by a woman, i.e., his would-be bride or the damsel in distress (the woman servant held captive by giants), etc. And even when the secret's revealant is an animal, she may in fact be a human transformed into beast (e.g. the great grey cat in "The Widow and her Daughters"). The woman as the possessor of the secret seems to be an element of preeminent importance, suggested by the fact that one tale bears the title "The Shining Sword and the Knowledge of the Cause of the One Story about Women" (and Kennedy's tale ''Fios Fath an aon Sceil'' or 'perfect narrative of the unique story' may be a corruption of this). A parallel to this is the question "What is it that women most desire?" posed in the Arthurian tale of The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle, which may be a basis for further comparative analysis. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Claíomh Solais」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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