Bosventor
— (bos-VEN-tore) The village and fortress where Merlin grew up. It was built upon the slopes of the Meneth Gellik mountain six years after the abbey. South of modern-day Bolventor*, Cornwall, an actual iron-age village and fortress existed at this exact location.
Brewodwyn
— (breh-WODD-win) Modern-day Broadwoodwidger*.
Brihem
— (BRIH-hem) The order of judges within the wider order of the druids. Normally spelled brithem* or brehon*.
Britain
— (BRIH-ten) The land occupied by the people who speak various forms of the ancient Brythonic* language south of the River Forth*.
Brittania Prima
— (brih-TAN-ee-ah PREEMA) The area of Britain bordering the southern coast, generally south of Lundnisow / London.
Brythanvy
— (brith-AHN-vee) The same as modern-day Brittany*, France. This was a Celtic-populated area.
Bysall
— (BY-sall) A small coin, usually a ring of brass or iron.
Bysallow
is the plural.
Casva
— (COSS-vah) Arthur’s black stallion.
Cathures
* — (kath-OO-ress) A village of southwest Scotland on the Clyde River that began with the church that Garth planted. Modern-day Glasgow*.
Caygek
— (KAY-gek) A former druid who has become one of Arthur’s warriors and protectors. He is named Cai* in the Arthurian legends.
Colvarth
— (COAL-varth) The former chief bard of Britian; he passed away before the beginning of
Merlin’s Nightmare.
His given name is Bledri mab Cadfan, and he is known as Bleheris* in Arthurian literature.
Constans
* — (CON-stans) A former High King. He is Arthur’s great-grandfather and father to Aurelianus. Murdered by Vitalinus Gloui for the throne of Britain.
Corinium
* — (core-IN-ee-um) Modern-day Cirencester*, and a former Roman fortress. This city is near to Glevum, and is Vortigern’s second-most important city.
Coynall
— (COIN-all) A single-sided coin made of silver. It is worth eight bysallow, and it takes three coyntallow to make one screpall.
Cradelmass
* — (crah-DELL-mass) The haughty king of Powys, he is distantly related to Vortigern.
Crennig
— (CREN-nigg) A fifth-century roundhouse. They are normally made of wooden timbers staked into the ground to form a circle, but sometimes they are made of stone if it is readily available. The roof is conical and typically woven from thatch. On occasion they are built out in a lake for easier defense. Cren means “circular,” or “round.” Spelled Crannog* outside of the Merlin Spiral.
Culann
— (KULL-lann) One of Arthur’s friends who goes journeying with him. He is the son of Llachau, and in legend he is known as Lancelot*.
Derwent
* — (dare-WENT) One of the streams that runs through the Nancedefed valley, down a series of falls, and into Lake Derwentlin.
Derwentlin, Lake
— (dare-WENT-lin) The lake just north of Dinas Crag. Called the Derwent Water* today.
Deva
— (DEH-vah) More properly called Deva Victrix, which is modern-day Chester*, England.
Difnonia
— (diff-NO-nee-ah) The kingdom to the east of Kernow, today called Devon*. Ruled by the Roman-established town of Isca Dumnoniorum (modern-day Exeter*).
Dinas Camlin
— (DINN-ahs CAM-linn) A large hill fort. Old Pelles is the chieftain, and his grandson is Gwalahad. The fortress has a large, circular, two-story feasting hall. Situated on the western side of a bay fed by the Camel* River. Modern-day Padstow*.
Dinas Crag
— (DINN-ahs CRAIG) A rocky hill fort in Rheged, north of Kembry, which protects the Nancedefed valley where Merlin and Natalenya live with Arthur, Taliesin, and Tingada. Merlin’s father grew up here, and Merlin’s uncle Ector is now the chieftain. Modern-day Castle Crag*.
Dinas Hen Felder
— (DINN-as HEN FELL-der) An iron-age hill fort at the site of modern-day Launceston Castle*. In
Merlin’s Nightmare
it has been given the name of “Old Watchful.” Also known as Dunheved* in later times.
Dinas Marl
— (DINN-ahs MARL) An aging fortress that Vortigern is defending against the Saxenow, it is built on an ancient mound around which modern-day Marlborough* sits. “Marl” means “marbled clay,” and “bar” means mound, or barrow.
Dintaga
— (din-TA-guh) The fortress of Gorlas, King of Kernow.
Dintaga
means “the strangled fortress,” and is modern-day Tintagel*. It is on an island separated from the land by a narrow causeway that is inundated with water when the tide comes in.
Dosmurtanlin, Lake
— (doss-mur-TAN-lin) A lake north of the village of Bosventor, on the other side of the Meneth Gellik mountain. Legend says that when a portion of the Dragon Star fell, it gouged out the earth, and the water filled it in, forming the lake.
Dosmurtanlin
means “the lake where a great fire came.” It is the same as modern-day Dozmary Pool*. Merlin’s mother, who was changed by the Stone into a water creature, is confined to this lake.
Dowrtam River
— (DOUR-tamm) Known today as the Tamar*, it flows south past Dinas Hen Felder and spills into the ocean at modern-day Plymouth*.
Dragon Star
— The comet that Muscarvel saw in the night sky seventy years before
Chapter 1
of
Merlin’s Blade
.
Druid
* — (DREW-id) The order of priests within the wider order of the druidow. They also carry out the laws as set forth by the Brihem judges.
Druidow
— (DREW-i-dow) The plural form of druid, this term can sometimes refer to the wider order of all the druidow, filidow, and Brihem judges combined.
Dubrae Cantii
* — (DEW-bray CAN-tie) Dubrae is a city among the Cantii tribe south of Lundnisow. This is the primary area the Saxenow were invading. Some of Uther’s warriors came from this area. It is modern-day Dover*.
Dwin
— (DWIN) Based on the Arthurian warrior Bradwin, or Bradwen*. His name means “pleasant and agreeable.”
Dybris / Dybricius
* — the only monk left who still works in the village of Bosventor. He was the one who originally brought Garth, the orphan, with him from Porthloc, a small village on the northern coast of Difnonia. He is known in modern-times as St. Dubricius*.
Dyfed
* — (DIE-fed) A kingdom in southwest Kembry.
Dyslan
— (DIE-slan) Natalenya’s younger brother.
Ector
* — (ECK-tor) Merlin’s uncle and the chieftain of Dinas Crag. He has traditionally been shown in Arthurian legend as fostering Arthur during his growing-up years. Ector’s wife is Eira, and his younger brother is Owain, Merlin’s now-deceased father. Ector and his wife are childless.
Eilyne
— (EYE-line-uh) The oldest orphaned daughter of Uther and Igerna, and sister to Myrgwen and Arthur. When she was young, she and Myrgwen were pursued by Vortigern and fled into the marsh. No one has seen her since. In the legends, she is Elaine of Garlot*.
Einkorn
* — (INE-corn) An ancient form of wheat.
Eira
— (EYE-rah) Ector’s wife at Dinas Crag, and Merlin’s aunt. The word in Welsh means “snow.”
Eirish
— (EYE-rish) The people from Erin, which is modern-day Ireland.
Elmekow
— (EL-meh-cow) A coastal British kingdom southeast of Rheged.
Erin
— (ERR-in) The island of Ireland west of Britain.
Ewenna
— (ee-WHEN-ah) Gorlas’s companion at Dintaga.
Fairyglove
— Foxglove*.
Fili
* — (FILL-ee) The order of sages and poets within the wider order of the druidow. Filidow is the plural, and they are led by the arch fili.
Flavia Caesariensis
— (flah-VEE-ah see-zar-ee-EN-sis) The area of Britain north of Lundnisow / London, westward to the border of wales, and as far northward as modern-day Manchester.
Fodor
— (FOE-door) An envoy of Vortigern who carries news to Dinas Crag. He wears a gaudy hat and is always concerned with knowing one’s proper ancestry.
Fossa
— (FOSS-ah) A Roman road leading from Lindum (Lincoln*) all the way down to Isca Difnonia (Exeter*). Currently called the Fosse Way*, the road was built up by digging up the soil at its side to form a ditch.
Fossa
means “ditch” in Latin.
Fowaven River
— (foe-AY-vehn) The stream that lies east of the village of Bosventor. It generally runs southward through Bosvenna Moor and, fed by many springs, it soon becomes a river, known today as the Fowey*.
Fowavenoc
— (foe-AY-vehn-ock) A major town on the southern coast of Kernow where the Fowaven River spills into the sea. Modern-day Fowey*.
Gaff
— (GAFF) Goffrew’s female pup
Gana/Ganieda
* — (GAH-nuh / gah-NYE-dah) Merlin’s half sister, who became Mórgana in
Merlin’s Shadow
. She is the daughter of Mônda and granddaughter to Mórganthu.
Garth/Garthwys
* — (GARTH / GARTH-wiss) An orphan who used to live at the abbey with Dybris when he was young. His father, Gorgyr, was a fisherman at Porthloc in Difnonia, and so Garth was raised on the sea.
Gladius
* — (GLA-dee-oos) A stout Roman-style sword, generally of medium length.
Glevum
* — (GLEH-vuhm) The Roman fortress of Glevum, and the seat of Vortigern’s kingdom. Modern-day Gloucester*.
Goffrew
— (GOFF-rue) Ector’s hound who had two puppies, Gruffen and Gaff.
Gogirfan Gawr
* — (go-GIRR-fan GOW-er) A giant tinker who is the father of Gwenivere and Gwenivach. He is a Walker, and is descended from the first peoples to settle the island of Britain. Some scholars think that the name Gogirfan is related to the word for “crow.” Gawr means “giant.”
Gorlas
* — (GORE-lass) The crazed king of Kernow, whose fortress is Dintaga. He and Uther were rival suitors for Igerna’s love. In the last third of the book, it can be said that he is a merging of the traditional Gorlas* and the Arthurian character Garwlwyd*.
Gorseth
— (GORE-seth) A meeting place of the druidow, typically denoted by a circle of stones. In ancient times it would have been spelled
gorsedd, the double-d pronounced like our
th
sound. In the Merlin Spiral it is spelled, like many other words, phonetically.
Gorseth Cawmen
— (GORE-seth CAW-men) The stone circle northeast from the village of Bosventor. Literally means “the meeting place of giant stones.” On modern maps it is shown as the Goodaver Stone Circle*, though the Merlin Spiral describes it as having larger stones.
Gourvlyth
* — (goor-VLITH) An ancient word for werewolf.
Grannos
* — (GRAN-nos) The Celtic god of water and healing. Represented by Saturn in the night sky. The Latin form of the name is Grannus*.
Gruffen
— (GRUFF-en) Goffrew’s male pup
Guotodin
* — (goo-OH-toe-din) The northernmost Brythonic kingdom. It was ruled by Atle when Owain, and then Merlin, visited, and it lies between the two walls built by the Romans, just south of the land of the Prithager. Its principal cities are Dineidean (modern-day Edinburgh*), and the fortress of Dinpelder (which was destroyed by Necton and his Picti at the end of
Merlin’s Shadow
).
Gwalahad
— (GWALL-a-had) Pelles’s grandson, he lives at Dinas Camlin. In legend he is known as Galahad* (or Gwalchavad* in Welsh).
Gwenivach
— (GWEN-ee-vach) Daughter of Gogirfan, fraternal twin to Gwenivere, and sister to Melwas. She is a Walker, and has reddish-blonde hair. Nowadays, her name is more typically spelled Guinevach*. Since Gwenivach is the younger twin, she has “-vach” on the end of her name, meaning “the lesser.”
Gwenivere
— (GWEN-ee-vere) Daughter of Gogirfan, fraternal twin to Gwenivach, and sister to Melwas. She is a Walker, and has blonde hair. Nowadays, her name is more typically spelled Guinevere*. Since Gwenivere is the elder twin, she has “-vere” on the end of her name, meaning “the greater.”
Gwevian
— (GWEV-ee-ahn) Merlin’s mother, the daughter of King Atle. She supposedly drowned in Lake Dosmurtanlin when Merlin was young, and her body was never found. Merlin discovered her alive at the end of
Merlin’s Blade
, changed by the Stone into a water creature to serve it when it was in the lake. She is now the Lady of the Lake*, and a merging of the legends of Vivian* and St. Theneva*.
Gwyneth
— (GWIN-eth) A major kingdom in northwest Kembry. It includes the isle of Inis Môn, which is sacred to the druidow. Spelled Gwynedd* in Welsh.
Habrenaven River
— (ha-bren-AY-vehn) The modern-day Severn* River. In later Welsh, the word is Hafren*, which comes from the name of a legendary British princess who drowned in the river.