Bridging Appalachia

The Bhean Ghlúine, midwife or handy-woman is a person skilled in overseeing the ritual of childbirth.  She protects the mother and child from evil forces with charms, spells and/or herbs and wields a great deal of power in a predominately patriarchal society, due to the dangerous circumstances and the taboo around discussing health and sexuality between different genders (Ó Crualaoich, 2003; van Gennep, 1961_a).  This vigilant liminal guide is closely associated with the Otherworld, as indicated by the migratory legend type ML 5070 – Midwife to the Fairies. 

The tales, which fall under the category of witches and witchcraft, may contain varied motifs, but in general the narrative goes as follows: a midwife is summoned to deliver a child for a woman that has been taken by the fairies.  She applies fairy ointment to the baby’s eyes and accidently gets some in her own eye.  After overcoming obstacles or following rules, such as avoiding food/drink, she is able to return to the earthly plane where she receives payment but doesn’t recognise its value.  Later, she recognises a fairy in a public place.  The angry fairy forcibly removes her augmented eye.  This tale type connects midwives to the otherworld, while rationalising the high incidence of death during childbirth, a threat to continuance of community (Mac Cárthaigh, 1991).

Mac Cárthaigh, C. (1991) ‘Midwife to the Fairies (ML 5070): The Irish Variants in Their Scottish and Scandinavian Perspective’, Béaloideas, 59, pp. 133–143. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2307/20522382.

Nic Suibhne, F. (1992) ‘“On the Straw” and Childbirth from the Oral Tradition of Women in Ulster’, Ulster Folklife, 38: pp. 12-24.

Ó Crualaoich, G. (2003) The book of the Cailleach: stories of the wise-woman healer. Cork: Cork University Press.

https://bookshop.org/a/98718/9781859184127

Van Gennep, A. (1961_a) ‘Pregnancy and Childbirth’, in The Rites of Passage, Translated by G.L. Caffee and M.B. Vizedom, Chicago, Illinois: University of Chicago Press.