The Banshee — an Omen of Death
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BansheeThe banshee is a spirit in Irish mythology and an omen of death. She would appear at night near the homes of those who were soon to die. She would stand or sit nearby, making sounds like a moan, a cry, a howl, or the wailing of a storm. She appeared as an elderly woman, though sometimes as a young one, with pale skin and long hair — red, grey, or fair. She was usually dressed in a long gown reaching to her heels, most often white or light in color.
There are many theories about the banshee's origin. One holds that these spirits or ghosts were once mourners who, in life, failed to properly grieve the dead. A second holds that they are supernatural beings who dwell in hills and remote places, descendants of the gods. A third holds that they are the restless souls of ancestors, who come only to their own kin before their unavoidable death. In support of this last theory, there are many accounts of Gaelic highland clans who believed in personal banshees tied to their own families. It is said that warriors of these clans, hearing the banshee's cry before death, felt joy and pride, knowing it confirmed their pure noble lineage.
The banshee with red eyesBesides her usual ghostly form, the banshee could also appear as a woman with red eyes, washing bloodied clothing or entrails. Anyone who noticed her might recognize their own clothes in her hands. She was also sometimes depicted with a comb, either using it to brush her hair or simply holding it.
The banshee has many namesThe banshee has many other names as well, since she was called differently in different regions, sometimes by local or even personal names. Among the names for this spirit are Bean Sí, the Washer Woman, the Weeping Woman, Badb, Bocanach, Badhbh, Bau, or Bow, among others. The word itself is made up of two parts: bean — woman, and sí — the sídhe, which literally translates as "woman of the sídhe," meaning "woman of the otherworld."
There is a view, popularized in works of the 19th and early 20th centuries, that banshees are related to fairies. But in Irish tradition, fairies live a collective, social life much like that of humans, closely bound up with human affairs. Banshees, by contrast, are solitary, and the only thing that ties them to human life is death. There are also examples of tales that depict them as fairies, but the original sources make no such claim.
A woman sees the banshee at her windowAmong the countless legends in which banshees appear, a few stand out as capturing most precisely this spirit's nature and the way she interacts with people. One legend tells of a woman who, one night, noticed at her window, on a stone ledge, a figure with long red hair that seemed to burn like flame. The figure wore a white gown and had deathly pale skin. The banshee hummed something, then suddenly vanished — and in the morning, the woman learned that her brother had died.
Another story tells of a farmer who happened upon a banshee on a bridge. She sat there, sorrowful, humming to herself, appearing as an old woman with long red hair tinged with crimson. The man approached and greeted her, but when she turned to face him, he saw her deathly pale face and was struck with terror. The creature then straightened up, growing three times the height of a man, before stepping off the bridge and plunging into the water, vanishing. The next morning, the man learned of the death of a neighbor — the last of an ancient family line.
The banshee in modern cultureBanshees are also frequently referenced in modern works. They are often portrayed as far more active and aggressive than their traditional depiction, sometimes given a loud, deafening scream said to be unbearable and capable of driving one mad. But this image does not reflect the truth. Banshees are spirits who only observe, remaining apart, passively waiting for the inevitable fate of the one marked for death. They never were, and never will be, the cause of that death — they remain, forever, only its herald.
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