Samhain E1: The Banshee

Wild Kin: A Celtic Podcast · Oct 5, 2025 · 13m · transcript

Before she became a ghostly omen in folklore, the banshee began as a woman whose voice bridged the living and the dead. Her cries were not curses, but calls of love and remembrance, echoing the ancient Celtic tradition of keening: ritual laments that helped souls cross to the Otherworld.

In this episode of Wild Kin, we trace the origins of the banshee from these ancient traditions of early Ireland and how this ancient act of mourning is being revived today as a powerful expression of grief and connection.

Resources & References:

BBC: The Women Reviving Ireland’s Ancient Keening Tradition…