Как пишется имя мерлин

Merlin
Matter of Britain character
The Enchanter Merlin, Howard Pyle’s illustration for The Story of King Arthur and His Knights (1903)
First appearance	Prophetiae Merlini
Created by	Geoffrey of Monmouth
Based on	Myrddin Wyllt and Ambrosius Aurelianus
In-universe information
Occupation	Prophet, magician, bard, advisor, warrior, others (depending on the source)[note 1]
Spouse	Gwendolen
Significant other	Lady of the Lake, Morgan le Fay, Sebile (romance tradition)
Relatives	Ganieda
Home	«Esplumoir Merlin», woods

Merlin (Welsh: Myrddin, Cornish: Marzhin, Breton: Merzhin) is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a mage, with several other main roles.^{[note 2]} His usual depiction, based on an amalgamation of historic and legendary figures, was introduced by the 12th-century British author Geoffrey of Monmouth.

It is believed that Geoffrey combined earlier tales of Myrddin and Ambrosius, two legendary Briton prophets with no connection to Arthur, to form the composite figure called Merlinus Ambrosius (Welsh: Myrddin Emrys, Breton: Merzhin Ambroaz). Geoffrey’s rendering of the character became immediately popular, especially in Wales.^[3] Later writers in France and elsewhere expanded the account to produce a fuller image, creating one of the most important figures in the imagination and literature of the Middle Ages.

Merlin’s traditional biography casts him as an often-mad being, born of a mortal woman, sired by an incubus,^{[note 3]} from whom he inherits his supernatural powers and abilities,^[5] most commonly and notably prophecy and shapeshifting. Merlin matures to an ascendant sagehood and engineers the birth of Arthur through magic and intrigue.^[6] Later authors have Merlin serve as the king’s advisor and mentor until his disappearance from the tale, leaving behind a series of prophecies foretelling the events yet to come. A popular story from the French prose cycles describes Merlin being bewitched and forever sealed or killed by his student known as the Lady of the Lake after falling in love with her, with a local legend claiming him buried in the magical forest of Brocéliande.^[7] Other texts variously describe his retirement or death.

Name[edit]

The name «Merlin» is derived from the Brythonic Myrddin, the name of the bard who was one of the chief sources for the later legendary figure. Geoffrey of Monmouth Latinised the name to Merlinus in his works. Medievalist Gaston Paris suggests that Geoffrey chose the form Merlinus rather than the expected *Merdinus to avoid a resemblance to the Anglo-Norman word merde (from Latin merda) for feces.^[8] A more plausible suggestion is that ‘Merlin’ is an adjective and that consequently we should be speaking of «The Merlin», from the French merle meaning «blackbird»,^[9]: 79 or that the «many names» deriving from Myrddin stem from the Welsh myrdd ‘myriad’.^[10][11] Other suggestions derive the name Myrddin from Celtic languages, including that of a combination of *mer («mad») and the Welsh dyn («man»), to mean «madman».^[12] In his Myrdhinn, ou l’Enchanteur Merlin (1862), La Villemarqué wished to derive the form Marz[h]in from marz, the Breton word for «miracle»; Villemarqué furthermore associated it with the marte, a type of fairy being from the French folklore.

Clas Myrddin or Merlin’s Enclosure is an early name for Great Britain stated in the Third Series of Welsh Triads.^[13] Celticist A. O. H. Jarman suggests that the Welsh name Myrddin (Welsh pronunciation: [ˈmərðin]) was derived from the toponym Caerfyrddin, the Welsh name for the town known in English as Carmarthen.^[14] This contrasts with the popular folk etymology that the town was named after the bard. The name Carmarthen is derived from the town’s previous Roman name Moridunum,^[8][14] in turn derived from Celtic Brittonic moridunon, «sea fortress».^[15]

Medieval legend[edit]

Geoffrey and his sources[edit]

Geoffrey’s composite Merlin is based mostly on the North Brythonic poet and seer Myrddin Wyllt, that is «Myrddin the Wild» (known as Merlinus Caledonensis or Merlin Sylvestris in later texts influenced by Geoffrey). Myrddin’s legend has parallels with a Welsh and Scottish story of the mad prophet Lailoken (Laleocen), and with Buile Shuibhne, an Irish tale of the wandering insane king Suibihne mac Colmáin (Sweeney).^[9]: 58 In Welsh poetry, Myrddin was a bard driven mad after witnessing the horrors of war, who fled civilization to become a wild man of the wood in the 6th century.^[10] He roams the Caledonian Forest, until cured of his madness by Kentigern (Saint Mungo). Geoffrey had Myrddin in mind when he wrote his earliest surviving work, the Prophetiae Merlini («Prophecies of Merlin», c. 1130), which he claimed were the actual words of the legendary poet, however revealing little about Merlin’s background.

Geoffrey was also further inspired by Emrys (Old Welsh: Embreis), a character based in part on the 5th-century historical figure of the Romano-British war leader Ambrosius Aurelianus.^[16] When Geoffrey included Merlin in his next work, Historia Regum Britanniae (c. 1136), he supplemented his characterisation by attributing to Merlin stories concerning Ambrosius, taken from one of his primary sources, the early 9th-century Historia Brittonum attributed to Nennius. In Nennius’ account, Ambrosius was discovered when the British king Vortigern attempted to erect a tower at Dinas Emrys. More than once, the tower collapsed before completion. Vortigen’s wise men advised him that the only solution was to sprinkle the foundation with the blood of a child born without a father. Ambrosius was rumoured to be such a child. When brought before the king, Ambrosius revealed that below the foundation of the tower was a lake containing two dragons battling into each other, representing the struggle between the invading Saxons and the native Celtic Britons. Geoffrey retold the story in his Historia Regum Britanniæ, adding new episodes that tie Merlin with King Arthur and his predecessors. Geoffrey stated that this Ambrosius was also called «Merlin», therefore Ambrosius Merlinus, and kept him separate from Aurelius Ambrosius.

Therefore, Geoffrey’s account of Merlin Ambrosius’ early life is based on the story from the Historia Brittonum. Geoffrey added his own embellishments to the tale, which he set in Carmarthen, Wales (Welsh: Caerfyrddin). While Nennius’ «fatherless» Ambrosius eventually reveals himself to be the son of a Roman consul, Geoffrey’s Merlin is begotten by an incubus demon on a daughter of the King of Dyfed (Demetae, today’s South West Wales). Usually, the name of Merlin’s mother is not stated, but is given as Adhan in the oldest version of the Prose Brut,^[17] the text also naming his grandfather as King Conaan.^[18] The story of Vortigern’s tower is the same; the underground dragons, one white and one red, represent the Saxons and the Britons, and their final battle is a portent of things to come. At this point Geoffrey inserted a long section of Merlin’s prophecies, taken from his earlier Prophetiae Merlini. He told two further tales of the character. In the first, Merlin creates Stonehenge as a burial place for Aurelius Ambrosius, bringing the stones from Ireland.^{[note 4]} In the second, Merlin’s magic enables the new British king Uther Pendragon to enter into Tintagel Castle in disguise and to father his son Arthur with his enemy’s wife, Igerna (Igraine). These episodes appear in many later adaptations of Geoffrey’s account. As Lewis Thorpe notes, Merlin disappears from the narrative subsequently. He does not tutor and advise Arthur as in later versions.^[6]

Geoffrey dealt with Merlin again in his third work, Vita Merlini (1150). He based it on stories of the original 6th-century Myrddin, set long after his time frame for the life of Merlin Ambrosius. Geoffrey asserts that the characters and events of Vita Merlini are the same as told in the Historia Regum Britanniae. Here, Merlin survives the reign of Arthur, about the fall of whom he is told by Taliesin. Merlin spends a part of his life as a madman in the woods and marries a woman named Guendoloena (a character inspired by the male Gwenddoleu ap Ceidio).^[6]: 44 He eventually retires to observing stars from his house with seventy windows in the remote woods of Rhydderch. There, he is often visited by Taliesin and by his own sister Ganieda (Geoffrey’s character based on Myrddin’s sister Gwenddydd), who has become queen of the Cumbrians and is also endowed with prophetic powers.

Nikolai Tolstoy hypothesized that Merlin is based on a historical personage, probably a 6th-century druid living in southern Scotland. His argument was based on the fact that early references to Merlin describe him as possessing characteristics which modern scholarship (but not that of the time the sources were written) would recognize as druidical, the inference being that those characteristics were not invented by the early chroniclers, but belonged to a real person.^[22] If so, the hypothetical Merlin would have lived about a century after the hypothetical historical Arthur. A late version of the Annales Cambriae (dubbed the «B-text», written at the end of the 13th century) and influenced by Geoffrey,^[23] records for the year 573, that after «the battle of Arfderydd, between the sons of Eliffer and Gwenddolau son of Ceidio; in which battle Gwenddolau fell; Merlin went mad.» The earliest version of the Annales Cambriae entry (in the «A-text», written c. 1100), as well as a later copy (the «C-text», written towards the end of the 13th century) do not mention Merlin.^[24] Myrddin/Merlin furthermore shares similarities with the shamanic bard figure of Taliesin, alongside whom he appears in the Welsh Triads and in Vita Merlini, as well as in the poem «Ymddiddan Myrddin a Thaliesin» («The Conversation between Myrddin and Taliesin») from The Black Book of Carmarthen, which was dated by Rachel Bromwich as «certainly» before 1100, that is predating Vita Merlini by at least half century while telling a different version of the same story.^[25] According to Villemarqué, the origin of the legend of Merlin lies with the French figure of Saint Martin of Tours.

Later developments[edit]

Sometime around the turn of the following 13th century, Robert de Boron retold and expanded on this material in Merlin, an Old French poem presenting itself as the story of Merlin’s life as told by Merlin himself to be written down by the «real» author (the actual author claiming merely a French translation). Only a few lines of what is believed to be the original text have survived, but a more popular prose version had a great influence on the emerging genre of Arthurian-themed chivalric romance. In Robert’s account, as in Geoffrey’s Historia, Merlin is created as a demon spawn, but here explicitly to become the Antichrist intended to reverse the effect of the Harrowing of Hell.^{[note 5]} The infernal plot is thwarted when a priest (and the story’s narrator^{[note 6]}) named Blaise [fr] is contacted by the child’s mother. Blaise immediately baptizes the boy at birth, thus freeing him from the power of Satan and his intended destiny.^[27] The demonic legacy invests Merlin (already able to speak fluently even as a newborn) with a preternatural knowledge of the past and present, which is supplemented by God, who gives the boy a prophetic knowledge of the future. The text lays great emphasis on Merlin’s power to shapeshift, on his joking personality, and on his connection to the Holy Grail, the quest for which he foretells. Inspired by Wace’s Roman de Brut, an Anglo-Norman adaptation of Geoffrey’s Historia, Merlin was originally a part of a cycle of Robert’s poems telling the story of the Grail over the centuries. The narrative of Merlin is largely based on Geoffrey’s familiar tale of Vortigern’s Tower, Uther’s war against the Saxons, and Arthur’s conception. What follows is a new episode of the young Arthur’s drawing of the sword from the stone,^[28] an event orchestrated by Merlin. Merlin also earlier instructs Uther to establish the original order of the Round Table, after creating the table itself. The prose version of Robert’s poem was then continued in the 13th-century Merlin Continuation or the Suite de Merlin, describing King Arthur’s early wars and Merlin’s role in them,^[29] as he predicts and influences the course of battles.^{[note 7]} He also helps Arthur in other ways, including providing him with the magic sword Excalibur through a Lady of the Lake. Here too Merlin’s shapeshifting powers feature prominently.^{[note 8]}

The extended prose rendering became the foundation for the Lancelot-Grail, a vast cyclical series of Old French prose works also known as the Vulgate Cycle. Eventually, it was directly incorporated into the Vulgate Cycle as the Estoire de Merlin, also known as the Vulgate Merlin or the Prose Merlin. A further reworking and continuation of the Prose Merlin was included within the subsequent Post-Vulgate Cycle as the Post-Vulgate Suite du Merlin or the Huth Merlin. All these variants have been adapted and translated into several other languages, and further modified. Notably, the Post-Vulgate Suite (along with an earlier version of the Prose Merlin) was the main source for the opening part of Thomas Malory’s English-language compilation work Le Morte d’Arthur that formed a now-iconic version of the legend. Compared to his French sources, Malory limited the extent of the negative association of Merlin and his powers, relatively rarely being condemned as demonic by other characters such as King Lot.^[32] Conversely, Merlin seems to be inherently evil in the so-called non-cyclic Lancelot, where he was born as the «fatherless child» from not a supernatural rape of a virgin but a consensual union between a lustful demon and an unmarried beautiful young lady, and was never baptized.^[33][34] The Prose Lancelot further relates that, after growing up in the borderlands between Scotland (Pictish lands) and Ireland (Argyll), Merlin «possessed all the wisdom that can come from demons, which is why he was so feared by the Bretons and so revered that everyone called him a holy prophet and the ordinary people all called him their god.»^[35]

As the Arthurian myths were retold, Merlin’s prophetic aspects were sometimes de-emphasised in favour of portraying him as a wizard and an advisor to the young Arthur, sometimes in struggle between good and evil sides of his character, and living in deep forests connected with nature. Through his ability to change his shape, he may appear as a «wild man» figure evoking that of his prototype Myrddin Wyllt,^[36] as a civilized man of any age, or even as a talking animal.^{[37][note 9]} In the Perceval en prose (also known as the Didot Perceval and also attributed to Robert), where Merlin is the initiator of the Grail Quest and cannot die until the end of days, he eventually retires after Arthur’s downfall by turning himself into a bird and entering the mysterious esplumoir, never to be seen again.^[38] In the Vulgate Cycle’s version of Merlin, his acts include arranging consummation of Arthur’s desire for «the most beautiful maiden ever born,» Lady Lisanor of Cardigan, resulting in the birth of Arthur’s illegitimate son Lohot from before the marriage to Guinevere.^[39][40] But fate cannot always be changed: the Post-Vulgate Cycle has Merlin warn Arthur of how the birth of his other son will bring great misfortune and ruin to his kingdom, which then becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Eventually, long after Merlin is gone, his advice to dispose of the baby Mordred through an event evoking the Biblical Massacre of the Innocents leads to the deaths of many, among them Arthur. The Orygynale Cronykil of Scotland, which sympathises with Mordred as usual in Scottish chronicle tradition, particularly attributes Merlin’s supernatural evil influence on Arthur in its very negative portrayal of his rule.^[41]

The earliest English verse romance concerning Merlin is Of Arthour and of Merlin, which drew from the chronicles and the Vulgate Cycle. In English-language medieval texts that conflate Britain with the Kingdom of England, the Anglo-Saxon enemies against whom Merlin aids first Uther and then Arthur tend to be replaced by the Saracens^[42] or simply just invading pagans. Some of the many Welsh works predicting the Celtic revenge and victory over the Saxons have been also reinterpreted as Merlin’s (Myrddin’s) prophecies, and later used by propaganda of the Welsh-descent king Henry VIII of England in the 16th century. The House of Tudor, which traced their lineage directly to Arthur, interpreted the prophecy of King Arthur’s return figuratively as concerning their ascent to the throne of England that they sought to legitimise following the Wars of the Roses.^[43]

Many other medieval works dealing with the Merlin legend include an unusual story of the 13th-century Le Roman de Silence.^[44] The Prophéties de Merlin (c. 1276) contains long prophecies of Merlin (mostly concerned with 11th to 13th-century Italian history and contemporary politics), some by his ghost after his death, interspersed with episodes relating Merlin’s deeds and with assorted Arthurian adventures in which Merlin does not appear at all. It pictures Merlin as a righteous seer chastising people for their sins, as does the 13th-14th Italian story collection Il Novellino which draws heavily from it.^[45][46] Even more political Italian text was Joachim of Fiore’s Expositio Sybillae et Merlini, directed against Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor whom the author regarded as the Antichrist. The earliest Merlin text written in Germany was Caesarius of Heisterbach’s Latin Dialogus Miraculorum (1220). Ulrich Füetrer’s 15th-century Buch der Abenteuer, in the section based on Albrecht von Scharfenberg’s lost Merlin,^[47] presents Merlin as Uter’s father, effectively making his grandson Arthur a part-devil too. Merlin’s unnamed daughter appears in the First Continuation of Perceval, the Story of the Grail to guide Perceval towards the Grail Castle.

Tales of Merlin’s end[edit]

In the prose chivalric romance tradition, Merlin has a major weakness that leads him to his relatively early doom: young beautiful women of femme fatale^[48] archetype. His apprentice is often Arthur’s half-sister Morgan le Fay. In the Prophéties de Merlin, he also tutors with Sebile and two other witch queens and the Lady of the Isle of Avalon (Dama di Isola do Vallone); the others who have learnt sorcery from Merlin include the Wise Damsel in the Italian Historia di Merlino,^{[note 10]} and the male wizard Mabon in the Post-Vulgate Merlin Continuation and the Prose Tristan. While Merlin does share his magic with his apprentices, his prophetic powers cannot be passed on. As for Morgan, she is sometimes depicted as Merlin’s lover^[49] and sometimes as just an unrequited love interest.^{[note 11]} Contrary to the many modern works in which they are archenemies, Merlin and Morgan are never opposed to each other in any medieval tradition, other than Morgan forcibly rejecting him in some texts; in fact, his love for Morgan is so great that he even lies to the king in order to save her in the Huth Merlin, which is the only instance of him ever intentionally misleading Arthur.^{[51][note 12]} Instead, Merlin’s eventual undoing comes from his lusting after another of his female students: the one often named Viviane, among various other names and spellings, including Malory’s (or really his editor Caxton’s) now-popular form Nimue (originally Nymue). She is also called a fairy (French fee) like Morgan and described as a Lady of the Lake (the «chief Lady of the Lake» in case of Malory’s Nimue). Malory’s telling of this episode would later become a major inspiration for Romantic authors and artists of the 19th century.

Viviane’s character in relation with Merlin is first found in the Lancelot-Grail cycle, after having been inserted into the legend of Merlin by either de Boron or his continuator. There are many different versions of their story. Common themes in most of them include Merlin actually having the prior prophetic knowledge of her plot against him (one exception is the Spanish Post-Vulgate Baladro where his foresight ability is explicitly dampened by sexual desire^[48]) but lacking either ability or will to counteract it in any way, along with her using one of his own spells to rid of him. Usually (including in Le Morte d’Arthur), having learnt everything she could from him, Viviane will then also replace the eliminated Merlin within the story, taking up his role as Arthur’s adviser and court mage.^[52] However, Merlin’s fate of either demise or eternal imprisonment, along with his destroyer or captor’s motivation (from her fear of Merlin and protecting her own virginity, to her jealously for his relationship with Morgan), is recounted differently in variants of this motif. The exact form of his either prison or grave can be also variably a cave, a hole under a large rock (as in Le Morte d’Arthur), a magic tower, or a tree.^[31] These are usually placed within the enchanted forest of Brocéliande, a legendary location often identified as the real-life Paimpont forest in Brittany.^[7]

Niniane, as the Lady of the Lake student of Merlin is known as in the Livre d’Artus continuation of Merlin, is mentioned as having broken his heart prior to his later second relationship with Morgan, but here the text actually does not tell how exactly Merlin did vanish, other than relating his farewell meeting with Blaise. In the Vulgate Lancelot, which predated the later Vulgate Merlin, she (aged just 12 at the time) makes Merlin sleep forever in a pit in the forest of Darnantes, «and that is where he remained, for never again did anyone see or hear of him or have news to tell of him.»^[53] In the Post-Vulgate Suite de Merlin, the young King Bagdemagus (one of the early Knights of the Round Table) manages to find the rock under which Merlin is entombed alive by Niviene, as she is named there.^{[note 13]} He communicates with Merlin, but is unable to lift the stone; what follows next is supposedly narrated in the mysterious text Conte del Brait (Tale of the Cry).^{[note 14]} In the Prophéties de Merlin version, his tomb is unsuccessfully searched for by various parties, including by Morgan and her enchantresses, but cannot be accessed due to the deadly magic traps around it,^[56] while the Lady of the Lake comes to taunt Merlin by asking did he rot there yet.^[54] One notably alternate version having a happier ending for Merlin is contained within the Premiers Faits section of the Livre du Graal, where Niniane peacefully confines him in Brocéliande with walls of air, visible only as a mist to others but as a beautiful yet unbreakable crystal tower to him (only Merlin’s disembodied voice can escape his prison one last time when he speaks to Gawain^[54] on the knight’s quest to find him), where they will then spend almost every night together as lovers.^[57] Besides evoking the final scenes from Vita Merlini, this particular variant of their story also mirrors episodes found in some other texts, wherein Merlin either is an object of one-sided desire by a different amorous sorceress who too (unsuccessfully) plots to trap him or it is actually Merlin himself who traps an unwilling lover with his magic.^{[note 15]}

Unrelated to the legend of the Lady of the Lake, other purported sites of Merlin’s burial include a cave deep inside Merlin’s Hill (Welsh: Bryn Myrddin), outside Carmarthen. Carmarthen is also associated with Merlin more generally, including through the 13th-century manuscript known as the Black Book and the local lore of Merlin’s Oak. In North Welsh tradition, Merlin retires to Bardsey Island (Welsh: Ynys Enlli), where he lives in a house of glass (Welsh: Tŷ Gwydr) with the Thirteen Treasures of the Island of Britain (Welsh: Tri Thlws ar Ddeg Ynys Prydain).^[59]: 200 One site of his tomb is said to be Marlborough Mound in Wiltshire,^[60] known in medieval times as Merlebergia (the Abbot of Cirencester wrote in 1215: «Merlin’s tumulus gave you your name, Merlebergia»^[59]: 93). Another site associated with Merlin’s burial, in his ‘Merlin Silvestris’ aspect, is the confluence of the Pausalyl Burn and River Tweed in Drumelzier, Scotland. The 15th-century Scotichronicon tells that Merlin himself underwent a triple-death, at the hands of some shepherds of the under-king Meldred: stoned and beaten by the shepherds, he falls over a cliff and is impaled on a stake, his head falls forward into the water, and he drowns.^{[note 16]} The fulfilment of another prophecy, ascribed to Thomas the Rhymer, came about when a spate of the Tweed and Pausayl occurred during the reign of the Scottish James VI and I on the English throne: «When Tweed and Pausayl meet at Merlin’s grave, / Scotland and England one king shall have.»^[10]: 62

Modern culture[edit]

Merlin and stories involving him have continued to be popular from the Renaissance to the present day, especially since the renewed interest in the legend of Arthur in modern times. As noted by Arthurian scholar Alan Lupack, «numerous novels, poems and plays centre around Merlin. In American literature and popular culture, Merlin is perhaps the most frequently portrayed Arthurian character.»^[61] Diverging from his traditional role in the legends, Merlin is sometimes portrayed as a villain, as in Mark Twain’s humorous novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court (1889).^[61] According to Peter H. Goodrich in Merlin: A Casebook:

Merlin’s primary characteristics continue to be recalled, refined, and expanded today, continually encompassing new ideas and technologies as well as old ones. The ability of this complex figure to endure for more than fourteen centuries results not only from his manifold roles and their imaginative appeal, but also from significant, often irresolvable tensions or polarities […] between beast and human (Wild Man), natural and supernatural (Wonder Child), physical and metaphysical (Poet), secular and sacred (Prophet), active and passive (Counselor), magic and science (Wizard), and male and female (Lover). Interwoven with these primary tensions are additional polarities that apply to all of Merlin’s roles, such as those between madness and sanity, pagan and Christian, demonic and heavenly, mortality and immortality, and impotency and potency.^[2]

In 2011, Merlin was one of eight British magical figures that were commemorated on a series of UK postage stamps issued by the Royal Mail.^[62] Things named in honour of the legendary figure have included the asteroid 2598 Merlin, the metal band Merlin, and the literary magazine Merlin.

See also[edit]

• Garab Dorje, also said to have been conceived by a nun without a human father
• Merlin’s Cave, a location under Tintagel Castle

Notes[edit]

References[edit]

Bibliography[edit]

• Goodrich, Peter H. (2004). Merlin: A Casebook. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-58340-8.
• Koch, John T. (2006). Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-85109-440-0.

External links[edit]

• Merlin: Texts, Images, Basic Information, Camelot Project at the University of Rochester. Numerous texts and art concerning Merlin
• Timeless Myths: The Many Faces of Merlin
• BBC audio file of the «Merlin» episode of In Our Time
• Prose Merlin, Introduction and Text (the University of Rochester TEAMS Middle English text series) edited by John Conlea, 1998. A selection of many passages of the prose Middle English translation of the Vulgate Merlin with connecting summary. The sections from «The Birth of Merlin to «Arthur and the Sword in the Stone» cover Robert de Boron’s Merlin
• Of Arthour and of Merlin translated and retold in modern English prose, the story from Edinburgh, National Library of Scotland MS Advocates 19.2.1 (the Auchinleck MS) (from the Middle English of the Early English Text Society edition: O D McCrae-Gibson, 1973, Of Arthour and of Merlin, 2 vols, EETS and Oxford University Press)

Merlin
Matter of Britain character
The Enchanter Merlin, Howard Pyle’s illustration for The Story of King Arthur and His Knights (1903)
First appearance	Prophetiae Merlini
Created by	Geoffrey of Monmouth
Based on	Myrddin Wyllt and Ambrosius Aurelianus
In-universe information
Occupation	Prophet, magician, bard, advisor, warrior, others (depending on the source)[note 1]
Spouse	Gwendolen
Significant other	Lady of the Lake, Morgan le Fay, Sebile (romance tradition)
Relatives	Ganieda
Home	«Esplumoir Merlin», woods

Merlin (Welsh: Myrddin, Cornish: Marzhin, Breton: Merzhin) is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a mage, with several other main roles.^{[note 2]} His usual depiction, based on an amalgamation of historic and legendary figures, was introduced by the 12th-century British author Geoffrey of Monmouth.

It is believed that Geoffrey combined earlier tales of Myrddin and Ambrosius, two legendary Briton prophets with no connection to Arthur, to form the composite figure called Merlinus Ambrosius (Welsh: Myrddin Emrys, Breton: Merzhin Ambroaz). Geoffrey’s rendering of the character became immediately popular, especially in Wales.^[3] Later writers in France and elsewhere expanded the account to produce a fuller image, creating one of the most important figures in the imagination and literature of the Middle Ages.

Merlin’s traditional biography casts him as an often-mad being, born of a mortal woman, sired by an incubus,^{[note 3]} from whom he inherits his supernatural powers and abilities,^[5] most commonly and notably prophecy and shapeshifting. Merlin matures to an ascendant sagehood and engineers the birth of Arthur through magic and intrigue.^[6] Later authors have Merlin serve as the king’s advisor and mentor until his disappearance from the tale, leaving behind a series of prophecies foretelling the events yet to come. A popular story from the French prose cycles describes Merlin being bewitched and forever sealed or killed by his student known as the Lady of the Lake after falling in love with her, with a local legend claiming him buried in the magical forest of Brocéliande.^[7] Other texts variously describe his retirement or death.

Name[edit]

The name «Merlin» is derived from the Brythonic Myrddin, the name of the bard who was one of the chief sources for the later legendary figure. Geoffrey of Monmouth Latinised the name to Merlinus in his works. Medievalist Gaston Paris suggests that Geoffrey chose the form Merlinus rather than the expected *Merdinus to avoid a resemblance to the Anglo-Norman word merde (from Latin merda) for feces.^[8] A more plausible suggestion is that ‘Merlin’ is an adjective and that consequently we should be speaking of «The Merlin», from the French merle meaning «blackbird»,^[9]: 79 or that the «many names» deriving from Myrddin stem from the Welsh myrdd ‘myriad’.^[10][11] Other suggestions derive the name Myrddin from Celtic languages, including that of a combination of *mer («mad») and the Welsh dyn («man»), to mean «madman».^[12] In his Myrdhinn, ou l’Enchanteur Merlin (1862), La Villemarqué wished to derive the form Marz[h]in from marz, the Breton word for «miracle»; Villemarqué furthermore associated it with the marte, a type of fairy being from the French folklore.

Clas Myrddin or Merlin’s Enclosure is an early name for Great Britain stated in the Third Series of Welsh Triads.^[13] Celticist A. O. H. Jarman suggests that the Welsh name Myrddin (Welsh pronunciation: [ˈmərðin]) was derived from the toponym Caerfyrddin, the Welsh name for the town known in English as Carmarthen.^[14] This contrasts with the popular folk etymology that the town was named after the bard. The name Carmarthen is derived from the town’s previous Roman name Moridunum,^[8][14] in turn derived from Celtic Brittonic moridunon, «sea fortress».^[15]

Medieval legend[edit]

Geoffrey and his sources[edit]

Geoffrey’s composite Merlin is based mostly on the North Brythonic poet and seer Myrddin Wyllt, that is «Myrddin the Wild» (known as Merlinus Caledonensis or Merlin Sylvestris in later texts influenced by Geoffrey). Myrddin’s legend has parallels with a Welsh and Scottish story of the mad prophet Lailoken (Laleocen), and with Buile Shuibhne, an Irish tale of the wandering insane king Suibihne mac Colmáin (Sweeney).^[9]: 58 In Welsh poetry, Myrddin was a bard driven mad after witnessing the horrors of war, who fled civilization to become a wild man of the wood in the 6th century.^[10] He roams the Caledonian Forest, until cured of his madness by Kentigern (Saint Mungo). Geoffrey had Myrddin in mind when he wrote his earliest surviving work, the Prophetiae Merlini («Prophecies of Merlin», c. 1130), which he claimed were the actual words of the legendary poet, however revealing little about Merlin’s background.

Geoffrey was also further inspired by Emrys (Old Welsh: Embreis), a character based in part on the 5th-century historical figure of the Romano-British war leader Ambrosius Aurelianus.^[16] When Geoffrey included Merlin in his next work, Historia Regum Britanniae (c. 1136), he supplemented his characterisation by attributing to Merlin stories concerning Ambrosius, taken from one of his primary sources, the early 9th-century Historia Brittonum attributed to Nennius. In Nennius’ account, Ambrosius was discovered when the British king Vortigern attempted to erect a tower at Dinas Emrys. More than once, the tower collapsed before completion. Vortigen’s wise men advised him that the only solution was to sprinkle the foundation with the blood of a child born without a father. Ambrosius was rumoured to be such a child. When brought before the king, Ambrosius revealed that below the foundation of the tower was a lake containing two dragons battling into each other, representing the struggle between the invading Saxons and the native Celtic Britons. Geoffrey retold the story in his Historia Regum Britanniæ, adding new episodes that tie Merlin with King Arthur and his predecessors. Geoffrey stated that this Ambrosius was also called «Merlin», therefore Ambrosius Merlinus, and kept him separate from Aurelius Ambrosius.

Therefore, Geoffrey’s account of Merlin Ambrosius’ early life is based on the story from the Historia Brittonum. Geoffrey added his own embellishments to the tale, which he set in Carmarthen, Wales (Welsh: Caerfyrddin). While Nennius’ «fatherless» Ambrosius eventually reveals himself to be the son of a Roman consul, Geoffrey’s Merlin is begotten by an incubus demon on a daughter of the King of Dyfed (Demetae, today’s South West Wales). Usually, the name of Merlin’s mother is not stated, but is given as Adhan in the oldest version of the Prose Brut,^[17] the text also naming his grandfather as King Conaan.^[18] The story of Vortigern’s tower is the same; the underground dragons, one white and one red, represent the Saxons and the Britons, and their final battle is a portent of things to come. At this point Geoffrey inserted a long section of Merlin’s prophecies, taken from his earlier Prophetiae Merlini. He told two further tales of the character. In the first, Merlin creates Stonehenge as a burial place for Aurelius Ambrosius, bringing the stones from Ireland.^{[note 4]} In the second, Merlin’s magic enables the new British king Uther Pendragon to enter into Tintagel Castle in disguise and to father his son Arthur with his enemy’s wife, Igerna (Igraine). These episodes appear in many later adaptations of Geoffrey’s account. As Lewis Thorpe notes, Merlin disappears from the narrative subsequently. He does not tutor and advise Arthur as in later versions.^[6]

Geoffrey dealt with Merlin again in his third work, Vita Merlini (1150). He based it on stories of the original 6th-century Myrddin, set long after his time frame for the life of Merlin Ambrosius. Geoffrey asserts that the characters and events of Vita Merlini are the same as told in the Historia Regum Britanniae. Here, Merlin survives the reign of Arthur, about the fall of whom he is told by Taliesin. Merlin spends a part of his life as a madman in the woods and marries a woman named Guendoloena (a character inspired by the male Gwenddoleu ap Ceidio).^[6]: 44 He eventually retires to observing stars from his house with seventy windows in the remote woods of Rhydderch. There, he is often visited by Taliesin and by his own sister Ganieda (Geoffrey’s character based on Myrddin’s sister Gwenddydd), who has become queen of the Cumbrians and is also endowed with prophetic powers.

Nikolai Tolstoy hypothesized that Merlin is based on a historical personage, probably a 6th-century druid living in southern Scotland. His argument was based on the fact that early references to Merlin describe him as possessing characteristics which modern scholarship (but not that of the time the sources were written) would recognize as druidical, the inference being that those characteristics were not invented by the early chroniclers, but belonged to a real person.^[22] If so, the hypothetical Merlin would have lived about a century after the hypothetical historical Arthur. A late version of the Annales Cambriae (dubbed the «B-text», written at the end of the 13th century) and influenced by Geoffrey,^[23] records for the year 573, that after «the battle of Arfderydd, between the sons of Eliffer and Gwenddolau son of Ceidio; in which battle Gwenddolau fell; Merlin went mad.» The earliest version of the Annales Cambriae entry (in the «A-text», written c. 1100), as well as a later copy (the «C-text», written towards the end of the 13th century) do not mention Merlin.^[24] Myrddin/Merlin furthermore shares similarities with the shamanic bard figure of Taliesin, alongside whom he appears in the Welsh Triads and in Vita Merlini, as well as in the poem «Ymddiddan Myrddin a Thaliesin» («The Conversation between Myrddin and Taliesin») from The Black Book of Carmarthen, which was dated by Rachel Bromwich as «certainly» before 1100, that is predating Vita Merlini by at least half century while telling a different version of the same story.^[25] According to Villemarqué, the origin of the legend of Merlin lies with the French figure of Saint Martin of Tours.

Later developments[edit]

Sometime around the turn of the following 13th century, Robert de Boron retold and expanded on this material in Merlin, an Old French poem presenting itself as the story of Merlin’s life as told by Merlin himself to be written down by the «real» author (the actual author claiming merely a French translation). Only a few lines of what is believed to be the original text have survived, but a more popular prose version had a great influence on the emerging genre of Arthurian-themed chivalric romance. In Robert’s account, as in Geoffrey’s Historia, Merlin is created as a demon spawn, but here explicitly to become the Antichrist intended to reverse the effect of the Harrowing of Hell.^{[note 5]} The infernal plot is thwarted when a priest (and the story’s narrator^{[note 6]}) named Blaise [fr] is contacted by the child’s mother. Blaise immediately baptizes the boy at birth, thus freeing him from the power of Satan and his intended destiny.^[27] The demonic legacy invests Merlin (already able to speak fluently even as a newborn) with a preternatural knowledge of the past and present, which is supplemented by God, who gives the boy a prophetic knowledge of the future. The text lays great emphasis on Merlin’s power to shapeshift, on his joking personality, and on his connection to the Holy Grail, the quest for which he foretells. Inspired by Wace’s Roman de Brut, an Anglo-Norman adaptation of Geoffrey’s Historia, Merlin was originally a part of a cycle of Robert’s poems telling the story of the Grail over the centuries. The narrative of Merlin is largely based on Geoffrey’s familiar tale of Vortigern’s Tower, Uther’s war against the Saxons, and Arthur’s conception. What follows is a new episode of the young Arthur’s drawing of the sword from the stone,^[28] an event orchestrated by Merlin. Merlin also earlier instructs Uther to establish the original order of the Round Table, after creating the table itself. The prose version of Robert’s poem was then continued in the 13th-century Merlin Continuation or the Suite de Merlin, describing King Arthur’s early wars and Merlin’s role in them,^[29] as he predicts and influences the course of battles.^{[note 7]} He also helps Arthur in other ways, including providing him with the magic sword Excalibur through a Lady of the Lake. Here too Merlin’s shapeshifting powers feature prominently.^{[note 8]}

The extended prose rendering became the foundation for the Lancelot-Grail, a vast cyclical series of Old French prose works also known as the Vulgate Cycle. Eventually, it was directly incorporated into the Vulgate Cycle as the Estoire de Merlin, also known as the Vulgate Merlin or the Prose Merlin. A further reworking and continuation of the Prose Merlin was included within the subsequent Post-Vulgate Cycle as the Post-Vulgate Suite du Merlin or the Huth Merlin. All these variants have been adapted and translated into several other languages, and further modified. Notably, the Post-Vulgate Suite (along with an earlier version of the Prose Merlin) was the main source for the opening part of Thomas Malory’s English-language compilation work Le Morte d’Arthur that formed a now-iconic version of the legend. Compared to his French sources, Malory limited the extent of the negative association of Merlin and his powers, relatively rarely being condemned as demonic by other characters such as King Lot.^[32] Conversely, Merlin seems to be inherently evil in the so-called non-cyclic Lancelot, where he was born as the «fatherless child» from not a supernatural rape of a virgin but a consensual union between a lustful demon and an unmarried beautiful young lady, and was never baptized.^[33][34] The Prose Lancelot further relates that, after growing up in the borderlands between Scotland (Pictish lands) and Ireland (Argyll), Merlin «possessed all the wisdom that can come from demons, which is why he was so feared by the Bretons and so revered that everyone called him a holy prophet and the ordinary people all called him their god.»^[35]

As the Arthurian myths were retold, Merlin’s prophetic aspects were sometimes de-emphasised in favour of portraying him as a wizard and an advisor to the young Arthur, sometimes in struggle between good and evil sides of his character, and living in deep forests connected with nature. Through his ability to change his shape, he may appear as a «wild man» figure evoking that of his prototype Myrddin Wyllt,^[36] as a civilized man of any age, or even as a talking animal.^{[37][note 9]} In the Perceval en prose (also known as the Didot Perceval and also attributed to Robert), where Merlin is the initiator of the Grail Quest and cannot die until the end of days, he eventually retires after Arthur’s downfall by turning himself into a bird and entering the mysterious esplumoir, never to be seen again.^[38] In the Vulgate Cycle’s version of Merlin, his acts include arranging consummation of Arthur’s desire for «the most beautiful maiden ever born,» Lady Lisanor of Cardigan, resulting in the birth of Arthur’s illegitimate son Lohot from before the marriage to Guinevere.^[39][40] But fate cannot always be changed: the Post-Vulgate Cycle has Merlin warn Arthur of how the birth of his other son will bring great misfortune and ruin to his kingdom, which then becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Eventually, long after Merlin is gone, his advice to dispose of the baby Mordred through an event evoking the Biblical Massacre of the Innocents leads to the deaths of many, among them Arthur. The Orygynale Cronykil of Scotland, which sympathises with Mordred as usual in Scottish chronicle tradition, particularly attributes Merlin’s supernatural evil influence on Arthur in its very negative portrayal of his rule.^[41]

The earliest English verse romance concerning Merlin is Of Arthour and of Merlin, which drew from the chronicles and the Vulgate Cycle. In English-language medieval texts that conflate Britain with the Kingdom of England, the Anglo-Saxon enemies against whom Merlin aids first Uther and then Arthur tend to be replaced by the Saracens^[42] or simply just invading pagans. Some of the many Welsh works predicting the Celtic revenge and victory over the Saxons have been also reinterpreted as Merlin’s (Myrddin’s) prophecies, and later used by propaganda of the Welsh-descent king Henry VIII of England in the 16th century. The House of Tudor, which traced their lineage directly to Arthur, interpreted the prophecy of King Arthur’s return figuratively as concerning their ascent to the throne of England that they sought to legitimise following the Wars of the Roses.^[43]

Many other medieval works dealing with the Merlin legend include an unusual story of the 13th-century Le Roman de Silence.^[44] The Prophéties de Merlin (c. 1276) contains long prophecies of Merlin (mostly concerned with 11th to 13th-century Italian history and contemporary politics), some by his ghost after his death, interspersed with episodes relating Merlin’s deeds and with assorted Arthurian adventures in which Merlin does not appear at all. It pictures Merlin as a righteous seer chastising people for their sins, as does the 13th-14th Italian story collection Il Novellino which draws heavily from it.^[45][46] Even more political Italian text was Joachim of Fiore’s Expositio Sybillae et Merlini, directed against Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor whom the author regarded as the Antichrist. The earliest Merlin text written in Germany was Caesarius of Heisterbach’s Latin Dialogus Miraculorum (1220). Ulrich Füetrer’s 15th-century Buch der Abenteuer, in the section based on Albrecht von Scharfenberg’s lost Merlin,^[47] presents Merlin as Uter’s father, effectively making his grandson Arthur a part-devil too. Merlin’s unnamed daughter appears in the First Continuation of Perceval, the Story of the Grail to guide Perceval towards the Grail Castle.

Tales of Merlin’s end[edit]

In the prose chivalric romance tradition, Merlin has a major weakness that leads him to his relatively early doom: young beautiful women of femme fatale^[48] archetype. His apprentice is often Arthur’s half-sister Morgan le Fay. In the Prophéties de Merlin, he also tutors with Sebile and two other witch queens and the Lady of the Isle of Avalon (Dama di Isola do Vallone); the others who have learnt sorcery from Merlin include the Wise Damsel in the Italian Historia di Merlino,^{[note 10]} and the male wizard Mabon in the Post-Vulgate Merlin Continuation and the Prose Tristan. While Merlin does share his magic with his apprentices, his prophetic powers cannot be passed on. As for Morgan, she is sometimes depicted as Merlin’s lover^[49] and sometimes as just an unrequited love interest.^{[note 11]} Contrary to the many modern works in which they are archenemies, Merlin and Morgan are never opposed to each other in any medieval tradition, other than Morgan forcibly rejecting him in some texts; in fact, his love for Morgan is so great that he even lies to the king in order to save her in the Huth Merlin, which is the only instance of him ever intentionally misleading Arthur.^{[51][note 12]} Instead, Merlin’s eventual undoing comes from his lusting after another of his female students: the one often named Viviane, among various other names and spellings, including Malory’s (or really his editor Caxton’s) now-popular form Nimue (originally Nymue). She is also called a fairy (French fee) like Morgan and described as a Lady of the Lake (the «chief Lady of the Lake» in case of Malory’s Nimue). Malory’s telling of this episode would later become a major inspiration for Romantic authors and artists of the 19th century.

Viviane’s character in relation with Merlin is first found in the Lancelot-Grail cycle, after having been inserted into the legend of Merlin by either de Boron or his continuator. There are many different versions of their story. Common themes in most of them include Merlin actually having the prior prophetic knowledge of her plot against him (one exception is the Spanish Post-Vulgate Baladro where his foresight ability is explicitly dampened by sexual desire^[48]) but lacking either ability or will to counteract it in any way, along with her using one of his own spells to rid of him. Usually (including in Le Morte d’Arthur), having learnt everything she could from him, Viviane will then also replace the eliminated Merlin within the story, taking up his role as Arthur’s adviser and court mage.^[52] However, Merlin’s fate of either demise or eternal imprisonment, along with his destroyer or captor’s motivation (from her fear of Merlin and protecting her own virginity, to her jealously for his relationship with Morgan), is recounted differently in variants of this motif. The exact form of his either prison or grave can be also variably a cave, a hole under a large rock (as in Le Morte d’Arthur), a magic tower, or a tree.^[31] These are usually placed within the enchanted forest of Brocéliande, a legendary location often identified as the real-life Paimpont forest in Brittany.^[7]

Niniane, as the Lady of the Lake student of Merlin is known as in the Livre d’Artus continuation of Merlin, is mentioned as having broken his heart prior to his later second relationship with Morgan, but here the text actually does not tell how exactly Merlin did vanish, other than relating his farewell meeting with Blaise. In the Vulgate Lancelot, which predated the later Vulgate Merlin, she (aged just 12 at the time) makes Merlin sleep forever in a pit in the forest of Darnantes, «and that is where he remained, for never again did anyone see or hear of him or have news to tell of him.»^[53] In the Post-Vulgate Suite de Merlin, the young King Bagdemagus (one of the early Knights of the Round Table) manages to find the rock under which Merlin is entombed alive by Niviene, as she is named there.^{[note 13]} He communicates with Merlin, but is unable to lift the stone; what follows next is supposedly narrated in the mysterious text Conte del Brait (Tale of the Cry).^{[note 14]} In the Prophéties de Merlin version, his tomb is unsuccessfully searched for by various parties, including by Morgan and her enchantresses, but cannot be accessed due to the deadly magic traps around it,^[56] while the Lady of the Lake comes to taunt Merlin by asking did he rot there yet.^[54] One notably alternate version having a happier ending for Merlin is contained within the Premiers Faits section of the Livre du Graal, where Niniane peacefully confines him in Brocéliande with walls of air, visible only as a mist to others but as a beautiful yet unbreakable crystal tower to him (only Merlin’s disembodied voice can escape his prison one last time when he speaks to Gawain^[54] on the knight’s quest to find him), where they will then spend almost every night together as lovers.^[57] Besides evoking the final scenes from Vita Merlini, this particular variant of their story also mirrors episodes found in some other texts, wherein Merlin either is an object of one-sided desire by a different amorous sorceress who too (unsuccessfully) plots to trap him or it is actually Merlin himself who traps an unwilling lover with his magic.^{[note 15]}

Unrelated to the legend of the Lady of the Lake, other purported sites of Merlin’s burial include a cave deep inside Merlin’s Hill (Welsh: Bryn Myrddin), outside Carmarthen. Carmarthen is also associated with Merlin more generally, including through the 13th-century manuscript known as the Black Book and the local lore of Merlin’s Oak. In North Welsh tradition, Merlin retires to Bardsey Island (Welsh: Ynys Enlli), where he lives in a house of glass (Welsh: Tŷ Gwydr) with the Thirteen Treasures of the Island of Britain (Welsh: Tri Thlws ar Ddeg Ynys Prydain).^[59]: 200 One site of his tomb is said to be Marlborough Mound in Wiltshire,^[60] known in medieval times as Merlebergia (the Abbot of Cirencester wrote in 1215: «Merlin’s tumulus gave you your name, Merlebergia»^[59]: 93). Another site associated with Merlin’s burial, in his ‘Merlin Silvestris’ aspect, is the confluence of the Pausalyl Burn and River Tweed in Drumelzier, Scotland. The 15th-century Scotichronicon tells that Merlin himself underwent a triple-death, at the hands of some shepherds of the under-king Meldred: stoned and beaten by the shepherds, he falls over a cliff and is impaled on a stake, his head falls forward into the water, and he drowns.^{[note 16]} The fulfilment of another prophecy, ascribed to Thomas the Rhymer, came about when a spate of the Tweed and Pausayl occurred during the reign of the Scottish James VI and I on the English throne: «When Tweed and Pausayl meet at Merlin’s grave, / Scotland and England one king shall have.»^[10]: 62

Modern culture[edit]

Merlin and stories involving him have continued to be popular from the Renaissance to the present day, especially since the renewed interest in the legend of Arthur in modern times. As noted by Arthurian scholar Alan Lupack, «numerous novels, poems and plays centre around Merlin. In American literature and popular culture, Merlin is perhaps the most frequently portrayed Arthurian character.»^[61] Diverging from his traditional role in the legends, Merlin is sometimes portrayed as a villain, as in Mark Twain’s humorous novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court (1889).^[61] According to Peter H. Goodrich in Merlin: A Casebook:

Merlin’s primary characteristics continue to be recalled, refined, and expanded today, continually encompassing new ideas and technologies as well as old ones. The ability of this complex figure to endure for more than fourteen centuries results not only from his manifold roles and their imaginative appeal, but also from significant, often irresolvable tensions or polarities […] between beast and human (Wild Man), natural and supernatural (Wonder Child), physical and metaphysical (Poet), secular and sacred (Prophet), active and passive (Counselor), magic and science (Wizard), and male and female (Lover). Interwoven with these primary tensions are additional polarities that apply to all of Merlin’s roles, such as those between madness and sanity, pagan and Christian, demonic and heavenly, mortality and immortality, and impotency and potency.^[2]

In 2011, Merlin was one of eight British magical figures that were commemorated on a series of UK postage stamps issued by the Royal Mail.^[62] Things named in honour of the legendary figure have included the asteroid 2598 Merlin, the metal band Merlin, and the literary magazine Merlin.

See also[edit]

• Garab Dorje, also said to have been conceived by a nun without a human father
• Merlin’s Cave, a location under Tintagel Castle

Notes[edit]

References[edit]

Bibliography[edit]

• Goodrich, Peter H. (2004). Merlin: A Casebook. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-58340-8.
• Koch, John T. (2006). Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-85109-440-0.

External links[edit]

• Merlin: Texts, Images, Basic Information, Camelot Project at the University of Rochester. Numerous texts and art concerning Merlin
• Timeless Myths: The Many Faces of Merlin
• BBC audio file of the «Merlin» episode of In Our Time
• Prose Merlin, Introduction and Text (the University of Rochester TEAMS Middle English text series) edited by John Conlea, 1998. A selection of many passages of the prose Middle English translation of the Vulgate Merlin with connecting summary. The sections from «The Birth of Merlin to «Arthur and the Sword in the Stone» cover Robert de Boron’s Merlin
• Of Arthour and of Merlin translated and retold in modern English prose, the story from Edinburgh, National Library of Scotland MS Advocates 19.2.1 (the Auchinleck MS) (from the Middle English of the Early English Text Society edition: O D McCrae-Gibson, 1973, Of Arthour and of Merlin, 2 vols, EETS and Oxford University Press)

Транслит женсксого имени Мерлин: Merlin

Значение имени «Мерлин»

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Значение букв в имени «Мерлин»

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Л — логика, артистичность, мелочность

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Мерлин: характер, достоинства и недостатки

Имя Мерлин обладает земной энергией и все свои ресурсы направляет на укрепление своих корней. Мерлин безусловно верит в физический мир и знает, что инвестиции в прочную инфраструктуру необходимы для создания прочного наследия и спокойного будущего. Практичность, трудолюбие и ответственность, все вибрации сосредоточены на создании систем поддержки масштабируемого роста. С другой стороны, Мерлин обладает твердостью, которая может быстро перерасти в жесткость. Не нужно забывать, что правила предназначены для роста и усиления, а не для подавления. Поэтому им нужно научиться расслабляться и мыслить нестандартно, почувствовать в себе раскрепощенность и вдохновение, найти в себе смелость пойти на риск.

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Число имени четыре (4) указывает на людей, которым свойственны постоянность, искренность, внимательность к деталям. Людям с именем Мерлин открываются неограниченные возможности в технических и гуманитарных науках. При отсутствии амбиций такие люди нередко ведут аскетичный образ жизни, а при возникновении препятствий на своем пути могут легко сдаваться. Число четыре (4) для имени Мерлин означает, что сексуальные отношения — это, в первую очередь, продолжение рода…

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Удачные годы для имени Мерлин: 1903, 1912, 1921, 1930, 1939, 1948, 1957, 1966, 1975, 1984, 1993, 2002, 2011, 2020, 2029. Подробнее: имена года.

Значение букв в имени Мерлин

М — указывает на артистичность и желание всегда быть в центре внимания. Мерлин отличается уверенностью в себе, усердием в делах, любит помогать другим.
Е — указывает на выдающиеся аналитические способности, проницательность, стремление все понять и объяснить. Мерлин стремится к самовыражению, генерирует новые идеи, удачно разрешает конфликтные ситуации.
Р — указывает на развитую духовность, энергичность, самостоятельность и независимость, умение разглядеть главное. Мерлин стремится к активным действиям, нередко к авантюрным и рисковым.
Л — означает, что Мерлин тонко понимает прекрасное, обладает незаурядными артистическими и художественными способностями, изъявляет желает делиться с окружающими своими знаниями и впечатлениями, осознает необходимость поиска своего предназначения в этом мире.
И — означает утонченность, романтизм, чувствительность, стремление к гармонии с окружающим миром. Мерлин отличается деловитостью и практичностью, которая нередко может переходить в излишнюю эмоциональность и даже жестокость.
Н — символизирует уверенность, развитую интуицию, способность противостоять давлению извне. Мерлин — лицо протеста и критического подхода к действительности.

Перевод на латинницу имени Мерлин

Merlin

Смотрите также: фонетический разбор и склонение имени Мерлин.

Комментарии

Тайна имени Мерлин, история происхождения, портрет личности, черты характера. Основные черты его личности — ответственность, отзывчивость и уважение. Также из сильных качеств проявляются щедрость и доброжелательность. Его именной цвет — Темно-зеленый, камень имени — Обсидиан, а число — Восемь. Это имя сопровождают духовные животные, такие как Курица и Пони. Раскрываем тайны имени Мерлина и описываем особенности характера и личности.

Исследование тайны имени Мерлина оказалось весьма плодотворным. В своем исследовании мы изучили данные из различных источников и исследований, от истории до тайн судьбы. Кроме этого, были собраны данные из астрологических и нумероологических источников. Весь материал структурирован по пунктам, отдельно друг от друга.

Происхождение и история, значение имени Мерлин

Мерлин — имя с особой историей происхождение, неоднозначной и запутанной. Есть множество свидетельств об его использовании в различных странах мира. Древние народы и культуры также имели упоминания о его корнях. Встречаются также и свидетельства существования корней и составных частей в античном периоде. Таким образом, нельзя утверждать, что это имя имеет лишь один корень происхождения.

Формы и падежи, склонения имени Мерлин

Правописание имени — обманчиво легкий раздел правописания, который содержит множество нюансов и исключений. К примеру, иностранные имена имеют сложную и нелогичную форму склонений, нередко основанную на исключениях. Ниже составлена таблица, которая содержит в себе все варианты падежей и склонений имени Мерлина.

Характер Мерлина

Необычный характер Мерлина содержит в себе такие черты, как ответственность, отзывчивость и уважение. Окружающие такие подмечают щедрость и доброжелательность. Такой набор качеств и особенностей сложно назвать заурядным. Однако не все из них видны невооруженным глазом. Некоторые из них могут быть скрыты или не проявлены, находиться в тени долгое время.

Нумерология — число имени Мерлин

Точность нумерологического анализа основана на знании фундаментальных чисел и важных дат жизни человека. Построить полный граф характера личности без знания точных чисел человека — практически невозможно. Но все же мы провели определенный анализ имени Мерлина в этой области. Это позволило получить набросок наиболее выраженных личностных особенностей.

Число «8» — символ бесконечности. Находясь под влиянием этого числа, Мерлин обладает терпением и выдержкой, которым могут позавидовать все окружающие. Упорство совершать попытки для реализации возможностей и улучшения результата делают Мерлина превосходной творческой личностью.

Именные растения и животные Мерлина

Глубокое изучение тотемных символов Мерлина — ключевой аспект понимания внутренней сущности души. Считается, что тотемные символы-растения определяют, как человек относится к своему «Я». А символы тотемных животных — проявляют черты личности, которые он проявляет при взаимодействии с людьми и окружением. Понимание основных качеств и предпочтений личности необходимо для гармонии и ощущения комфорта в общении.

Ведущее растение — Орешник

Орешник символизирует щедрость. Мерлин получает искреннее удовольствие от подарков, которыми обильно одаривает родных и близких. Счастье окружающих людей — и его счастье, что делает его любящим и теплым человеком.

Тотемное дерево — Ель

Ель — хвойное дерево с «колкой» листвой. Этот символизм метко отражает важную часть характера Мерлина — он не боится говорить людям правду в лицо, а его мысли, выражения и доводы отличаются особой прямолинейностью. Сложно сказать, положительно или отрицательно это отражается на его жизнь, но у подобных качеств всегда есть неотъемлемые плюсы.

Духовное дерево — Сирень

Сирень символизирует любознательность. Любознательность граничит с любопытством, и эти два качества помогают Мерлину докапываться до корня и причин происходящего в окружающей жизни. Такое качество позволяет перенимать чужой жизненный опыт, который привносит не меньше пользы, чем собственный.

Ведущее животное — Пони

Пони — символ тактичности. В общении с Мерлинуй вы почти никогда не ощутите неловких ситуаций, от которых придется испытывать стыд или отрицательные эмоции. Избыточные и неуместные шутки, порой даже непривычная серьезность — про такую личность. Порой чувство такта даже серьезно преобладает над остальными качествами.

Тотемное животное — Бык

Бык — символ активности. В детстве про Мерлина говорили, что он — непоседа, но это качество находит свое отражение и во взрослой жизни. Он не любит сидеть, сложа руки, и находит свое счастье в достижении какой-либо цели.

Духовное животное — Курица

Курица — символ красноречия. Найти общий язык, сгладить сложную ситуацию и/или конфликт — не проблема для Мерлина! Дипломатический подход и внутреннее понимание психологии людей делает из Мерлина превосходного «дипломата».

Цвет имени Мерлина — Темно-зеленый

Темно-зеленый цвет — символ искренности. Личности, у которых этот цвет является ведущим, ставят честность и правду в приоритет, когда дело касается взаимоотношений с людьми. Это необычное качество, которое бывает непросто применить в жизни с пользой.

Камень имени Мерлина — Обсидиан

Обсидиан — камень внимательности. Нечастое качество, которое можно встретить в именной предрасположенности. Внимательность помогает Мерлину выстроить жизнь, карьеру, социальные связи и добиваться одобрения от окружения.

Характер и тайна имени Мерлин — краткий итог

У личности Мерлина есть сильная предрасположенность сочетать в себе сильные черты характера. Даже те особенности и проявления, которые люди считают отрицательными, могут играть хорошую роль в жизни человека. К слову, методология анализа и статистики по имени основывается на предрасположенностях. Однако предрасположенности — не гарантия именно такого направления развития личности. И истинный набор черт характера — результат и влияния окружения в жизни человека.

Ме́рлин (англ. Merlin, валл. Myrddin, валл. Myrddin Emrys, валл. Ann ap Lleian^[1] Annvab y llaian^[2]). — в британском цикле легенд, мудрец и волшебник кельтских мифов, наставник и советник короля Артура, а до того и его отца Утера; а ранее — короля Вортигерна. Кроме того имя Мерлина встречается как эпитет в средневековой кельтской поэзии бардов^[3].

Имя Мерлина связано с валл. Myrddin. Валлийское имя возникло, вероятно, в связи с неправильной интерпретацией названия города Кармартен: валл. Caerfyrddin. Это название происходит от бриттского *Mori-dunon ‘морская крепость’, однако было позже понято как Caer-Myrddin (переход m в f (читается [v]) отвечает правилам валлийской грамматики), то есть «крепость Мирдина». Латинский вариант Merlinus появляется у Гальфрида Монмутского.

Мерлин у Талиесина^[4]

Мерлин упоминается в сочинении приписываемом барду Талиесину «Могилы воинов» (Englynnion Y Bedeu), написанном трёхстишиями в форме «Englyn milwr». Поэма содержится в «Чёрной Книге из Кармартена». Мерлину посвящена 14-я строфа сохранившаяся в манускрипте Peniarth 98B, в которой он фигурирует сразу под тремя именами: Анн ап Ллейан (валл. Ann ap Lleian), Амвросий (валл. Emmrys) и Мерлин Амвросий (валл. Merddin Emmrys). В первом имени «Lleian» можно перевести как «монахиня», таким образом валл. Ann ap Lleian допустимо перевести как «Анн, сын монахини», (англ. Ann son of the Nun)^[1][5].

Рождение и детство Мерлина

Происхождение Мерлина, как и жизнь, окутано мифами. Согласно одним источникам, его мать была одной из чистейших и добрейших девушек за историю человечества, и зло никогда не рождалось в её душе. Дьявол искал путей к ней, но не находил. Однажды её сестра, злая женщина и полная ей противоположность, пришла домой пьяной и начала несправедливо бранить и оскорблять сестру. Девушка разгневалась, открыв тем самым свою душу злу, и дьявол овладел ею. Так был зачат Мерлин. Во время беременности она молила Бога, чтобы он помиловал её и ребёнка, а также обращалась за помощью-советом к своему духовнику-священнику Блезу. Блез решил, что следует «окрестить Мерлина, сразу по его рождению» — окрестив Мерлина, Блез уничтожил «всё тёмное наследие Мерлина», но у Мерлина остались необычайные «способности мудреца и провидца».

Согласно другой легенде, Мерлин родился в городе Уэльс в 500-х годах, мать его была обычной девушкой, а отец волшебником. С ранних лет маленький Мерлин старался волховать и пророчествовать. Ему повиновались все звери и птицы, а олени и филины часто были спутниками его игр. Мерлин был добрейшим мальчиком — всем помогал, давал советы. Он был полностью доволен жизнью, пока король Вортирген не позвал его усмирить двух драконов. И тогда все окончательно узнали, что Мерлин — волшебник.

Мерлин и Артур

Самым полным собранием эпизодов из легендарной жизни Мерлина обычно принято считать книгу сэра Томаса Мэлори «Смерть Артура». Мерлин является там наставником-ментором будущего короля Британии Артура, сына короля Утера Пендрагона и леди Игрэйн, который был зачат после смерти первого мужа Игрейн (так по Мэлори) благодаря магической помощи Мерлина. За это волшебник забирает себе младенца и воспитывает его.

Когда Артур достиг возраста шестнадцати лет, Мерлин советует ему участвовать в состязании за древний меч в камне. По известному преданию тому, кто сможет извлечь этот меч из камня, суждено объединить всю Британию (этот меч — ещё не Экскалибур, с которым его часто путают). Экскалибур попадает в руки Артуру в одном из следующих эпизодов — Мерлин чарами взывает к Владычице Озера, которая дарует Артуру Экскалибур. После смерти Артура меч возвращается Владычице Озера.

Смерть Мерлина описывается в эпизоде с Морганой — злой колдуньей, извечной противницей рыцарей Круглого Стола. Она околдовывает Мерлина, погружая его в вечный сон, выведав его тайны с помощью девушки Нимуэ. Согласно легенде, Мерлин спит где-то под холмом вечным сном, но ещё может проснуться. По другой легенде, злая колдунья Моргана заточила Мерлина в могучий дуб, где он и умер. Многие^[кто?] считают, что второй вариант более правдив и правилен^{[уточнить]}.

Однако есть и другие легенды, согласно которым Мерлин заключён в колонну. Дева Озера, в которую Мерлин был влюблён, обманула его и, сотворив волшебную колонну из воздуха, навек заключила в неё Мерлина.

«Легенда о короле Артуре» написана Мерлином и Блезом

Сама «легенда о короле Артуре» сообщает, что её написал «мудрец-отшельник Блез» — по просьбе Мерлина, под диктовку и по рассказам Мерлина. И Мерлин высказал Блезу пророчество: «Эта твоя книга о славном короле Артуре — будет на все времена „самой любимой книгой в мире“».

Проклятие Мерлина

По легенде, после смерти Артура саксы всё же захватили Британию, и Мерлин проклял саксов, предсказав падение Белого Дракона (символа саксов)^[7]. Так или иначе, «проклятие Мерлина» сбылось во время битвы при Гастингсе, когда Вильгельм Завоеватель убил последнего саксонского короля Гарольда. Позже и норманны, смешавшиеся с саксонской кровью Матильды — пали и после Плантагенетов, Йорков и Ланкастеров престол захватили валлийцы по крови — то есть бритты — Тюдоры, таким образом королевская власть вернулась к потомкам кельтов.

Мерлин в литературе

Возникновение легенды

Впервые Мерлин упоминается в «Истории бриттов» Гальфрида Монмутского и, возможно, возник от контаминации двух легендарных героев: Мирддина Виллта^[8] (Myrddin Wyllt), известного также как Merlinus Caledonensis, и Амвросии Аврелиане (Aurelius Ambrosius). В результате возник персонаж, которого Гальфрид назвал Мерлином Амброзием.

• В итальянских Новеллино XIII века имя Мерлина встречается несколько раз (новеллы 25, 66, 70) Новелла 70 имеет подзаголовок «Пророчество Мерлина»^[9]
• «История бриттов» (лат. «Historia Regum Britanniae») и поэма «Жизнь Мерлина» («Vita Merlini») Гальфрида Монмутского
• французский роман Роберта де Борона (ок. 1200)
• сэр Томас Мэлори, «Смерть Артура» (Sir Thomas Malory, Le Morte d’Arthur), 1470

См. также: Артуровский цикл

Литература Нового времени

• Мерлин стал одним из персонажей романа Марка Твена «Янки из Коннектикута при дворе короля Артура». Образ волшебника был сатирически переосмыслен автором, который сделал Мерлина воплощением некогда влиятельного ретрограда, всеми силами противящегося техническому прогрессу. (Именно этот образ стал основой образа Мерлина в повести братьев Стругацких «Понедельник начинается в субботу»).
• Дугласом Монро написаны книги «Двадцать один урок Мерлина» и «Утерянные книги Мерлина»…
• Мерлин — один из важнейших персонажей романа Клайва Стейплза Льюиса «Мерзейшая мощь»
• Теренс Хэнбери Уайт написал замечательную тетралогию «Король былого и грядущего». В ней он удачно соединил сказку, юмористику, элементы рыцарского и философского квеста.

Современная фантастика

• Об Артуре и Мерлине написана трилогия Мэри Стюарт: «Хрустальный грот», «Полые холмы», «Последнее волшебство». Из всех произведений о Мерлине, трилогия Мэри Стюарт отличается наиболее оригинальным подходом к древним легендам Уэльса, Англии и Шотландии. Художественный вымысел тесно переплетается с серьёзной исторической реконструкцией событий конца пятого — начала шестого века, «волшебными» деяниями и личности Мерлина, рождением и воспитанием короля Артура.
• Также следует упомянуть цикл романов Бернарда Корнуэлла «Король зимы», «Враг Божий» и «Экскалибур», где Мерлин является одним из ключевых персонажей.
• Мерлин упоминается в цикле романов Дж. К. Роулинг о Гарри Поттере, а также в фантастическом романе Сергея Лукьяненко «Последний Дозор», в трилогии романов о Жихаре Михаила Успенского и циклах Ника Перумова «Хроники Хьёрварда» и «Хранитель Мечей» (в книге «Алмазный меч, Деревянный меч»).
• Оригинальная трактовка событий времен Артура и роли в его жизни самого Мерлина — в фантазийной трилогии Мэрион Зиммер Брэдли «Туманы Авалона» (здесь слово «мерлин» используется не в качестве личного имени, а в словосочетании «мерлин всей Британии», как синоним прорицателя)
• В сериале «Звёздные Врата SG-1» начиная с 9-го сезона Мерлин — Древний, наставник Артура и рыцарей Круглого Стола, также создававший Святой Грааль — оружие, способное уничтожить вознёсшихся существ (предполагал использовать для уничтожения Орай). Был остановлен до завершения создания оружия феей Морганой, вознёсшейся Древней, и помещён в стазис. После того как команда SG-1 нашла и освободила Мерлина из стазиса, через некоторое время Мерлин умирает.
• В комедийно-фантастическом сериале Мерлин (телесериал). На момент 20 февраля 2012 года у сериала уже 4 сезона.
• Мерлин является главным героем одного из романов Андре Нортон, который так и называется — «Зеркало Мерлина».
• Мерлин (под именем Мирддин маб Морврин) появляется в историко-фэнтезийном романе Николая Толстого «Пришествие короля», посвящённом противостоянию кельтов и англосаксов во времена саксонского завоевания Британии (V—VI вв.)
• Мерлин (в несколько изменённой форме — Maerlyn) упоминается в цикле Стивена Кинга «Тёмная Башня» как одно из имён Рэндалла Флэгга, антагониста.
• В романе Генри Каттнера «Мир тьмы» Мерлин, увлечённый женщиной, перебирается из пространства нашего мира в параллельный мир — Мир Тьмы, откуда уже не может вернуться, поскольку в нашем мире он бы умер. Мерлин ностальгирует по Земле («Я всё это отдал бы, чтобы ещё раз ощутить на лице дуновение ветерка с Ирландского моря!»), помогает главному герою одержать победу над врагом («Ради ветерка в древней Ирландии…»), после чего умирает.
• Фамилию «Мерлин» носит центральный персонаж романа Михаила Успенского «Райская машина» (2009). Согласно сюжету романа, Роман Ильич Мерлин вынужден долго пребывать в уединении, прервав практически все связи с миром, что является реминисценцией на миф о заточении в «хрустальном гроте».
• Мерлин также является главным героем второй пенталогии «Хроник Амбера» Роджера Желязны. Это единственный сын Корвина из Амбера и Дары из Хаоса, растёт и воспитывается в отражении Земля. Вследствие неизбежной цепочки событий является единственным наследником двух противоборствующих миров Амбера и Хаоса.
• Мерлин также упоминается в цикле романов Владимира Свержина «Институт экспериментальной истории»
• Оригинальная трактовка образа Мерлина — не романтичного волшебника, а зловещего колдуна и противника христианства, дана в сказке «Дети против волшебников» Никоса Зерваса.
• Мерлин является одним из героев книги «Школа в Кармартене» Коростелёвой А. А., являясь, собственно, директором данной школы. Здесь он представлен как весьма эксцентричный, но мудрый преподаватель.
• В повести братьев Стругацких «Понедельник начинается в субботу» Мерлин служит исполняющим обязанности заведующего отделом пророчеств и предсказаний НИИ ЧАВО. Образ его выполнен в ироническом стиле и высмеивает геронтократов при науке.
• Мерлин, вместе с королём Артуром и Ланселотом, является персонажем цикла комедийно-фэнтезийных романов Андрея Лютого «Рабин Гут — принц ментов».

Кроме того, архетипичность образа Мерлина повлияла на возникновение таких персонажей, как:

• Гэндальф (при котором Арагорн выполняет функции Артура);
• Эльминстер;

В кинематографе

• В фильме «Мерлин» и продолжении «Ученик Мерлина» его роль играет Сэм Нилл.
• В фильме «Рыцарь Камелота» роль Мерлина исполнил актёр Иэн Ричардсон.
• В фильме «Мерлин и книга чудовищ» его роль играет Джеймс Кэллис.
• В фильме «Новые приключения янки при дворе короля Артура» (1988) Мерлина играет Альберт Филозов.
• В фильмах «Мерлин и волшебный меч» и «Меч короля Артура» Мерлин появляется в исполнении Малкольма Макдауэлла.
• В фильме «Последний легион» его роль играет Бен Кингсли.
• В фильме «Король Артур» (2004) Мерлин (в исполнении Стивена Диллэйна) изображён жрецом-вождём пиктов, помогающим римскому генералу Луцию Арторию (в исполнении Клайва Оуэна) осознать, что после ухода римлян его долг — защищать свою вторую родину (мать Артория была из пиктов) от угрозы саксов.
• Фильм «Мерлин из хрустальной пещеры» рассказывает о жизни волшебника, в исполнении Джорджа Винтера, начиная с его детства.
• В одноимённом сериале «Мерлин» появляется в исполнении Колина Моргана.
• В телевизионном фильме Мерлин: первое волшебство (1998) его роль играет Джейсон Коннери.
• В полнометражном мультфильме «Меч в камне» производства компании «The Walt Disney Company».
• Мерлин фигурирует в одном из эпизодов американского мультсериала «Трансформеры» — «Десептиконы при дворе короля Артура», в котором несколько трансформеров по ходу действия нечаянно переносятся в средневековую Британию; здесь он помогает автоботам Тягачу и Томагавку и их земному союзнику — подростку Спайку Уитвики победить десептиконов Скандалиста, Ревуна, Громилу и Грабителя, а затем возвращает всю компанию в их собственное время.
• В серии «Сэр Винт Разболтайло» (17-я серия первого сезона) мультсериала «Утиные истории» производства компании Уолта Диснея.
• В фильме «Ученик чародея» эпизодическую роль Мерлина сыграл Джеймс А. Стефенс.
• В сериале «Звёздные врата SG-1» Мерлин является вознесшимся Древним, создатель некоторых технологий (защитная голограмма, устройство переноса в другое измерение и т.д)
• В сериале «Камелот» роль Мерлина исполнил актёр Джозеф Файнс
• В сериале «Волшебная книга старого дома» роль Мерлина озвучивает начинающий режиссёр Дмитрий Полищук.
• В фильме «31 июня» принцесса Милисента носит на груди волшебную брошь — подарок Великого Мерлина, с помощью которой в итоге и обретает личное счастье.

В музыке

В музыке тему о Мерлине разрабатывали:

• Композитор Исаак Альбенис написал оперу «Merlin».
• Мерлин — один из героев прогрессив-рок-оперы Арьена Энтони Лукассена — Ayreon: The Final Experiment, действие которой происходит при дворе короля Артура. В ней он противостоит главному герою, слепому менестрелю Айреону, и уничтожает его заклятием, позже осознав свою ошибку.
• Существует московская дэт-метал группа, носящая название Merlin.
• В 1985—1990 годах существовала боснийская группа «Merlin», в которой пел Дино Мерлин, автор первого гимна Боснии и Герцеговины.
• Голландская прог-рок-группа Kayak в 1981 году выпустила альбом «Merlin».
• Итальянский музыкант Фабио Цуффанти совместно с Викторией Хэйуорд в 2000 году написал рок-оперу Merlin

Наиболее известные песни:

• Пауэр-метал группа Grave Digger — The Secrets of Merlin.
• Прог-металл-группа Ayreon — альбом the Final Experiment — Мерлин сталкивается с главным героем альбома, бардом Айреоном, который видит будущее и, таким образом, является его конкурентом. По просьбе самого Айреона, который не в силах выносить видения ужасного конца света, Мерлин лишает его этого дара.
• Пауэр-метал группа Скипетр — «Проклятие Мерлина».
• Фолк-рок группа Башня Rowan — «Мерлин».
• Готик-метал группа Flowing Tears — Merlin.
• Рик Уэйкман — Merlin The Magician.
• Скади — песня «Мерлин» с альбома «Дискордия», написанная от лица умирающего Мерлина.

Интересные факты

• В 1982 году Международный Астрономический Союз присвоил кратеру на спутнике Сатурна Мимасе наименование Мерлин.
• В играх «Гарри Поттер и философский камень» и «Гарри Поттер и Тайная комната» является одним из знаменитых волшебников. Его изображение красуется на карточке № 1. А на Интернет-сайте Джоан Роулинг «Pottermore» сообщается, что Мерлин в своё время учился в Хогвартсе, на факультете Слизерин.
• В игре Sonic and the Black Knight Мерлина (Merlina), внучка волшебника Мерлина, играет главную роль в сюжете. Она заставляет Соника найти вещь ножны меча Excalibur и обманом использует силу этой вещицы, чтобы стать новой королевой, перед этим доказав, что Артур был лишь иллюзией.

Примечания

См. также

• Имя Мерлин носит главный герой последних пяти романов серии «Хроники Амбера» американского писателя Роджера Желязны.
• Авиационный двигатель Мерлин

Герои Артурианы
Главные персонажи	Король Артур • Королева Гвиневра • Мордред
Рыцари Круглого стола	Гавейн • Ланселот • Галахад • Гарет • Парцифаль • Борс • Кей • Тристан
Маги и феи	Мерлин • Блез • Фея Моргана • Владычица Озера
Второстепенные персонажи	Утер Пендрагон • Игрэйна • Моргауза • Король-Рыбак • Лот Оркнейский
Географические пункты	Камелот • Авалон • Тинтагель • Броселианд
Легендарные предметы	Грааль • Круглый стол • Экскалибур