I have always been
attracted by this foliate head symbol so widespread among Europe. Is he
actually a Seasonal Deity? A symbolism of Virility? Why Green?… Let’s plunge into
this subject regarding rebirth
and the gifts of nature ….
His foliate heads or foliate masks, carvings of the Green
Man may take many forms, either naturalistic or decorative both in eclesiastical and secular architecture.
A deity hard to suppress by
Chrisitanity and that’s why it was well depicted frequently on carvings in
churches and other buildings, highly probable grounded in the Cult of Tree worship, an ancient
religion dating from the late Stone Age.
The Green Man appears in
many forms, with the three most common types categorized as:
· the Foliate Head - completely covered in green leaves
· the Disgorging Head - spews vegetation from its mouth
· the Bloodsucker Head - sprouts vegetation from all facial
orifices
Etymological research by
the University of Wales into the meaning of the names of Celtic gods and
goddesses shows that one Celtic deity, Viridios, has a name meaning "Green
Man" in both the Celtic languages and Latin wich had some altars raised in
Ancaster, UK, dating from the Roman Britain times.
The name is used in the
form of the dative meaning "to"(the god). The nominative form, and
therefore the name of this god would be Viridius There are two possible Latin derivations: 1. "vir"
meaning "man" plus the suffix "-idius" ( meaning
"resembling" from the Greek "idios").
In this case the Ancaster God Viridius could have been
"Jupiter" under a different name. 2. "viridis" meaning
"green, fresh, young verdant". The Ancaster God could then have been
a God of Spring or of Agriculture. As Ancaster is a rural, traditionally
agricultural place this makes sense too.
♣ Should it be a derivative
deity from Cernunnos,
the antlered Celtic god related to wild animals, hunting
and fertility,
even the same consort of the Great Mother Nature?.
Probably he is I guess… Let’s recall that he is depicted
holding a torc in one hand and a serpent in the other - symbols of female and male sexuality, and definetely
the Green Man is also a symbolism of Fertility and Mother Nature herself and
all her Spirits which mainly reside in groves and woods according to
traditional believes.
But there is also a widespread belief on him as the symbolism of Life ruling
over Death, the revival of the Spring season
wining over the Winter season. The same Force of Nature - weakened and
killed by Winter and yet born again in Springtime: renewed, inmortal and
virile.
♣ Why green?
Green is
also associated with nature, growth, wealth, abundance, vitality, ripening, life, and fertility and that is the
reason. Many believes in the wee folk and woodland spirits associate them with the green colour too.. The chorus of a traditional song describing the fairies from the Blackdown Hills in Somerset:
"Green, green, green, All a-green, all a-green A-dancing round the tree". On very rare occasions, and only in the Highlands, wearing a green dress
can protect from the malevolent attentions of the fairies.
♣ Is there any possible
connection with the Celtic 'Cult of the Head'?
Celts believed the soul and
spirit of a person resided in the head and thus could be captured – Some Green
Man 'Disgorging' with foliage emerging
from their mouths possibly indicate
that through sacrifice & burial (of the head) new life would be born.
♣ Sir Gawain and the Green
Knight
There is a deep rooted
symbolism of the Green Man in this Arthurian poem I commented on my previous post. Maybe due to the symbolism
derived from the combination of human head with leaves and vegetation,
moreover, which somehow renders the idea of a union between mankind with
nature.
The poem also is an
alliterative telling of the turning of the year, taking place at a time between
two winters, which signifies a time of death of vibrant vegetation, and then a
changing back to life through renewed growth, and then again, returns to death.
The “head” veneration
hereby as a trophy ... The Green Knight is beheaded and through his sacrifice he shows that life
still goes on and, as John Matthews notes, “he challenges us to honor the
sacrifice he makes every winter.”
Other associations with the
Green Man are found in the Green Knight’s long hair and beard, both green of
course. His beard “is like a bush…his long green hair covers his chest and
back…down to his elbows. He carries a holly branch in one hand…”
Related Sources:
http://www.celticsymbols.net/green-man.html
http://www.authorsden.com/visit/viewArticle.asp?id=13535
Matthews, John. "The Quest
for the Green Man". Wheaton; Quest Books 2001,
Hutchings,John. "Folklore and symbolism of green" 
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