I thought Macha's name was derived from the celtic word for horse, not Epona. [...] Nevermind. I found what I was looking for. Both of their names are derived from two different words for horse: epos, and marca.* In my recent research on the Irish pooka, I've come across a lot of texts on horses in Celtic culture, since the pooka can oft be found in the guise of a horse. I'm not certain of where epos comes from, but it looks a lot like the Latin equus. Marca, Ellis says, "is easily recognisable as march (Welsh), margh (Cornish) and marc'h (Breton)" (76-77). It can also be recognised in the word Camargue, which is a marshy land in southern France that is famed for its horses. I believe the word 'mare' is also related, but I haven't done any etymological research to support that; however, merely looking at the structure of the above words would certainly indicate a close relationship.
Ok, I'm done with my academic babble now. I should go work on my paper. Hope you had a happy Epona horse day. ^^
*info from Peter Bradford Ellis' The Ancient World of the Celts
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2002-12-18 11:14 pm (UTC)[...]
Nevermind. I found what I was looking for. Both of their names are derived from two different words for horse: epos, and marca.* In my recent research on the Irish pooka, I've come across a lot of texts on horses in Celtic culture, since the pooka can oft be found in the guise of a horse. I'm not certain of where epos comes from, but it looks a lot like the Latin equus. Marca, Ellis says, "is easily recognisable as march (Welsh), margh (Cornish) and marc'h (Breton)" (76-77). It can also be recognised in the word Camargue, which is a marshy land in southern France that is famed for its horses. I believe the word 'mare' is also related, but I haven't done any etymological research to support that; however, merely looking at the structure of the above words would certainly indicate a close relationship.
Ok, I'm done with my academic babble now. I should go work on my paper. Hope you had a happy Epona horse day. ^^
*info from Peter Bradford Ellis' The Ancient World of the Celts