Danu is the mother of the Irish gods, linked to the goddess Dôn in Wales.
Her tribe is the Tuatha Dé Danann, the People of the Goddess Danu or Ana. Invading
Ireland on the first of May, the Tuatha Dé Danann battled the Fir Bolg, and
eventually won an uneasy peace. In their turn the Tuatha Dé Danann were displaced
by the mortal Milesians, and retreated to the sídhe, or hollow hills, to become
the Faery Folk of legend. The coming of the Milesians is likely a mythologizing
of the Christian conversion of the Isle that ousted the pagan gods and goddesses.
Danu is a goddess of fertility and plenty, and there is evidence that the
river Danube is named for Her. As mother of the faeries she is close to the
land and waters.
Other members of the Tuatha Dé Danann include: Manannán, Brigid or Bride,
and Macha, one face of the triple war-goddess, the Morrigan. Danu in a reading
brings a time of richness and inspiration, of magic and a return to the source.
Alternate names: Ana, Anu, Anann ("wealth, abundance")
