The goddess Danu appears in the mythology of Ireland and Wales, and in place names on the European continent in lands the Celts once ruled. Her importance as an ancestral mother goddess is clear, yet there are almost no stories about her. It may be that the Celts, out of respect and awe for the goddess honored even by the gods, simply did not tell stories about Danu. Perhaps they did, and it is just an accident that none are extant. Or maybe her stories are remembered under a different name; possibilites include Brigid, whose name means the Bright One or the High One, and may have originally been a title; Boann, river goddess and mate of the Dagda; and Aine, faery queen and possible sun deity. It is also generally assumed that Danu and the Irish Anu are one and the same.
In Ireland, Danu is remembered in the name given to the old gods, later thought of as faeries, the Tuatha De Danaan. This name means "People of the Goddess Danu". It may be significant that Celtic myth rarely actually uses the words "god" or "goddess" to describe a mythological figure--but in Danu's case it definitely does. This supports my theory that Danu was held in unusual awe--even the gods respected her, and humans doubly so. Some authors have wondered why the Tuatha are named after her given her "obscurity"--the lack of stories about her. Personally, I believe that if you went back to ancient Celtic times you would not find her to be obscure at all!
The tradition of her maternal nature persists in County Kerry, where twin rounded mountains have been given the name "Breasts of Anu". Even today, people climb the Breasts and leave offerings of stones at their peaks, creating "nipples" for the Mother's breasts.
In Wales, Danu is called Don, and again there are no stories about her, but she is remembered in the names of other deities. Arianrhod and Gwydion are known as "daughter of Don" and "son of Don" respectively. The Welsh, who unlike the Irish told stories about the constellations, envisioned Don's court as being in the sky. The constellation we know as Cassiopeia, which looks like a flattish "W" or a reclining chair, was called "The Court of Don" by the Welsh.
On the Continent, Danu was known as the mother of the great river Danube, which bears her name. Though the lands of the Danube are no longer Celtic, sculptor Adolf Heer must have sensed the mythical history of the river when he sculpted, in 1896, a statue of a mother and daughter to stand at what was then believed to be the river's source. It is believed by some that the Danube source was the very cradle of Celtic civilization, and if Danu was the mother of that river, she would have been counted a powerful deity indeed.
Danu Sources
Anderson, Rosemarie. Celtic Oracles
This is where I first read of the tradition of carrying stones to the tops of the mountains of Anu. I thought it was wonderful that this was still being done.
Monaghan, Patricia. The New Book of Goddesses and Heroines
The text of Monaghan's entry on Danu can be seen here, along with lovely artwork by Hrana Janto depicting Danu's head as the sun and the land as her body.
