Aerfen: Welsh Goddess of Fate & War

Aerfen is the Welsh Goddess of Fate and Warfare, She is also the personification of the River Dee. The name “Aerfen” is the modern Welsh form of the Common Celtic name Aerten, which was derived from the roots agro-, meaning “carnage”, and tan-nu, meaning “to broaden” or “to spread”, or ten-n-do-, meaning “to break” or “to cut”. Together, the name “Aerfen” likely signifies “Renowned in battle”.

Aerfen was venerated at a shrine located along the River Dee in the town of Glyndyfrdwy. However, the location of such a shrine has not been officially declared in academic literature. Ian Pegler in Valle Crucis and the Sunline (2012) suggests that Aerfen’s shrine was near to “the Sunline”, as this may have been of ritual importance for the shrine. It is likely that it is located in a grove on the river bank, or it could be that the shrine itself is a grove on the river bank.

The River Dee is sourced to the rocky steeps of Dduallt (ðɨæɬt, “black hill”), 662 metres above Llanuwchllyn in the Eryri (Snowdonia) National Park. The legends surrounding the elusive figure of Aerfen suggest that She is purported to also dwell at the source of the river. There are reports of the existence of a constructed edifice erected over the river’s source, which archaeologists have planned to investigate.

Throughout history the Divine Feminine, Goddesses and feminine spirits have been associated with topographical mythos. Femininity is the language of the natural spheres, of the Earth, life and death. Whereas the Divine Masculine encapsulates the historical, the movement of time.

According to local legend, three human sacrifices were required to be drowned in the River Dee in order to ensure success in battle. During the Anglo-Welsh wars, the River Dee—which formed part of the border between England and Wales—was believed to be an arbiter of victory and defeat. It was said that if the eastern bank of the Dee was eroded, it signalled an English victory, and vice versa.

The source of the River Dee.