tarroo ushtey

"Water bull." In Manx folklore, a bull which lived in swamps and shallow pools. Occasionally it left its haunts to roam among the farm cattle, but it only begets monsters and strangely formed beasts. Its bellowing reputedly made the ground tremble. There used to be a tarroo ushtey between the village of Andreas and the sea to the west, before the ground was drained. Others have been noticed at Ramsey and Slegaby.

The tarroo ushtey is derived from the tarbh uisge of Scottish Gaelic tradition. See also cabyll-ushtey.

References

Sources

  • MacKillop, James. (2004). Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc.
  • Rhŷs, J. (1901). Celtic folklore, Manx and Wales. Vol. 1. Oxford: Clarendon Press, pp. 284-5.
  • Roeder, C., ed. (1904). Manx Notes & Queries. Douglas: S.K. Broadbent & Co., note 96.
  • Train, J. (1845). An historical and statistical account of the Isle of Man, from the earliest times to the present date. Vol. 2. Douglas: Mary A. Quiggin, pp. 146-147.