What is the name of the woman created from flowers in Welsh myth?

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What is the name of the woman created from flowers in Welsh myth? Her name is Blodeuwedd. In the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi, the magicians Math and Gwydion create her from flowers to become the wife of Lleu Llaw Gyffes.

Blodeuwedd is made from broom, meadowsweet and oak blossoms. Her creation answers a curse placed on Lleu by his mother, Arianrhod: he is forbidden from having a human wife. The episode is therefore part of a larger story about identity, magic, family conflict and imposed destiny.

Blodeuwedd later betrays Lleu by forming a relationship with Gronw Pebr. She helps discover the unusual conditions under which Lleu can be killed, but Lleu survives, transforms back into human form and eventually takes revenge on Gronw. Blodeuwedd is punished by being transformed into an owl.

The name is often translated as “Flower-Faced,” from Welsh blodau, “flowers,” and gwedd, “face.” Ceridwen, Rhiannon and Arianrhod are also important Welsh mythological women, but none is the flower-created bride in this episode.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Sept. 2026

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