SCATHACH

(Gaelic: The Shadowy One), in Celtic mythology, female warrior, especially noted as a teacher of warriors. Scthach was the daughter of rd-Greimne of Lethra. She lived on an island (thought to be the Isle of Skye) in an impregnable castle, the gate of which was guarded by her daughter Uathach. At this fortress Scthach trained numerous Celtic heroes in the arts of pole vaulting (useful in the assault of forts), underwater fighting, and combat with a barbed harpoon of her own invention, the ge bolg. Her best-known student was C Chulainn, who stayed with her for a year in order to learn the skills that helped him win many battles. A number of other heroes of Celtic mythology also owed their prowess to the training of the Amazon Scthach.