Almost the only trait that giants have in common is their enormous size and strength.

Some of them, such as Bran the Blessed, have obviously once been gods. Bran was so large that no house could contain him, so large indeed that he looked like an approaching mountain as he waded the channel between Wales and Ireland. His strength was tremendous, but he was essentially benevolent and his decapitated head brought a blessing wherever it was carried, and protected Britain from invaders so long as it was safely lodged in London.

The two great hill figures that still remain in England, the Cerne Abbas Giant and the Long Man of Wilmington, represent god-like figures of the same kind. The Cerne Abbas giant is plainly a fertility god as well as a protective figure.

Some kind and protective giants continue down to comparatively modern times. An example is the Giant of Grabbist, whose character and exploits are described by Ruth Tongue in County Folklore (Vol.VIII). He was one of the stone-throwing giants, of which many are reported, good and bad, and spent a good deal of his time in contests with the Devil. He was full, too, of active benevolence, and once lifted a fishingboat that was in difficulties and set it down safely in harbour.

There is a touch of comedy, even farce, in the tales about the Giant of Grabbist, and it is noticeable that as time went on the giants became gradually more foolish. The kind old Cornish giant of Carn Galva, whose sad story is told by Bottrell in Traditions and Hearthside Stories of West Cornwall (Vol.I, p.47-48), is an example:

The giant of Carn Galva was more playful than warlike. Though the old works of the giant now stand desolate, we may still see, or get up and rock ourselves upon, the logan-stone which this dear old giant placed on the most westerly carn of the range, that he might log himself to sleep when he saw the sun dip into the waves and the sea-birds fly to their homes in the cleaves. Near, the giant's rocking-seat, one may still see a pile of cubical rocks, which are almost as regular and shapely now as when the giant used to amuse himself in building them up, and kicking them down again, for exercise or play, when alone and when he had nothing else to do. The people of the northern hills have always had a loving regard for the memory of this giant, because he appears to have passed all his life at the earn in single blessedness, merely to protect his beloved people of Morvah and Zennor from the depredations of the less honest Titans who then dwelt on Lelant hills. Carn Galva giant never killed but one of the Morvah people in his life, and that happened all through loving play.

The giant was very fond of a fine young fellow, of Choon, who used to take a turn over to the carn, every now and then, just to see how the old giant was getting on, to cheer him up a bit, play a game of bob, or anything else to help him pass his lonely time away. One afternoon the giant was so well pleased with the good play they had together that, when the young fellow of Choon threw down his quoit to go away home, the giant, in a good-natured way, tapped his playfellow on the head with the tips of his fingers. At the same time he said, 'Be sure to come again tomorrow, my son, and we will have a capital game of bob'. Before the word 'bob' was well out of the giant's mouth, the young man dropped at his feet; — the giant's fingers had gone right through his playmate's skull. When, at last, the giant became sensible of the damage he had done to the brain-pan of the young man, he did his best to put the inside workings of his mate's head to rights and plugged up his finger-holes, but all to no purpose ; for the young man was stone dead, long before the giant ceased doctoring his head.

When the poor giant found it was all over with his playmate, he took the body in his arms, and sitting down on the large square rock at the foot of the carn, he rocked himself to and fro; pressing the lifeless body to his bosom, he wailed and moaned over him, bellowing and crying louder than the booming billows breaking on the rocks in Permoina.

'Oh, my son, my son, why didn't they make the shell of thy noddle stronger? A es as plum (soft) as a pie-crust, doughbaked, and made too thin by the half! How shall I ever pass the time without thee to play bob and mop-and-heede (hide and seek)?'

The giant of Carn Galva never rejoiced any more, but, in seven years or so, he pined away and died of a broken heart.

It seems as if these giants were half-playfully invented to account for scattered boulders or other natural features, or for prehistoric monuments.

In contrast to these gentle, foolish giants, we have the cruel, bloodthirsty giants or ogres, such as those which Jack the Giant-Killer conquered. Some of these were monsters with several heads, most of them not overburdened with sense, all man-eaters.

The Highland giants were much more astute, some of them magicians, like that in 'The Battle of the Birds', the Highland version of Nicht Nought Nothing. The grim giant of 'A King of Albainn' in Waifs and Strays of Celtic Tradition (Vol.II), collected by D.Maclnnes, may be a magician as well as a giant, for a magical hare enticed his victims into the cave where the giant and his twelve sons were waiting for them and the giant gave them the choice of deadly games: 'the venomous apple' or 'the hot gridiron'. In the end they had to play both.

There is another giant in the story, who has carried off the old king's daughter, an activity to which giants are very prone. Both giants are conquered by a supernatural helper called 'The Big Lad'. This may either be an incomplete version of a 'grateful dead' type of story, or more probably the ghost of the young king's father, for whom he has been mourning inordinately.

Another dangerous and evil giant, 'The Bare-Stripping Hangman', also occurs in Waifs and Strays of Celtic Tradition (Vol.III). This giant is a magician, for he has a Separable Soul which has to be destroyed before he can be killed. There is a series of giants to be destroyed, one-headed, two-headed and three-headed.

In the same volume is a story of a guileless giant who does not know how formidable his strength is, a human giant after the type of Tom Hickathrift, whose story Joseph Jacobs tells in More English Fairy Stories (p.42-49). He was suckled by his mother for twenty years and so gained supernatural strength. His frightened master sets him a succession of tests in order to destroy him, but he succeeds in them all, and in the end settles down happily with his old mother in the house he has won for himself.

It will be seen that there is a great variety of giants in British tradition.

[Type: ML5020. Motifs: A523; A963.5; A977.1 ; F531 ; F628.2.3; N812]