ses:
(1) Poems rearranged by himself or others. These consist mainly of
love-songs and ballads. (2) Modern poems transferred to medieval times.
(3) Spurious poems dealing with such personages as Nominoe and Merlin.
The compiler of the _Barzas Breiz_ unfortunately laboured under the
delusion that these Breton folk-songs were in the first instance the
work of medieval bards corresponding to Taliessin and Llywarch Hen in
Wales, and that it was possible to make them appear in their primitive
dress. The very title of the collection indicates the artificial nature
of the contents. For _Barzas_ (in the 2nd edition of 1867 spelt
_Barzaz_) is not a Breton word at all but is formed on Welsh _barddas_
(bardic poems). For the whole controversy the reader may consult H.
Gaidoz and P. Sebillot, "Bibliographie des traditions et de la
litterature populaire de la Bretagne" (_Revue celtique_, v. 277 ff., and
G. Dottin in the _Revue de synthese historique_, viii. 95 ff.). In
Brittany it is usual to divide the popular poetry into _gwerziou_ and
_soniou_. The _gwerziou_ (complaintes) deal with local history,
folk-lore, religious legends and superstitions, and are in general much
more original than the other class. The _soniou_ consist of love-songs,
satires, carols and marriage-lays, as well as others dealing with
professional occupations, and seem in many cases to show traces of
French influence. The first scholar who published the genuine ballad
literature of Brittany was F.M. Luzel, who issued two volumes under the
title of _Gwerziou Breiz-Izel, chants populaires de la Basse-Bretagne_
(Lorient and Paris, 1868, 1874). This collection contains several of the
originals of poems in the _Barzas Breiz_. Luzel is also the author of a
collection of Breton tales in French translation, _Contes bretons
recueillis et traduits par F.M. Luzel_ (Quimperle, 1870). The same
author published _Les Legendes chretiennes de la Basse-Bretagne_ (Paris,
1881) and _Veillees bretonnes, moeurs, chants, contes et recits
populaires des Bretons-Armoricains_ (Morlaix, 1879). Another
indefatigable collector of Breton legends is Anatole le Braz, who was
commissioned by the minister of public instruction to investigate the
stories current with reference to _An Ankou_ (death). Le Braz's results
are to be found in his _La Legende de la mort_ (1902[2]). A well-known
collection of stories with a French translation was issued by the
lexicographer Troude under the title of _Ar m