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In the legends about King Arthur, the king had the help and advice of a powerful wizard named Merlin. Indeed this magician, who arranged for Arthur's birth and for many aspects of his life, can be seen as the guiding force behind the Arthurian legendsstories about the life and court of King Arthur of Britain. Many stories about Merlin circulated in medievalrelating to the Middle Ages ¡n Europe, a period from about A.D. 500 to 1500 times.

Origins and Sources. The figure of Merlin seems to be based on a magician named Myrddin, who appeared in the pre-Christian mythology of the Celticreferring to the Celts, early inhabitants of Britain whose culture survived in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall, and Brittany peoples. The writings of...