Gawain

Gawain ( ), spelled many ways, is one of the Knights of the Round Table in the Arthurian legendary cycle. The prototype of Gawain appears under the name Gwalchmei in the earliest Welsh sources. He has subsequently appeared in many Arthurian tales in Welsh, Latin, French, English, Scottish, Dutch, German, Spanish, and Italian, notably as the protagonist of the Middle English poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Other works featuring Gawain as their central character include De Ortu Waluuanii, Diu Crône, Ywain and Gawain, Golagros and Gawane, Sir Gawain and the Carle of Carlisle, ''L'âtre périlleux, La Mule sans frein, La Vengeance Raguidel, Le Chevalier à l'épée, Le Livre d'Artus, The Awntyrs off Arthure, The Greene Knight, and The Weddynge of Syr Gawen and Dame Ragnell''.

In the Arthurian chivalric romances, Gawain is typically depicted as King Arthur's closest companion and an integral member of the Round Table. He is often the son of Arthur's sister, Morgause, and King Lot of Orkney and Lothian. Here, his younger brothers (or half-brothers) are Agravain, Gaheris, Gareth, and the infamous Mordred, though his familial relations and upbringing vary. They often involve a story of Gawain unknowingly being raised in foster care in Rome before returning to Britain to reunite with his biological relatives. Of his many children from his numerous wives and lovers, Gingalain (the "Fair Unknown") stands out as a popular Arthurian hero in his own right.