School: Abbeytown Convent N.S. (roll number 15043)

On this page

1. May Day Customs (continued)

   

   Share Share Post

   

   You are not logged in, but you are welcome to contribute a transcription anonymously. In this case, your IP address will be stored in the interest of quality control.

   (continued from previous page)

   butter would not be taken away by any old hag. It was said that the first person who put down the fire on May morn would be unlucky during the year, and the person who brought the first can of water from the well was supposed to have good luck through-out the year.

   Save Cancel

   Transcription guide »

   By clicking the save button you agree that your contribution will be available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License and that a link to dúchas.ie is sufficient as attribution.

2. May Day Customs

   “There is a lot of customs connected with May-day.”

   

   Share Share Post

   There is a lot of customs connected with May-day. The first and most important of those old Irish customs, was the scattering of May-flowers on the threshold. Long, long ago before the Light of Christianity brightened this once-pagan land of ours our forefathers believed, that in each woodland flower, there lived a tiny fairy who could throw a spell of enchantment on any person who held it. The May-flowers were supposed to be the tiny golden mansions of Good Luck. The reason then for scattering the flowers on each doorstep is that the inhabitants of the fairy mansions may shower an abundance of good-luck on the entire household.
   Another reason was to save them from the witchcraft of the "cailleachs" or the old hags who were supposed to go from house to house on May-morning stealing butter and milk from the churns.

   (continues on next page)

   

   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit