Folklore of the Welsh Lakes: The Legend of the Bride from the Red Lake
A Welsh legend from the Red Lake tells the story of a doomed marriage between a mortal farmer and a beautiful Otherworld maiden who emerged from the lake.
Death Omens: How Well Do You Know Them?
We might all lay claim to some superstitions to guard against bad luck, but an ingrained belief in death omens is another matter.
Margaret Helen James: a forgotten feminist folklorist in Victorian East Anglia
British regional folklorists of the 19th century remain, in many cases, rather obscure figures. Margaret Helen James (1859–1938) deserves particular attention for using her writing about folklore to give a voice to ordinary women and critique a patriarchal society, but until 2017 James was completely forgotten.
May Day, Weddings and Births – Folklore Trees and Traditions in Bavaria
Maypoles are often seen as a quintessentially English tradition, yet in Bavaria the raising of the Maibaum (or May Tree) is also an important event, and it is not the only time a tree is hefted aloft in celebration.
St Patrick’s Day Traditions: ‘My Patrick’s Pot on you!’
St Patrick’s Day, 17th March, is a key fixture in the Irish calendar, and indeed in many other places throughout the world. It may not have the wealth of traditions associated with the traditional Irish quarter days but its popularity and the festivities associated with it make it central to the Irish year.