Spring is a season that demands a physical reaction. A reaction to winter's solitude that sees flowers burst into colour, birds releasing their music into the sky, and the sights and sounds of fertility and new life fill the air. It's no surprise that it's also a time of a festivity, celebration and song. For what are songs if not a reflection and extension of the human experience, our response to the gifts of nature? After months of contraction, it's time to let our voices out.
A look at the calendar throughout history shows the importance of songs in spring, which was the start of the calendar year during the Roman era. It is the time of the vernal equinox - Alban Eiler to the druids, Ostara in the pagan calendar - when the longing day finally meets the shortening night, welcomed by great festivities. As the centuries pass, new dates fill up the diary. March has its saints Patrick and Cuthbert - as well as Lady Day. April is dominated by Easter but the pageantry of St George's Day, complete with mumming performances, should not be forgotten. Then arrives May, the carnival month filled with local celebrations, such as Randwick Wap and Helston Furry Dance and, most important of all, May Day.
“It wasn't all ritual – there were practical reasons for joining together in song"
Songs, chants and other superstitions were practised to ward off bad fortune and encourage the weather required for a prosperous growing season. It wasn't all carried out in the name of ritual - there were practical reasons for joining together in song. Celebrations, both formal and informal, allowed rural communities to unite, enabling members of the opposite sex to mingle away from the glaring eyes of their families and employers. The result was a libidinous party atmosphere in which singing, dancing and drinking all played an important role.
CHURCH VS PAGAN
Denne historien er fra May 2022-utgaven av BBC Countryfile Magazine.
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Denne historien er fra May 2022-utgaven av BBC Countryfile Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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We Are an Island Nation - So Let's Protect Our Seas - Living in the UK makes us islanders and personally I'm proud of that definition - not in any political or jingoistic sense, but simply because I love the sea and in this country we are totally surrounded by it.
Living in the UK makes us islanders and personally I'm proud of that definition - not in any political or jingoistic sense, but simply because I love the sea and in this country we are totally surrounded by it. We live inside thousands of miles of coastline, in a nation whose borders were created by nature and made us what we are.
Discover Jurassic Coast - With its towering cliffs, sweeping beaches and pretty seaside towns, the shoreline of Dorset and east Devon is spectacular.
With its towering cliffs, sweeping beaches and pretty seaside towns, the shoreline of Dorset and east Devon is spectacular. Jo Caird fossicks for fossils and dramatic rock formations. It's an auspicious start to my journey along the Jurassic Coast. This 95-mile stretch of shore mostly in Dorset, but nudging just into east Devon - is blessed with awe-inspiring geological formations and fossil deposits that have garnered it recognition as England's only natural UNESCO World Heritage Site. Snaking east from Orcombe Point near Exmouth to Old Harry Rocks near Swanage, it's studded with monumental rock arches, seemingly endless shingle beaches and fossil beds from which treasures were prised that altered our understanding of prehistory.
Viking shores
We picture Vikings marauding coastal settlements, looting and raiding. But what was life really like in the Viking Age? Historian Eleanor Barraclough reveals what the ancient artefacts found on Britain's shores tell us about our formidable forebears
Sea horses
On Cornwall's coastal clifftops, Melanie O'Shea meets the hardy grazing ponies that are helping to restore the land, so nature can flourish once more
A wing and a prayer
From their desks at Boulmer, 1,000 RAF personnel watch the skies for airborne threats to the country. Yet beyond the concrete of the base, vulnerable birdlife flourishes - thanks to the hard work of a small team
Cast in bone
Cuttlefish bones washed up on our shores have been used to make jewellery since ancient times. Jo Caird meets a craftswoman who's keeping the art alive on the Kent coast
EDIBLE SEAWEEDS
An ancient food harvested by humans for millennia, seaweeds bring an intense and rich flavour of the sea to a wide range of dishes, as well as essential mind-and-body-boosting nutrients
Spines and sulky faces
Watch where you put your feet at the beach - a weever fish could be lurking
Sea stars
The playful performances of Britain's bottlenose dolphins attract avid fans - but they deserve personal space
Harris's wildly beautiful beach
Cornwall may pull in the crowds, but one Hebridean strand stuns visitors
