Folklore: straw boys

Subject: Folklore: straw boys
From: GUEST,Frances
Date: 16 Apr 05 - 04:52 PM

Hi Folks,
I wonder could anyone tell me about the old custom of strawing after a wedding. Strawboys dressed in hats and skirts of straw would crash a wedding festivities or party when they newlyweds returned from their honnymoon.
I hope some one can enlighten me further.
Thank you,
Frances

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: Cromdubh
Date: 16 Apr 05 - 05:12 PM

Well I don`t know much of the origin of the custom, but I have witnessed it. In Clare, usually on St. Stephen`s day, they call around to houses, dress in all manner of strange clothing and wearing masks.

As I said, don`t know much about the custom and I might be confusing them with the wren boys.

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: GUEST,Philippa
Date: 18 Apr 05 - 06:09 AM

Mumming is not exclusively Irish, but a good start might be contacting the Department of Irish Folklore, University College, Belfield, Dublin 4. Just a few years ago the department did a research project on mumming and related customs in Ireland, and organised a conference discussing mumming from an international perspective.

a tip from Big Mick,posted in another thread:
http://www.library.nuigalway.ie/Pickow/about.jsp
Jean Ritchie and George Pickow - photos from their field collecting trip in Ireland 1952-53
among the many photos are pictures of strawboys

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: manitas_at_work
Date: 18 Apr 05 - 06:32 AM

There's a paragraph here http://www.mustrad.org.uk/articles/drama.htm

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: GUEST,Gadaffi
Date: 18 Apr 05 - 06:57 AM

Whittlesey Straw Bear, of course - a Plough Monday-related custom. Historical evidence of the same at nearby Ramsey, also Holton-le-Clay in Lincolnshire. Not wedding-related I'm afraid.

There are/have been many straw bear customs in the northern part of Germany around Shrove Tuesday. The Whittlesey revival has allied itself to one at Walldurn near Frankfurt. I was accosted by a journalist in the Morton's Fork one year who claimed he knew of the custom in Portugal. Frightful fellow! I couldn't shake him off, so buried myself among the musicians blazing away in the Old Crown.

On a side issue: does anyone out there know of the custom at Holton-le-Clay as there is a wish to revive it for a concert at Sidmouth? As far as I'm aware, there is one solitary reference to it in 'Folklore' (the Folklore Society journal).

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: Noreen
Date: 18 Apr 05 - 08:07 AM

Folks, Frances asked for info on Strawboys at weddings. Other chaps dressing up in straw are not necessarily related!

From the very interesting link posted by manitas above:

Wrenboys and Mummers are sometimes referred to as Strawboys. However, actual Strawboy activity is usually unrelated to the Wren mythology or the Mummers' plays. Traditionally Strawboys were quite simply individuals or groups of revellers who attended wakes or wedding celebrations in disguise to bring good luck to the families involved. They were usually uninvited and just as they were believed to bring good fortune, it was considered unlucky to turn them away.

He goes on to say that (in county Clare) Strawboys now regularly perform at the celebration ceili after a couple's return from honeymoon, and that since honeymoons have only relatively recently become commonplace, this is a recent adaptation of the tradition.

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: kytrad (Jean Ritchie)
Date: 18 Apr 05 - 07:56 PM

Frances, I tried to access the Ritchie-Pickow Archive at the Hardiman Library (U.of Galway) site yesterday, but they seem to be having problems- I got a "Server Error" notice, and I did send a notice to the server as instructed, but today I tried Big Mick's clicky and got the same notice. But keep trying, as it is what you had asked about.We ran into the custom in County Cork,in 1952, and I actually went to a wedding dressed as a strawboy, since the others insisted that would be traditional since there should always be a "stranger" among the group, to confuse the wedding guests, and protect the identities of the strawboys (more good luck that way, they said!). These were the sons and neighbors of Bess Cronin- you may have heard of the recent book done about her. She's passed on now, but she was a lovely lady and one of the great singers of Ireland. Our photographs cover our whole year and many places throughout the country, but with patience you'll find the strawboys!

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: kytrad (Jean Ritchie)
Date: 22 Apr 05 - 05:08 PM

Frances- the site has been repaired. Here's the procedure:

Type this(I used Google): www.library.nuigalway.ie/resources/archives/index.html This gets you to: Archives- General Information (James Hardiman Library, NUI Galway)
Click on this, and you get: James Hardiman Library   Scroll down to: Ritchie-Pickow Image Collection. On that page, left side, click on: Pickow Collection Home. Scroll down, click, "Strawboys."

I hope this is still working when you try it- All the best, Jean

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 22 Apr 05 - 06:31 PM

This should(?) get directly to the George Pickow Image Coll.: Pickow

Doesn't one get pricked by the straws?

General link to the site: Index

A couple of the other links seem to be inactive.

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: Dave'sWife
Date: 22 Apr 05 - 07:53 PM

My husband, who is not davetnova, and I were married in Los Angeles, but we were subjected to something like this and had to entertain about 20 revelers at our home before we were able to go on to our Honeymoon suite. We left them all still out our house. Our Best Man made our room arrangements and kept them secret so we wouldn't be bothered there as well. We were told it was good luck. We took the time to open some gifts, change clothes, relax and serve some food. We understand the party went on til dawn.

The same thing happened to us only worse when we had our Catholic ceremony in New York and this time, they DID crash the Bridal Suite. Only one woman showed up, the rest were mostly single men. The practice isn't limited to Irish and Irish-Americans. Chinese friends of mine report a similar Wedding Night Hazing, again with Good Luck for the couple being the intended outcome. Obviously they stem from different traditions but seem to have the same thing in mind - harrassing the newly wedded couple for a few hours. We just let them in rather than have rocks thrown at the windows or the car vandalised. They kept us up until about 4AM.

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: GUEST,Frances
Date: 10 May 05 - 05:53 PM

Hi folks,
thanks for all the help,
Frances

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: kytrad (Jean Ritchie)
Date: 11 May 05 - 05:18 PM

Dave's Wife- Sounds as though you're describing a "Shivaree," which (in Kentucky) is always after the wedding's over- can be three or four nights later. When the lights go out and the house is dark, young people of the neighborhood start beating on pots & pans, yelling and making a great racket until they're admitted into the house, offered treats and/or drinks. They usually stay about a half-hour, laughing and teasing, then leave when the snacks are consumed. It's very goodnatured but supposed to be embarrassing to the newly-weds. However, if NO treats are offered, and an effort is made not to let the callers in, then it gets sort of like Halowe'en in that "tricks" are played on the couple... the groom is carried down to the creek and dunked, or something like that. No real harm- just practical-joke kind of things. That is a Shivaree.

The strawboy visit is (or was, as it was shown to us)quite different. They were expected, even looked for, and there was a spoken ritual at the door. Once admitted, a space was cleared and the strawboys invited to sing, dance, speak a recitation, or whatever sort of performance each wished to do, to entertain the wedding guests. The fun began when the strawboys were chosen for dancing partners by the guests, and great efforts were made to find out their identities. All in fun. But they did tell me that in some parts of Ireland it had degenerated into the disguised young people rushing in, stealing a quantity of drink and taking it out to hide in the woods and drink it.

Our strawboy group observed the old rules, and a fine time was had by all, only it was very hard to drink porter out of bowls through a straw mask!                  Jean

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: manitas_at_work
Date: 12 May 05 - 04:25 AM

Also known as Rough music, Ran-tan or charivari

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: kytrad (Jean Ritchie)
Date: 12 May 05 - 04:50 PM

I knew the word, charivari, but haven't heard of Ran-tan or Rough music.

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: Goose Gander
Date: 12 May 05 - 05:00 PM

It sounds as though there are parallels to mumming in both chivari and straw-boys, especially to the degree that there is some degree of ritual language and theatrics involved. And I suppose if the ritual elements drop away, then it's just crashing a party.

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: GUEST,ali
Date: 21 May 05 - 05:19 AM

Yes Yes there is a similar custom here in the middle east where strawboys gather straw from the grassy plains and go to wedding parties to bring good luck, it is in a small village in a place called Al Ain

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: GUEST
Date: 22 May 05 - 12:57 AM

Shivaree (or "a horning") was also a custom in rural upstate New York. Still existed, or at least tales were told of it, in the 1950s. I've not heard anything in recent years, but I wouldn't be surprised to find isolated instances yet.

- George

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: georgeward
Date: 22 May 05 - 10:43 PM

The post above was mine. - GW

Subject: RE: Folklore: straw boys
From: GUEST,Philippa
Date: 24 May 05 - 09:44 AM

"Straw Boys" are to appear at the VintageFestival at Sligo Folk Park, Riverstown County Sligo, Ireland on Sat. 4 June 2005 - along with old cars and tractors, horse drawn carts, old farm machinery and tools, a working forge,traditional crafts, farm animals, music and childrens' "novelty sports"