Whos Hunting the Wren today? The wran, the wran, the king of all birds, On St. Stephens day was caught in the furze. His body is little but his family is great So rise up landlady and give us a trate. And if your trate be of the best Your soul in heaven can find its rest. And if your trate be of the small It won’t plaze the boys at all. A glass of whiskey and a bottle of beer Merry Christmas and a glad New Year. So up with the kettle and down with the pan And give us a penny to bury the wran. The Encyclopaedic Dictionary (1888)explains Wren Day as The name given in the south of Ireland to St. Stephen s Day (Dec. 26), on which it was formerly the custom to hunt, the wren, and bear its body in procession from house to house, soliciting contributions towards the cost of a merry-making. Various accounts are piven of the origin of this custom, but as in Celtic mythology the wren was regarded as having brought lire from heaven for the use of man, and as somewhat similar customs exist in many other places, it is probable ble that this hunting the wren had once a mystic meaning in connection with the great festive season of the first twelve nights of the suns return from the winter solstice, and that the killing of the bird was originally sacrificial.
Posted on: Fri, 26 Dec 2014 17:16:01 +0000
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