The simple Christmas traditions of a bygone era in the West
Seán Lavin and his grandson Tom performing with the Wren Boys outside his home in Foxford on St Stephen's Day last year.
Cleaning the humble abode dates back to pre-Christianity and was generally carried out before the Winter Solstice when daylight hours diminish fast in the dead of winter.
With the arrival of Christianity, the tradition was seen as a proper preparation to welcome Mary, Joseph and the new-born baby, Jesus. Necessary repairs to the thatch roof might also take place. Whitewashing (white lime and water mix) applied by a large brush (inside and outside) was very common in pre-1960s Ireland. It was bright, cheery and considered healthy.
December 8th was the day when generally folk began to prepare for Christmas. It was also a big market day in most local towns for selling geese and turkeys.
My mother knew her turkeys - hens and cocks individually. She had an “ouncel” to weigh them and their legs were tied with a light strip of cloth cut from an old apron to restrain them from flying hither and thither! The turkeys yielded a valuable seasonal bounty which supplemented the weekly “egg money” obtained from the travelling shop.
Richard Langan’s travelling shop was famous all over a vast region of West Mayo. As a thanksgiving gesture for a year’s trade, shops were expected to provide their customers with a 'Christmas Box'. It usually contained tea, sugar, a fruit cake, a candle, perhaps jelly, custard, walnut plug or bendigo tobacco for the man of the house if he was a pipe smoker or a packet of ten Woodbines, Afton’s or Players for Cigarette smokers.
The 'Christmas Box' might also contain an apple or an orange and a threepenny thin bar of Cadbury’s milk chocolate for the children. It was the cause of great consternation to a customer if they didn’t get a 'Christmas Box' from the local shop.
Some days after selling the turkeys, mother would take out her Raleigh bicycle. Castlebar, our local town, roughly 14 miles away was her destination. In late evening, she returned home having walked many hills with two huge well-laden shopping bags on the handlebars and a white string secured bundle or large box tied on the carrier. Often the first question she would be met with in the evening was “Where were you all day?" (!)
The Postman was always a welcome sight at Christmas. There might be dollars in a blue envelope from the USA or, glory be to God, a parcel!
Parcels were hugely valued and were a cause of great excitement for the family that received them. They always aroused the curiosity of the Postman who delivered it as well.
Postmen were usually great characters and people always gave them a dram from 'the priest’s bottle' as a gesture of thanks. At Christmas, it would be usual to see the local postman struggling on a hill with his bicycle going east to west and the cap on his greying head going north to south or visa versa.
Some weeks before Christmas, mother would buy cut fruit, mixed peel, treacle, currants, raisins and all the ingredients necessary for making Christmas cakes. The oven would nestle in a bed of hot coals until the cake rose and was deemed baked. Passing by it was hard to resist giving it a big pinch as it cooled on the griddle!
This is one of the well-observed of Irish Christmas traditions. A large red candle used to be placed inside a window as a sign of welcome for Mary and Joseph on Christmas Eve.
These days it is common to see artificial candles, usually electrically or battery operated, in all the windows of dwelling houses throughout the whole festive season.
Berry laden holly remains a popular adornment in many houses. It dates back to times past when our ancestors would have decorated their humble homes with this lovely native evergreen bush, laden with its rich red berries. It is still one of my favourite pre-Christmas tasks to source the beloved holly.
Many Irish mothers created a real Christmas crib with Jesus, Mary and Joseph figurines. A big debate often followed on where to place the shepherds, the sheep and the donkey and the three wise men. Ivy provided a surround; the star went over head and straw provided the bedding for our saviour.
The grounds of Ballintubber Abbey feature a beautiful crib in an underground cave each Christmas.
Attending Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve was probably the most widely practised of all Irish Christmas traditions.
Usually, the church was crammed with the largest single congregation of the year and it was a particularly social occasion. Families wearing their very best newly-purchased clothing came together for the holiday to meet friends and neighbours that they may not have seen for a whole year.
The Midnight Mass has been brought forward to 8 or 9 pm on Christmas Eve in many parishes as some clergy frowned on clients who congregated at the back of the church. Some had just left the pub and showed signs of tipsiness with loud conversation and the odd hiccup!
The best time for children if all is well in the family home is Christmas Morning. This is when they wake up early and open their shiny new presents that apparently arrived down the chimney in Santa’s red sack strewn over the great man’s shoulder! Ho…Ho…Ho…
There is great excitement for children as they boast who woke up the earliest and found the gifts that Santa has left under the Christmas tree.
Christmas dinner traditionally comprises a roast turkey, potatoes Brussel sprouts and vegetables etc. Quite often this is followed by trifle, mince pies, Christmas pudding and Christmas cake and a choice of alcoholic drinks or minerals. The heartburn and indigestion will come later in the afternoon and a spoon of bread soda is a reliable traditional cure!
December 26th is celebrated as the feast of Saint Stephen. He is the first Christian martyr to be so honoured.
A notable element of this day was the custom in which groups of mostly young men with a captive wren went from house to house reciting rhymes, singing or playing music.
The Wren Boys tradition is to be found throughout much of Ireland, especially Kerry and the western seaboard. The Wren boys are diminishing fast as the Halloween tradition of 'Trick or Treat' has gained international popularity. It is seemingly no longer popular or cool to go from door to door reciting:
'The boys of Barr na Sraide a hunting for the Wren' is a wonderful old Irish ballad. Throughout some areas of Ulster, and to a lesser degree parts Leinster, Wren Boys are replaced by ‘Mummers’ and ‘Rhymers’ which is another wonderful ancient custom dating back to the earliest times.
Most villages, towns, and cities decorate the streets with holy symbols, lights and a large lit-up Christmas tree. These are usually located in the heart of the community such as in Ballyheane village, which has a magnificent annual lighting display.
Churches build cribs to display the birth of Jesus and the arrival of the three wise men. Families at home and abroad exchange Christmas cards in the weeks leading up to Christmas though now electronic mail is quickly taking over and the cost of posting cards is almost prohibitive.
‘Little Christmas’ or ‘Women’s Christmas - this custom came into being during a time when the running of a family home was mainly left to the women of the house. Over the Christmas period, a lot of work would go into cooking, decorating and keeping everyone clothed, warm and fed. On January 6th, the household tasks would pass to the menfolk and the women would meet up with friends, perhaps have a “deoch” and exchange news and views.
Christmas Carols, Christmas Day Swims, Horse Racing (King George Chase) on St Stephens’s Day, the Panto Season (Ireland's premier Panto takes place in the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin every year) and Past v Present GAA novelty club matches are all fairly new modern traditions that appeal to the masses.
The old customs and traditions are disappearing fast as technology, social media, robots, smart phones and modern gadgetry rule our lives. How very lucky are we (auld wanes and good old boys!) to have experienced humble expectation and the real joy of 'simple things' in times past.
