School: Cill Condae
- Location:
- Kilcounty, Co. Cork
- Teacher: Bean Uí Ríoghbhardáin
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0397, Page 028
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- May Eve heralds joyously the coming of summer. Our ancestors had that special night for praying for their crops. On May morning the Irish people in the following :-
"The fair young maid,
On the first of May,
Who goes to the field,
At break of day,
And washes in the dew of the
hawthorn tree,
Shall always gay and happy be."
Many Irish girls do this and they believe in doing it. There is another age old custom of cutting a few cart loads of whins, which are spread all over the farm-yard.
This is in older to to have the place clean for the arrival of the "Blessed Virgin." There is another custom still kept up in many parts of Ireland.
The children go out on May Eve after sunset. They gather armfuls of bright yellow flowers, known(continues on next page)
- Collector
- Eileen Fitzgibbon
- Gender
- Female
- Age
- 14
- Address
- Castletown, Co. Cork
- Informant
- Mr T. Fitzgibbon
- Gender
- Male
- Age
- 55
- Address
- Castletown, Co. Cork
