Blúiríní Béaloidis Folklore Podcast
Blúiríní Béaloidis is the podcast from The National Folklore Collection, University College Dublin, exploring Irish and wider European folk tradition across various subjects. Host Jonny Dillon aims to appeal to those interested in learning about traditional cultural inheritance and how knowledge of the past can inform the present and guide the future.
Episodes
Blúiríní Bealoidis 44 - Legends & Literature (with Ailbe van der Heide)
Ailbe van der Heide is Collections Curator at the National Folklore Collection, having joined the staff in 2020, shortly after graduating from the MA in Irish Folklore in 2020. For several years now, Ailbe has managed the National Folklore Collection’s reading room service, along with fielding an array of queries from members of the public keen to explore our collections. Throughout her work, and
Blúiríní Béaloidis 43 - Indexing Folklore (with Steve Roud)
Steve Roud is a Librarian, folklore scholar and creator of the Roud Folk Song Index, which contains upwards of 750,000 entries to around 45,000 English language folk songs, as found in books, recordings, manuscripts and other sources the world over. His index, and ‘Roud Numbers’ (a numbering system employed to identify the same song across many different titles) are widely acclaimed for the scope,
Blúiríní Béaloidis 42 - Passing the Time (with Henry Glassie)
Video recording of this episode is available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OcxwmDuUeU&ab_channel=UCD-UniversityCollegeDublin
Henry Glassie is College Professor Emeritus at Indiana University, Bloomington, USA, and has published widely in the fields of material culture and vernacular architecture. His contribution to the discipline of Irish Folklore and Ethnology has been exceptional. Hav
Blúiríní Béaloidis 41 - Food in Irish Tradition (with Máirtín Mac Con Iomaire)
Regarding food in Irish tradition, Kevin Danaher, writing in 1964, noted that "Sometimes we get the impression that Ireland, in ancient times, was a land of plenty, and again we get quite the opposite impression - that our forebears lived out their lives on the very edge of starvation. In reality both these impressions are wrong." As an expression of culture that permeates every aspect of life, fo
Bluiríní Béaloidis 40 - What Is A Folklore Archive
Hello a chairde, and welcome to episode 40 of Blúiríní Béaloidis, the podcast from the National Folklore Collection.
It would be remiss of me not to commence this episode of the podcast with long, grovelling apologies concerning the absence of signs of life regarding the series over the last year and a half. The good news is that the podcast still exists, the work of the NFC continues apace, and
Blúiríní Béaloidis 39 - Bees In Tradition (with Tiernan Gaffney)
Bees have been cultivated in Ireland since early times. Of value for their wax and honey, there were also believed to be blessed creatures, as Dáithí Ó hÓgáin writes: "probably because of the use of their wax to make church candles, and one medieval legend describes a swarm of bees building a little container around a lost communion wafer to protect it. They were also thought to be possessed of sp
Blúiríní Béaloidis 38: Stones Of Strength In Irish Tradition (with David Keohan)
Lying in fields and ditches, at the edge of old and overgrown graveyards and in lonesome places all over Ireland rest forgotten echoes of our past. Large and unwieldy stones; blocks of granite and sandstone flags which, used in former times as tests of strength, still reverberate with the memory of heroic feats.
The tradition of stone lifting, while well-attested in Scotland, Iceland and other pa
Blúiríní Béaloidis 37: Peig Sayers (with Dr. Éilís Ní Dhuibhne & Dr. Pádraig Ó Héalaí)
"Long as the day is, night comes, and alas, the night is coming for me too... Someone else will have pastime out of my work when I'm gone on the way of truth. A person here and a person there will say, maybe, 'Who was that Peig Sayers?' but poor Peig will be the length of their shout from them. This green bench where she used to do the studying will be a domicile for the birds of the wilderness, a
Blúiríní Béaloidis 36: The Travellers (with David Joyce & Áine Furey)
Irish Travellers, known in their own language as Mincéirs or Pavees and in Irish called ‘An Lucht Siúil or, ‘The Walking People’, are a nomadic ethnic minority in Ireland with a distinct history, culture and identity. Historically, Travellers were called Tinkers, a reference to their trade as tinsmiths, and they also made a living through engaging with the settled community; by buying and selling
Blúiríní Béaloidis 35 - The Civil War (with Dr. Críostóir Mac Cárthaigh)
The Civil War was a schismatic moment in Irish history, and the fault lines it left split families, tore apart communities and turned former comrades in arms against one another in a bitterly divisive period of violence and conflict. According to historian Anne Dolan, ‘The memory of the Irish Civil War has been assumed, distorted, [and] misunderstood. It has been manipulated, underestimated, but m
Blúiríní Béaloidis 34 - The War Of Independence (with Ailbe Van Der Heide)
The Anglo-Irish Treaty was signed on the 6th of December 1921, bringing an end to the 1919-1921 Irish War of Independence. To mark 100 years since the signing of the treaty, I joined my colleague at the National Folklore Collection, Ailbe van der Heide, to discuss her work in researching, editing and transcribing Urban Folklore Project recordings dealing with this tumultuous period of Irish histor
Blúiríní Béaloidis 33 - Death (with David McGowan)
In life, there is much which seems uncertain to us. Concerning death however, there can be no doubt. It was an honour to speak with funeral director, death-care practitioner and proud Sligo native David McGowan on the topic of death for episode 33 of Blúiríní Béaloidis. Sit with us as we explore attitudes and customs regarding death and dying, from the practicalities and preparations of the corpse
Blúiríní Béaloidis 32 - Mushrooms In Tradition
With the coming of the cool wet weather of autumn, life begins to turn inward again . The fields lie fallow and bare, flowers wither, leaves decay, and all life seems to return to the earth. It's in this period of fading light, that strange and beautiful forms begin to arise from the undergrowth in the temperate regions all over Europe. In woodlands, fields, gardens and along roadsides, colourful
Blúiríní Béaloidis 31 - The Púca (with Aidan Harte)
For this episode of Blúiríní I am joined by sculptor Aidan Harte, whose recent work 'The Púca of Ennistymon' was commissioned by Clare county Council for the town of Ennistymon in the west of Ireland. The piece caused widespread controversy and made headlines nationally and internationally over the summer, being denounced as a pagan idol and sinister statue irreflective of the character and herita
Blúiríní Béaloidis 30 - The Stray Sod
There are numerous accounts in tradition of wayfarers who suffer fits of confusion and disorientation while traversing the natural landscape. Such bouts were at times attributed to the influence of the fairies (who would set wanders astray for their own amusement) or the power of the stray sod (an enchanted sod of earth which set those who trod upon it astray). While the accounts vary, these occur
Blúiríní Béaloidis 29 - A Folk History Of Ireland's Protestants (with Dr. Deirdre Nuttall)
The Irish Folklore Commission (established in 1935) tasked itself with the documentation of the unwritten customs, beliefs and narratives of the Irish people; those ‘disiecta membra’ (as James Hamilton Delargy described them) of a rich heritage which it was feared was in danger of dying out and disappearing forever unless swift action was taken to gather up the fragments that remain, lest they per
Blúiriní Bealoidis 28 - Land & Language (with Manchán Magan)
My guest for this edition of Bluiríní Béaloidis is writer and documentary maker Manchán Magan, whose recent book 'Thirty-Two Words For Field' is a meditation on old Irish words and the nuances of a way of life that is vanishing with them. The book considers the 'richness of a language closely tied to the natural landscape' which 'offered our ancestors a more magical way of seeing the world'. It co
Blúiríní Béaloidis 27 - The Banshee (with Professor Patricia Lysaght)
The Banshee is a well known supernatural figure in Irish folk tradition. In origin a patron goddess caring for the fortunes of her people, the banshee of folk belief is usually considered to be a harbinger of death, being said to follow certain families from generation to generation. Traditions about her are spread widely throughout the country, and for this episode of the podcast Jonny has the pr
Blúiríní Bealoidis 26 - Seals In Folk Tradition (with Ailbe van der Heide)
Seals have been an integral part of coastal life in Ireland for generations, and as such there exists a large body of tradition, belief and narrative regarding them. They were described in tradition as being enchanted people, wise women, fallen angels and drowned (or indeed reincarnated) fishermen, and encounters with them often relate how they would speak to, plead with or warn those fishermen wh
Blúiríní Béaloidis 25 - Midsummer
Midsummer has long been observed as a period of jubilant celebration, with communal gatherings at bonfires and prayers, recitations, music, songs, dance and merriment being the order of the night.
Join Jonny for episode 25 of Blúiríní Béaloidis as he explores the origins of midsummer festivities in Europe; recounting the raucous antics of the Brotherhood of the Green Wolf in France, considering
Blúiríní Béaloidis 24 - Folk Medicine
It was said in tradition that 'there isn't an ailment or infirmity the cure of which doesn't grow in the fields or along the hedges', and indeed, our forebears employed a wide range of historical practices to drive out infirmity and illness. While a great deal of folk cures were entirely practical in their application, many others turned to the use of magic, sacrifice and the use of charms, ritua
Blúiríní Béaloidis 23 - Holy Wells In Folk Tradition
Lying in overgrown fields, by churches and next to roadsides all over Ireland, are hidden holy wells and sacred springs which have for countless generations been visited as sites of pilgrimage and devotion. These wells are generally small bodies of water dedicated to a local patron saint, and were often renowned for the healing properties.
For this edition of Blúiríní, we shall trudge across the
Blúiríní Béaloidis - 22 Invisible Worlds (With Eddie Lenihan)
Our lives are built on the stories we tell. At both an individual and a communal level, they orient and mould us, shaping our perspectives and outlining our reality. In an age where life can seem increasingly fettered by rules and regulations, where communication is drowned by endless jargon and noise demanding our attention, where the past is heaved overboard in order that we might more quickly r
Blúiríní Béaloidis 21 - Samhain / Halloween (With Dr. Billy Mag Fhloinn)
The festival of Samhain has since ancient times been considered as a major turning point in the ritual year. In marking the threshold of darkness and the end of the season of light, the eve of Samhain (observed all over Ireland at sundown on the 31st of October) is characterised by heightened supernatural activity, a return of the ancestral dead, divination magic, mischief, ritual disguise and the
Blúiríní Béaloidis 20 - A Parting Glass (Claire's Final Episode!)
This twentieth edition of Blúiríní Béaloidis comes as something of a bittersweet occasion, with Claire raising a parting glass to 'gently rise and softly call - goodnight and joy be with you all', leaving the National Folklore Collection to embark on a new adventure!
In their final episode together, Claire and Jonny highlight some of their favourite archival excerpts from previous editions of Blú
Blúiríní Béaloidis 19 - Sacred Trees In Folk Tradition
While rooted in the earth, trees ascend towards the firmament of the Heavens. They likewise renew themselves through the eternal rhythms that govern all living things (those cycles of growth, maturation, decay and rebirth) as they blossom, flower, give fruit and eventually shed their leaves before being reborn anew each spring. Certain of these proud intermediaries between heaven and earth were tr
Blúiríní Béaloidis 18 - Brigid In Folk Tradition
St. Brigid’s Day falls on the first of February, and is traditionally understood as marking the beginning of spring in Irish custom.
Dedicated to the saint nicknamed Muire na nGael or the ‘Mary of the Irish’ (a designation given to her on account of the adoration and high regard in which she has long been held by the people of this island), St. Brigid's Day is a period full with emblems of regene
Blúiríní Béaloidis 17 - Rumours Of War
From Jul 28, 1914 until Nov 11, 1918 the iron dice of war rolled across the fields of Europe with a ferocity and magnitude the likes of which the world had never seen. In the smoke filled trenches of Guillement, and on the shell-illuminated wastes of Ypres a hellish vision of mechanised death manifested itself.
In this, the 17th episode of Blúiríní Béaloidis, Claire Doohan and Jonny Dillon commem
Blúiríní Béaloidis 16 - Otherworld Islands In Folk Tradition
Native European and Irish Tradition posits the existence of an Otherworld realm lying beyond the furthest reaches of the horizon; an island of plenty and abundance, where happiness lasts forever, and where one hundred years pass as one day. The Greek Elysium, King Arthur's Avalon, the Odainsakr of the Norse and the Irish Land of the Living all point to a long-held corpus of beliefs regarding a pa
Blúiríní Béaloidis 15 - The Salmon In Folk Tradition
Irish communities have been sustained for centuries by the fruits of our seas, rivers and lakes, from which both physical and economic subsistence was drawn.
In this regard, this month’s Blúiríní Béaloidis episode sees Jonny and Claire focus their attention on the noble salmon. From the practical and economic to the abstract and symbolic, the 'silvery fellow', 'the king', the 'plum of the sea' has
Blúiríní Béaloidis 14 - The Changeling In Folk Tradition
The birth of a child is among the most important moments in the life of the individual, and of the community of which they are a broader part. Small wonder then, that there should exist so large a body of folk belief and custom regarding the protection of infants and the unborn. A darker body of tradition concerns those children who fail to thrive, who are sickly, and who appear wizened or otherwi
Blúiríní Béaloidis 13 - The Soul In Folk Tradition
The idea of the existence of a soul or life-force which exists independently of the body is of considerable antiquity. In folk tradition, the soul was understood to depart the body, not just at the moment of death (where it was said to leave through the crown of the head), but during sleep (where it departed the body via the mouth in the appearance of a small creature or insect). For this 13th edi
Blúiríní Béaloidis 12 - St. Patrick In Folk Tradition
The 17th of March sees countries the world over celebrate Saint Patrick's Day - a day which is commonly marked with large parades and revelry held in honour of the Ireland's patron saint. But what do we know of the historical figure of Patrick, and how is he viewed in folk tradition? What relation does he bear to the Pagan order that preceded him, and how is he represented in the early literature?
Blúiríní Béaloidis 11 - Love & Magic In Folk Tradition
Betrothal and marriage are among the most central and important rites of passage in any community, and in Irish tradition one was not seen as an adult (regardless of one's age) until they were married. In this month's edition of Blúiríní Béaloidis, hosts Claire Doohan and Jonny Dillon turn their attention to ideas around love, magic and marriage as represented in Irish tradition: from Shrovetide h
Blúiríní Béaloidis 10 - The Cow In Folk Tradition
Cattle have been central to Irish farming since the Neolithic period, and in early Ireland were even used as a unit of currency. In this month's edition of Blúiríní Béaloidis, hosts Jonny Dillon and Claire Doohan explore material relating to the cow in tradition; from native breeds which were hailed by Sir William Wilde as resembling 'in the most remarkable manner, the ox-heads carved upon the fri
Séamus Ó Duilearga: 'A Burning Urge To Save'
Séamus Ó Duilearga (James Hamilton Delargy), founder of the Irish Folklore Commission, speaking of his 'burning urge to save' the traditions and customs of the Irish people in the face of a rapidly shifting cultural landscape.
It was this urge that led him to found the Irish Folklore Commission, and to surround himself with the brilliant men and women whom he tasked with gathering the rich trove
Blúiríní Béaloidis 09 - Christmas Customs & Traditions
For this month's edition of Blúiríní Béaloidis, hosts Claire Doohan and Jonny Dillon set out to take a critical look at traditional practices relating to that most beloved of calendar custom celebrations; the midwinter festival of Christmas. Combining practices from the Nordic festival of Yule, the Roman Saturnalia and Christian tradition, Christmas is a time of feasting, goodwill and excess; a pe
Blúiríní Béaloidis 08 - Wind & Storms In Folk Tradition
Owing to their impact on human affairs, weather occurrences of all sorts were a source of preoccupation for our forebears, who would look to the natural world around in the hope of interpreting and predicting these climactic manifestations. Explanations given to account for sudden gusts of wind and storms in many instances made reference to supernatural forces; to the powers of the fairies, of wit
Blúiríní Béaloidis 07 - Cú Chulainn & The Táin
The Ulster Cycle consists of a corpus of tales forming one of the main branches of early Irish Literature, which have come down to us across countless generations; existing first as part of an oral tradition in Ireland until it was later chronicled by early Christian monks in the manuscripts that survive to this day. The most well known series of narratives within the Ulster Cycle - Táin Bó Cuailg
Blúiríní Béaloidis 06 - Fairy Forts In Folk Tradition
In fields, valleys and quiet places the country over can be found countless earthwork mounds, cairns, tumuli and other signs of early human habitation in Ireland. These sites often garnered supernatural associations in folk tradition, being commonly understood as the abodes of 'Na Daoine Maithe' (The Good People) or fairies. Quite unlike the genteel 'Tinker Bell' of contemporary culture, the fairi
Blúiríní Béaloidis 05: The Threshold Of Plenty - Harvest Customs In Irish Tradition
The arrival of the harvest was for our forebears a time of great celebration, for it marked the point at which the lean months of June and 'Hungry July' (when the year's stores were traditionally at their lowest), gave way to a period of profusion and plenty. In this month's edition of Blúiríní Béaloidis / Folklore Fragments, your hosts Jonny Dillon and Claire Doohan take to the fields to consider
Blúiríní Béaloidis 04 - The Luck Of The House
In the traditional dwelling is found a well of spiritual, cultural and material information. Through it many things are revealed, from the ways in which our forebears used materials from the natural environment to meet their own specific needs, to the symbolic and spiritual concerns at play as they choose sites upon which to build.
In this month's podcast Claire and Jonny explore some of the cust
Blúiríní Béaloidis 03 - The Moon In Folk Tradition
Since the earliest times, Man has sought to come to terms with the unknown powers and forces that act upon life and wellbeing. It is natural therefore, that our forebears looked to the natural world, and to the heavens, for interpretable signs and symbols by which they could increase well being and banish misfortune.
The Moon has long been our old companion, and has gazed down silently upon all t
Blúiríní Béaloidis 02 - May Day Folklore
The first of May is marked in Ireland (and across Europe more broadly), as a day on which the summer is welcomed in; where garlands of flowers decorate the houses, in which young women of the locality bring cattle up to higher summer pastures to graze, in which the community re-asserts its boundaries, and the family unit aims to garner for itself prosperity and good luck for the coming summer. In
Blúiríní Béaloidis 01 - What is Folklore?
Welcome to Blúiríní Béaloidis, the new podcast from the National Folklore Collection, University College Dublin.
In this introductory episode, hosts Jonny Dillon and Claire Doohan delve into definitions of folklore to dispel some common misconceptions surrounding this area of interest, as well as tracing the cultural and political context of the interest in folk-tradition, which saw it arise as a
