Sceach

Warrior Monk

hi,

I saw a reference to a "sceach" recently in relation to irish rural paranormal activity. I am writing a novel about the supernatural in modern rural ireland but had not come across this term until now.

Does anyone know what this is?

kylith

"sceach" means 'bush'. Specifically a thorn-bush.

Hope that helps.

loldog

Maybe it's about this:

Irish native Hawthorn ... Crataegus monogyna .. Sceach Gheal

Our native fairy tree, the hawthorn is surprisingly also native to North Africa, as well as Western Asia and most of Europe. We have, sprinkled throughout our Irish myth and legend, many references to hawthorn or whitethorn and its connection with the fairy folk. It was once believed that to place a sprig of fairy hawthorn in your milking parlour would cause your cows to supply extra pints of creamier milk.

To this very day, there are still farmers who plough a wide circle around lone hawthorn trees, avoiding all contact between tilling implement and root, for fear of offending the fairies that supposedly inhabit the tree. Now, I would be quick to dismiss all this as superstition but for the many tales of misfortune that befell farmers and contractors who took plough, digger or saw to a single hawthorn specimen. There may be some truth to these stories, but then again, maybe the fables were concocted and spread by early members of the tree hugger and environmentalist fraternity.

http://www.gardenplansireland.com/forum/about810.html

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