Hunting the wren on stephens' day

mariaalice

I know its common in Kerry and Tippeary bus is it common in any other counties in Ireland.

Saila

the ren?

chin_grin

Must be a bogger thing.

Larianne

Yep, they do it in county Dublin and Meath.

ChunkyLover_53

Do you hunt Stimpy aswell?

Stimpy you EEEDEEOTT!

senorwipesalot

In Tipperary its spelt" the wren "and pronounced " the ran".

later12

Reasonably common in North Tipperary. Not so much the South as far as I've ever experienced. I really enjoyed this as a kid, great fun, and great way of raising money for charity these days.

chin_grin

senorwipesalot wrote: »

It's spelt wren, everywhere.

FYP.

paky

is that when travellers come into pubs with balaclavas on looking for money?

podgemonster

common also in west cork. used to it when i was 11 or 12. Good fun!

Nodin

mariaalice wrote: »

I know its common in Kerry and Tippeary bus is it common in any other counties in Ireland.

When I was younger, "puking the ring" was common all through Christmas. I believe its still popular in some parts.

senorwipesalot

later10 wrote: »

Reasonably common in North Tipperary. Not so much the South as far as I've ever experienced. I really enjoyed this as a kid, great fun, and great way of raising money for charity these days.

In north tipp the wren is hunted with schticks


in south tipp the wren is hunted with harpoons.

ItsAWindUp

Nothing like celebrating a time of peace and love with a bit of mindless slaughter eh?

Saila

no we spank the monkey up this way

later12

ItsAWindUp wrote: »

Nothing like celebrating a time of peace and love with a bit of mindless slaughter eh?

No wrens are killed in hunting the wren,

The only thing that gets slaughtered are republican ballads, usually.

Kevin Duffy

Whoever finds the "W" wins.

Micky Dolenz

Saila wrote: »

the ren?

Bet you feel silly now. :P

Saila

Micky Dolenz wrote: »

Bet you feel silly now. :P

no just not a muck savage :P

Micky Dolenz

Saila wrote: »

no just not a muck savage :P

We rather be called Bog Warriors.

Sunnyisland

Its still done in sandymount Dublin.

chucken1

The 'ran' the 'ran' the king of the birds
Saint Stephens day got caught in the furze
Up with the kettle and down with the pan
Give us a penny to bury the 'ran' :cool:



Before anyone asks...No I dont know what its about

senorwipesalot

Micky Dolenz wrote: »

We rather be called Bog Warriors.

Will settle for Wooly Backs.

hondasam

Saila wrote: »

no just not a muck savage :P

you dunno what your missing.

Raiser

We used get a very rare call in from "Wren Boys" (used include the odd girl) - Sang a few suspect songs with lots of lyric confusion and guilty faces, then the hand was out for money before making off for the hillsides....

- Tradition disguised as a drink money scam (oh...Got that backwards.....)

Marcia Lustley

very common in connemara, daddies and uncles get them on christmas day night, kids visit neighbours with the wrens in jam jars (ventilation holes provided!), you sing, dance or play an instrument and they would give a pound.
i remember making 100 pounds one year on the dreoilín!
always released them as soon as we were done

boomkatalog

mariaalice wrote: »

I know its common in Kerry and Tippeary bus is it common in any other counties in Ireland.

Actually we'd call it "Goin on the ran", and it's not that popular. It's gone the same way as Trick-or-treating, nobody will go anymore.

People would go around in small groups singing carols for money dressed like idiots. It's festive begging.

later12

boomkatalog wrote: »

It's festive begging.

That's a very negative way of looking at it; around our way it's often been done as a fundraising activity (for community development as opposed to personal use).

I think it's a charming tradition, I always loved seeing wren boys as a kid and still do today. It's a lovely reminder of our Celtic heritage in these islands, perhaps even partially pagan in its origin.

Does anyone know much about it, or have any good links?

Kevin Duffy

later10 wrote: »

That's a very negative way of looking at it; around our way it's often been done as a fundraising activity (for community development as opposed to personal use).

I think it's a charming tradition, I always loved seeing wren boys as a kid and still do today. It's a lovely reminder of our Celtic heritage in these islands, perhaps even partially pagan in its origin.

Does anyone know much about it, or have any good links?

Back to the Battle of Clontarf, isn't it? The wren alerting Brian Boru's Viking enemies by pecking at a drum iirc.

Edit: There's a few theories

DEFTLEFTHAND

The wren boys calling at the door on Stephens day is a yearly occurrence here in the part of north Tipp where I live, We never answer though.:D

boomkatalog

later10 wrote: »

That's a very negative way of looking at it; around our way it's often been done as a fundraising activity (for community development as opposed to personal use).

People I knew from school who did it door-to-door didn't give the money to charity anyway, and that's my only experience of it. It'd be a nice tradition if it was organised properly for a particular charity but around my way it's not unfortunately.

Duffy the Vampire Slayer

Very common in Mayo and Roscommon, referred to as Wren-Boying. I have awful trouble explaining it to people from other parts of the country.

Oh and we didn't have any of this fancy trick or treating when I was growing up. Damn American tradition.