Happy Hogmanay,
(or in Shetland 'Newrdie').
Last time I blogged I started on a tale of Shetland's traditional Holy Nights,
(or in Shetland 'Helly Nichts').
these are the traditional festive nights of the winter season. Like the Norwegian celebrations, we have a span of 24 nights of festivity around Christmas.
(or in Shetland 'Jül' - and let's keep referring it to that from now on cause I like the umlauts).
Anyway as the tale was posted on the 21st of December, I was only part way through the journey of our Helly Nichts so let me continue now.
If you need to catch up and read about the first five, click this link here:
Also, if you want the audible version of the experience, although may differ wildly from blog post, follow this link here:
So yeah, that's where me and my Secret Santie *SPOILERS* Roseanne, discuss the Shetland traditions and how she created the whole magical journey of discovery for me. Cheers again, best journey ever. I should mention, a lot of these traditions I had never heard about before, and hope, using this blog and podcast to reach as many more folk who may not know about them. These are traditions from our past in Shetland, let's revive them, especially the Tammasmas one, already going to get that as a holiday for 2018. (See below).
LET'S JOURNEY ON:
So last time we got as far as 21st December, AKA the shortest day, AKA Tammasmas Nicht; where no work us to be done and ale must be consumed in celebration till the sunrises on the 22nd. Wuooooay!
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As you may remember, or have just read, the last few days of cards and presents had all been delivered by a mysterious guizer in a car park outside my work when I shouted in their face.
So the next card in the bag of goodies to open was on the 24th. Which, this year, happened to be a double barrled day of Holliness for Shetlanders. Let me split the one day of two celebrations into two sections right here for you:
Sunday 24th December - Byanna's Sunday
So, the last Sunday before Jül is Byanna's Sunday.
So the meal on this night is a boiled up cow's head. You then make sure the skull is stripped and cleaned and candles placed in it's sockets for use another day...
Very simple, and if you don't have a cow's head, any other edible beast's head will do: sheep, pig, manatee etc.
Sunday 24th - Jül Eve
The traditions of this night are quite similar to those of Tul-Yas-E'en. The night where the trows are free to roam the earth. In the height of Jül their powers are strong, and more precautions are needed to protect yourself from their magic.
On this night you must:
- Wash yourself in three living embers from the fire, I did that, with peat, had to scrub the shower after but I smelt amazing. These living embers stop the trows from stealing the magic from your hands and feet.
- Wash yourself in three living embers from the fire, I did that, with peat, had to scrub the shower after but I smelt amazing. These living embers stop the trows from stealing the magic from your hands and feet.
- You must also wear clean, and if you can, new clothes.
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My only clean/new clothes meant I ended up looking like an elf. But I forgot how elves stand.
- Tidy your house as trows despise clutter.
- Keep the door unlocked, you cannot lock your house from the trows - But! Leave a tully knife (steel knife) above the door to stop them crossing the threshold.
Other traditions include:
- Eating sun shaped cakes to celebrate the lengthening of the days.
- Leaving a burning candle in the window to let Midder Mary (Mother Mary) know she and her baby are welcome here. - I didn't do that cause fire safety.
Then, finally, we come to....
Monday 25th December - Jül
WE MADE IT. IT'S JÜL!
So, remember that beast's skull with the candles we prepared earlier? The man takes that, lit, and goes to the byres (sheds) to feed the animals, using that to light his way.
I should probably say now, remember how far North we are? 60 degrees. The hours of daylight start after 9.00am and end before it's 3.00pm. But this does help make it easier for me with one of the traditions I'll describe in a second..
Back to the byre:
When he feeds the livestock he'll give them extra food cause it's Jül.
Another candle based tradition for Jül is that, throughout the year, the bairns (children) of the household, collect and store all the bits and ends of candles that would otherwise have been dumped. They take them all out on Jül morning and light them all, so breakfast is had by the dying light of many flames, celebrating, again, the lengthening of the sun.
You must rise before the sun on Jül (not too hard due to the lack of sun as mentioned earlier) then the fiddler of the household wakens everyone up by playing Da Day Dawn, a traditional Shetland tune. It is custom to walk to your neighbour's house playing this. I walked to the ruin next door to play for the bodies.
But yeah, then I went to the folks, gave and received parcels, ate food and other new fandangled Christmas traditions we all do these days.
And before I depart for celebrations in preparation for Newrdie, let me share with you here my proudest achievement of 2017:
What wonders can we achieve as a world next? 4?
What wonders can we achieve as a world next? 4?
However.
This is the new, modern and terrifying calendar. The original Shetland Newrdie is not till the 12th. In fact our Jül is not even until the 5th. So none of these dates have been correct.
So we're still in the helly nichts. So I have to wash myself with peats again. Today.
GOOD.
I LOVE DOING THAT.
GOOD NIGHT GUYS SEE YOU NEXT YEAR LOLOLOL!!1
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