Tip-toeing at Gittisham, tree-dressing at Aston-on-Clun, coconut dancing in Bacup and clipping-the-church at Painswick are all rituals peculiar to their localities, annual contributions to the extraordinary fabric of English social life.
These are a few of the quaint and curious traditions still carried on in the towns and shires of England and which are well described in this book. It also explains the origins of well-known customs like maypole dancing, well-dressing and rush-bearing, and indicated when and where these events may be witnessed.
Not all these customs go back to pagan origins. Some are comparatively recent revivals, though based upon more ancient traditions, and some are modern developments, deliberate attempts to add colour and pleasure to present-day living or to remember some event of habit in danger of being forgotten. English customs and the traditions that folk observe are still very much a part of life today.
Contents:
Foreword
Customs and their Origins
Customs of the Counties
- Bedfordshire
- Berkshire
- Buckinghamshire
- Cambridgeshire
- Cheshire
- Cornwall
- Cumbria
- Derbyshire
- Devon
- Dorset
- Durham
- Essex
- Gloucestershire and Bristol
- Hampshire
- Hereforshire
- Hertfordshire
- Isle of Man
- Kent
- Lancashire
- Leicestershire
- Lincolnshire
- London
- Norfolk
- Northamptonshire
- Northumberland
- Nottinghamshire
- Oxfordshire
- Rutland
- Shropshire
- Somerset
- Staffordshire
- Suffolk
- Surrey
- Sussex (East)
- Sussex (West)
- Warwickshire
- Wiltshire
- Worcestershire
- Yorkshire (East)
- Yorkshire (North)
- Yorkshire (South)
- Yorkshire (West)
Index
