LL-L "Folklore" 2006.01.30 (02) [E]

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   L O W L A N D S - L * 30 January 2006 * Volume 02
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From: Heather Rendall <HeatherRendall at compuserve.com.flexwebhosting.nl>
Subject: LL-L "Folklore" 2006.01.30 (02) [E]

Message text written by INTERNET:lowlands-l at LOWLANDS-L.NET
>If so, what would be the status of Cornwall?  Or
does "England" stand for "Britain"?  Or is this whole thing metaphorical
for
English sway over her dominions?<

The name Bran means 'raven' in Welsh.

The totem of the God Bran was a raven.

After Bran was wounded in Ireland, he bade his 12 companions to cut off his
head and carry it to The White Hill in London.
They went - via Grassholm where they stayed many years without aging.
Eventually his head was buried at White Hill, London  on which was later
built The White Tower, the central keep of the Tower of London, so the
ravens may well have been kept there since Bran's time............... which
is the age of legend & immortals ..... or early Celtic times if you are
more prosaic and prefer facts to myths.

Which means they may well ahve been living there during the entire Roman
occupation. Now there's a thought.

The Romans were quite good at adopting Celtic gods and truning them to
their own use. And they were v superstitious, so I doubt whether they would
have driven away guardians of a holy site. I bet they would ahve encouraged
them and feed them.

Heather

PS Rather sadly the ravens nowadays have their wings clipped so they cannot
fly ( I believe) which may say something about our Celtic realms ( i.e.
England, Wales & Cornwall and Southern Scotland.

Should we include the Picts for good measure?

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From: Paul Finlow-Bates <wolf_thunder51 at yahoo.co.uk>
Subject: LL-L "Folklore" 2006.01.30 (02) [E]


Of course, the whole raven thing is a bit of Victorian neo-Gothic 
romanticism, there is no "ancient tradition" linking the fate of either 
England or Britain to the presence or absence of the birds in the Tower. 
They actually all died in WWII; they were just surrepticiously replaced.
And they ain't going far: they get free food and shelter, and their wings 
are clipped anyway!

Paul F-B

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From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Folklore

Thanks for your very informative responses, Heather and Paul, and also for 
your interjections, Tom and Sandy.

And, didn't I know it?  *Some* sort of conspiracy just had to be involved. 
;-)

Are there any similar legends of protective creatures or spirits in the 
lowlands?  Isn't there something about storks whose annual return to 
villages' roof tops assured not only fertility but also survival (perhaps as 
a single concept)?  To encourage storks' nest building, many households 
install wagon wheels on their roof tops.  I believe that this is a part of 
Scandinavian folklore as well.  I've seen those wheels on houses in Denmark 
and Southern Sweden.  I remember the big to-do the disappearance and 
eventual return of storks caused in Sweden, seemingly going beyond concern 
about the environment.

And then there is the opposite, of course: owls and their nocturnal calls as 
harbingers of death, much like banshees.

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron 

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