All Things Celtic (original) (raw)

My introduction	[Feb. 4th, 2007\|05:17 am]Celtic Links
Hello hello. My name is Kourosh. I'm not entirely sure how my attration to Ireland started, but I can say that however it happened, it's gotten pretty strong. I'm hoping to learn what I can about Ireland and Irish culture via this community and hopefully make some friends along the way. Cheers, and I'll get to posting sometime soon!
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(no subject)	[Jan. 13th, 2007\|05:12 pm]Celtic Links
So... it's been quite a while since I've made a post! Due to school, time for the internet is limited, but I'm going to try my best to continue these posts as much as possible, and hopefully it will be a weekly habit.This week's mp3 is by a favorite fiddler of many named Kevin Burke, and is titled "Lord Gordon's Reel". To download the mp3, click here.This week's links have to do with the Beltane celebration. Beltane (sometimes "Bealtaine") is an ancient Gaelic holiday celebrated around May 1. Historically, this festival was celebrated in Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. There were similar festivals held at the same time in the other Celtic countries of Wales, Brittany and Cornwall. The festival survives in folkloric practices in the Celtic Nations and the diaspora, and has experienced a degree of revival in recent decades.For the Celts, Beltane marked the beginning of the pastoral summer season when the herds of livestock were driven out to the summer pastures and mountain grazing lands. In modern Irish, Mí na Bealtaine ('month of Bealtaine') is the name for the month of May. The name of the month is often abbreviated to Bealtaine, with the festival day itself being known as Lá Bealtaine. The lighting of bonfires on Oidhche Bhealtaine ('the eve of Bealtaine') on mountains and hills of ritual and political significance was one of the main activities of the festival.In Irish mythology, the beginning of the summer season for the Tuatha Dé Danann and the Milesians started at Bealtaine. Great bonfires would mark a time of purification and transition, heralding in the season in the hope of a good harvest later in the year, and were accompanied with ritual acts to protect the people from any harm by Otherworldly spirits, such as the Sídhe. Like the festival of Samhain, opposite Beltane on Nov. 1, Beltane was a time when the Otherworld was seen as particularly close at hand. Early Gaelic sources from around the 10th century state that the druids of the community would create a need-fire on top of a hill on this day and drive the village's cattle through the fires to purify them and bring luck (Eadar dà theine Bhealltainn in Scottish Gaelic, 'Between two fires of Beltane'). In Scotland, boughs of juniper were sometimes thrown on the fires to add an additional element of purification and blessing to the smoke. People would also pass between the two fires to purify themselves. This was echoed throughout history after Christianization, with lay people instead of Druid priests creating the need-fire. The festival persisted widely up until the 1950s, and in some places the celebration of Beltane continues today. A revived Beltane Fire Festival has been held every year since 1988 during the night of 30 April on Calton Hill in Edinburgh, Scotland and attended by up to 15,000 people (except in 2003 when local council restrictions forced the organisers to hold a private event elsewhere).Beltane is a cross-quarter day, marking the midpoint in the Sun's progress between the vernal equinox and summer solstice. Since the Celtic year was based on both lunar and solar cycles, it is possible that the holiday was celebrated on the full moon nearest the midpoint between the vernal equinox and the summer solstice. The astronomical date for this midpoint is closer to May 5 or May 7, but this can vary from year to year.To read more about Beltane, click here and here.
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(no subject)

[Jan. 13th, 2007|05:12 pm]Celtic Links

So... it's been quite a while since I've made a post! Due to school, time for the internet is limited, but I'm going to try my best to continue these posts as much as possible, and hopefully it will be a weekly habit.This week's mp3 is by a favorite fiddler of many named Kevin Burke, and is titled "Lord Gordon's Reel". To download the mp3, click here.This week's links have to do with the Beltane celebration. Beltane (sometimes "Bealtaine") is an ancient Gaelic holiday celebrated around May 1. Historically, this festival was celebrated in Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. There were similar festivals held at the same time in the other Celtic countries of Wales, Brittany and Cornwall. The festival survives in folkloric practices in the Celtic Nations and the diaspora, and has experienced a degree of revival in recent decades.For the Celts, Beltane marked the beginning of the pastoral summer season when the herds of livestock were driven out to the summer pastures and mountain grazing lands. In modern Irish, Mí na Bealtaine ('month of Bealtaine') is the name for the month of May. The name of the month is often abbreviated to Bealtaine, with the festival day itself being known as Lá Bealtaine. The lighting of bonfires on Oidhche Bhealtaine ('the eve of Bealtaine') on mountains and hills of ritual and political significance was one of the main activities of the festival.In Irish mythology, the beginning of the summer season for the Tuatha Dé Danann and the Milesians started at Bealtaine. Great bonfires would mark a time of purification and transition, heralding in the season in the hope of a good harvest later in the year, and were accompanied with ritual acts to protect the people from any harm by Otherworldly spirits, such as the Sídhe. Like the festival of Samhain, opposite Beltane on Nov. 1, Beltane was a time when the Otherworld was seen as particularly close at hand. Early Gaelic sources from around the 10th century state that the druids of the community would create a need-fire on top of a hill on this day and drive the village's cattle through the fires to purify them and bring luck (Eadar dà theine Bhealltainn in Scottish Gaelic, 'Between two fires of Beltane'). In Scotland, boughs of juniper were sometimes thrown on the fires to add an additional element of purification and blessing to the smoke. People would also pass between the two fires to purify themselves. This was echoed throughout history after Christianization, with lay people instead of Druid priests creating the need-fire. The festival persisted widely up until the 1950s, and in some places the celebration of Beltane continues today. A revived Beltane Fire Festival has been held every year since 1988 during the night of 30 April on Calton Hill in Edinburgh, Scotland and attended by up to 15,000 people (except in 2003 when local council restrictions forced the organisers to hold a private event elsewhere).Beltane is a cross-quarter day, marking the midpoint in the Sun's progress between the vernal equinox and summer solstice. Since the Celtic year was based on both lunar and solar cycles, it is possible that the holiday was celebrated on the full moon nearest the midpoint between the vernal equinox and the summer solstice. The astronomical date for this midpoint is closer to May 5 or May 7, but this can vary from year to year.To read more about Beltane, click here and here.

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This week's links and mp3	[Sep. 29th, 2006\|10:53 pm]Celtic Links
[music \|O'Rourke's played by Paddy Keenan and Tommy O'Sullivan]This week's mp3 is played by an uilleann piper by the name of Paddy Keenan. To download this week's mp3, click here. Scroll past the advertisements until you see the blinking orange arrow.This week's links have nothing to do with the uilleann pipes, however! (If you would like to read about the uillean pipes, refer back to this post.) Instead, this week we will focus on a highly ignored part of the Celtic culture-- Welsh rarebit!Welsh rarebit, also known as, simply, "cheese on toast", is literally just that. The cheeses most often used in rarebit are Lancashire, Chedder, Double Glouscester, and Red Leicester. Rarebit is made by grating a choice of cheese, and then mixing it with a bit of butter and milk (in some cases, even batter beer). Then, the mixture is added to a slight amount of mustard and spread on top of a toasted piece of bread, at which point it is grilled in the British fashion. It is said that Welsh rarebit was first known as "Welsh rabbit", and that over time it was slurred and turned into "rarebit", though there is no clear origin for the use of rarebit as opposed to rabbit. The Welsh name for rarebit is "caws-wedi-pobi", though it is also sometimes called "caws ar dôst". In the film When the Clouds Roll By, there is a scene in which a main character has a nightmare due to Welsh rarebit, and there have also been numerous comics drawn by Winsor McCay in which characters have Welsh rarebit induced nightmares. To read more about Welsh rarebit and to find recipes, click here and here.
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This week's links and mp3

[Sep. 29th, 2006|10:53 pm]Celtic Links

[music |O'Rourke's played by Paddy Keenan and Tommy O'Sullivan]This week's mp3 is played by an uilleann piper by the name of Paddy Keenan. To download this week's mp3, click here. Scroll past the advertisements until you see the blinking orange arrow.This week's links have nothing to do with the uilleann pipes, however! (If you would like to read about the uillean pipes, refer back to this post.) Instead, this week we will focus on a highly ignored part of the Celtic culture-- Welsh rarebit!Welsh rarebit, also known as, simply, "cheese on toast", is literally just that. The cheeses most often used in rarebit are Lancashire, Chedder, Double Glouscester, and Red Leicester. Rarebit is made by grating a choice of cheese, and then mixing it with a bit of butter and milk (in some cases, even batter beer). Then, the mixture is added to a slight amount of mustard and spread on top of a toasted piece of bread, at which point it is grilled in the British fashion. It is said that Welsh rarebit was first known as "Welsh rabbit", and that over time it was slurred and turned into "rarebit", though there is no clear origin for the use of rarebit as opposed to rabbit. The Welsh name for rarebit is "caws-wedi-pobi", though it is also sometimes called "caws ar dôst". In the film When the Clouds Roll By, there is a scene in which a main character has a nightmare due to Welsh rarebit, and there have also been numerous comics drawn by Winsor McCay in which characters have Welsh rarebit induced nightmares. To read more about Welsh rarebit and to find recipes, click here and here.

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suggestions?	[Sep. 2nd, 2006\|12:49 pm]Celtic Links
i've never properly introduced myself. i'm maggie. mostly irish. i already have 2 tattoo on my back that are of the celtic nature. however, i would like to get my mother's maiden name tattooed on my wrist in gaelic. but i need to find a cool font. do you guys have any ides where to find any good ones? i did a yahoo search and didn't come up with too much.
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This week's links and mp3	[Aug. 31st, 2006\|01:20 pm]Celtic Links
[music \|Green Grow the Rushes by Altan]Hello, everyone!This week's mp3 is the song "Green Grow the Rushes" (sometimes known as Green Grow the Rashes O', and in other variables of that), performed by the lovely Altan. Robert Burns, the eighteenth century Scottish poet, is most often credited with composing the lyrics for this song. However, the aire can be traced back to a lute manuscript published by Sir Robert Gordon of Straloch in 1627. Interestingly, the tune is still commonly played as a highland in County Donegal.Click here to download the mp3. Click the light blue link near the blinking orange arrow.This week's links are about said Scottish poet, Robert Burns. Robert Burns (1759-1796) is often considered the national poet of Scotland, and he is the most famous of the poets who have written in the Scots language. He is considered to be one of the pioneers of the Romantic movement in literature, and after his passing he became an important influence on liberalism and socialism. Burns was also a collector of folk songs, and he often adapted and revised them, or gave them words if they lacked them. His song titled Auld Lang Syne is one of the most famous, and is often sung at the Scottish new year holiday Hogmanay. Scots Wha Hae, another tune that had words added to it by Burns, is considered one of the unofficial national anthems of Scotland. Burns' Night, a holiday celebrating the life and works of Robert Burns, is celebrated internationally on January 25th, even more-so than the official national holiday of Scotland, which is St. Andrew's Day. To read more about Robert Burns, click here, here, and here.
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This week's links and mp3

[Aug. 31st, 2006|01:20 pm]Celtic Links

[music |Green Grow the Rushes by Altan]Hello, everyone!This week's mp3 is the song "Green Grow the Rushes" (sometimes known as Green Grow the Rashes O', and in other variables of that), performed by the lovely Altan. Robert Burns, the eighteenth century Scottish poet, is most often credited with composing the lyrics for this song. However, the aire can be traced back to a lute manuscript published by Sir Robert Gordon of Straloch in 1627. Interestingly, the tune is still commonly played as a highland in County Donegal.Click here to download the mp3. Click the light blue link near the blinking orange arrow.This week's links are about said Scottish poet, Robert Burns. Robert Burns (1759-1796) is often considered the national poet of Scotland, and he is the most famous of the poets who have written in the Scots language. He is considered to be one of the pioneers of the Romantic movement in literature, and after his passing he became an important influence on liberalism and socialism. Burns was also a collector of folk songs, and he often adapted and revised them, or gave them words if they lacked them. His song titled Auld Lang Syne is one of the most famous, and is often sung at the Scottish new year holiday Hogmanay. Scots Wha Hae, another tune that had words added to it by Burns, is considered one of the unofficial national anthems of Scotland. Burns' Night, a holiday celebrating the life and works of Robert Burns, is celebrated internationally on January 25th, even more-so than the official national holiday of Scotland, which is St. Andrew's Day. To read more about Robert Burns, click here, here, and here.

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Greetings & Salutations	[Aug. 30th, 2006\|01:38 pm]Celtic Links
Hello, everyone! I am rather new to LJ, well, rather, I was here once but have only recently come back again. I would be honored to get to know some of you better, and to have my poor friends list plumped back up again somewhat. :)Slainte!
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need suggestions	[Aug. 10th, 2006\|11:12 am]Celtic Links
[mood \|curious]I am having a celtic handfasting for my wedding. But I need suggestions for the music something to walk in on and out. I was think Enya's Celtic Rain for the in but I really some input.
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(no subject)	[Aug. 9th, 2006\|05:21 pm]Celtic Links
[music \|The Most Requested by the Wicked Tinkers]Greetings, all!Sorry that I haven't made an update, but I've actually been out of town at a folk music camp known as Lark in the Morning. Lots of Irish music and Irish step dancing was involved on my part, and I had a wonderful time, but I'm sorry to have neglected our little corner of Livejournal here. I'll be gone for one more week, and after that I'll be back to weekly postings.In the mean time, I've uploaded an mp3 by my bagpipe teacher's band the Wicked Tinkers. (You may know them from the Highland games that happen in the western United States.) The song I've uploaded, "The Most Requested", is a medley of Amazing Grace and Scotland the Brave. Amazing Grace has now become a staple of pipe bands, and is played almost at every Highland games during the massed bands performance at the end of the day. Scotland the Brave is considered to be one of the most well-known unofficial Scottish national anthems, along with Scots Wha Hae and Flower of Scotland.Click here to download the mp3.That's it for now. Slainte!
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(no subject)

[Aug. 9th, 2006|05:21 pm]Celtic Links

[music |The Most Requested by the Wicked Tinkers]Greetings, all!Sorry that I haven't made an update, but I've actually been out of town at a folk music camp known as Lark in the Morning. Lots of Irish music and Irish step dancing was involved on my part, and I had a wonderful time, but I'm sorry to have neglected our little corner of Livejournal here. I'll be gone for one more week, and after that I'll be back to weekly postings.In the mean time, I've uploaded an mp3 by my bagpipe teacher's band the Wicked Tinkers. (You may know them from the Highland games that happen in the western United States.) The song I've uploaded, "The Most Requested", is a medley of Amazing Grace and Scotland the Brave. Amazing Grace has now become a staple of pipe bands, and is played almost at every Highland games during the massed bands performance at the end of the day. Scotland the Brave is considered to be one of the most well-known unofficial Scottish national anthems, along with Scots Wha Hae and Flower of Scotland.Click here to download the mp3.That's it for now. Slainte!

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(no subject)	[Aug. 5th, 2006\|11:04 pm]Celtic Links
[mood \|anxious]just saying hi and that i'm not actually celtic...well i'm Scottish, but anyway my boyfriend is from Ireland and moved here 4 years ago...he's been teaching me A LOT about celtic everything!!! i've become SO interested in everything celtic i'd like to learn more though
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(no subject)	[Aug. 5th, 2006\|11:04 pm]Celtic Links
[mood \|anxious]just saying hi and that i'm not actually celtic...well i'm Scottish, but anyway my boyfriend is from Ireland and moved here 4 years ago...he's been teaching me A LOT about celtic everything!!! i've become SO interested in everything celtic i'd like to learn more though
link	5 comments\|post comment

need suggestions	[Aug. 10th, 2006\|11:12 am]Celtic Links
[mood \|curious]I am having a celtic handfasting for my wedding. But I need suggestions for the music something to walk in on and out. I was think Enya's Celtic Rain for the in but I really some input.
link	6 comments\|post comment

(no subject)	[Aug. 5th, 2006\|11:04 pm]Celtic Links
[mood \|anxious]just saying hi and that i'm not actually celtic...well i'm Scottish, but anyway my boyfriend is from Ireland and moved here 4 years ago...he's been teaching me A LOT about celtic everything!!! i've become SO interested in everything celtic i'd like to learn more though
link	2 comments\|post comment

(no subject)	[Aug. 5th, 2006\|11:04 pm]Celtic Links
[mood \|anxious]just saying hi and that i'm not actually celtic...well i'm Scottish, but anyway my boyfriend is from Ireland and moved here 4 years ago...he's been teaching me A LOT about celtic everything!!! i've become SO interested in everything celtic i'd like to learn more though
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