Golowan Festival
Encyclopedia
Golowan is the Cornish language
word for the Midsummer
celebrations in Cornwall
, UK: widespread prior to the late 19th century and most popular in the Penwith
area and in particular Penzance
and Newlyn
. The celebrations were conducted from the 23rd of June (St John's Eve) to the 28th of June (St Peter's Eve) each year, St Peter's Eve being the more popular in Cornish fishing communities. The celebrations were centred around the lighting of bonfire
s and fireworks and the performance of associated rituals. The midsummer bonfire ceremonies (Tansys Golowan in Cornish) were revived at St Ives
in 1929 by the Old Cornwall Society and since then spread to other societies across Cornwall, as far as Kit Hill
near Callington. Since 1991 the Golowan festival in Penzance
has revived many of these ancient customs and has grown to become a major arts and culture festival: its central event 'Mazey Day' now attracts tens of thousands of people to the Penzance area in late June.
in 1754 in his book Antiquities of Cornwall.
and jump or pass themselves through the dying embers of the flames. During these celebrations it was also usual to elect a Mock Mayor
or Mayor of the Quay.
In 1864 it was recorded that the organising committee of the festival let off '258 dozen fire crackers and numerous Roman Candles, Jack-in-box and sky rockets The day after these celebrations, a 'Midsummer's Day' fair took place on Penzance quay; boat rides and other entertainments were included in these celebrations.
Two descriptions of the fire festival in Victorian times follow below:
and Newlyn in particular being centres for much of the celebration of St Peter's-tide because of St Peter's role as the patron saint of fishermen. St Peter's-tide is still celebrated in Porthleven however in a far more muted fashion Porthleven Petertide. M. A. Courtney
in her book Cornish Feasts and Feasten Customs describes a delay to the Newlyn festivities in 1883 when the majority of the Newlyn fishing fleet were at sea, returning to celebrate the fire festival many days after the actual event. Polperro
is also believed to be the site of major St Peter's Eve celebrations. Mevagissey
feast which occurs around St Peter's Eve continues to be celebrated.
had their own particular practices, Lake's Parochial history of Cornwall (1868) states:
in Ireland
, Jāņi
in Latvia
and Saint Jonas' Festival
are but a few examples. Golowan is just one example of a much wider Midsummer
European tradition.
The horse was a character associated with 'Old Penglaze' in the guisers' games of forfeiture, described by William Sandys:
Barbara Spooner in her work on the Padstow 'Obby 'Oss
further describes the 'Obby 'Oss associated with "Old Penglaze".
Her description is of the 'mast' type of hobby horse, and Spooner followed Robert Morton Nance in expressing the view that ‘the May day
games and Morris Dances, with their own type of hobby-horse, which includes a rider, had been brought in from England too recently to have acquired Cornish names.’It became imperative amongst the Celtic revivalists
of the early twentieth century that the Tourney horse (with its rider) should be seen as English, or foreign, whereas the mast horses were to be understood as native, Celtic beasts, complete with Celtic names. In fact, as Edwin Cawte demonstrated in his study of British and European hobby horse practices, the mast type of horse developed during the eighteenth century and was particularly popular during the nineteenth, whereas the Tourney variety predated it by several centuries.
In his Cornish dictionary, Robert Morton Nance
believed the character of Old Penglaze to be the horse and believed that Penglaze was a genuine Celtic noun for a hobby horse, something one of the above mentioned quotations contradicts. Moreover the writer of Bewnans Meriasek, the life of St. Meriasek (or Meriadoc) of Camborne
, writing in Cornish
, understood the hobby horse as feminine in gender, whereas Penglaze is masculine, potentially undermining its status as an example of Cornish language.
Regardless of the accuracy of its linguistic origins and accuracy of naming, etc., the modern Golowan festival's Penglaz takes its appearance from the later quotations descriptions and resembles strongly the Mari Lwyd
of Welsh tradition and was first introduced in 1992 at the second revived Golowan festival by Merv Davey Hon piper of Gorseth Kernow
. The original horse now forming part of Cornish music group Pyba's Guise dance programme being renamed "Penguise". The current "Oss" being used for the first time in 1993 .
' midsummer bonfire celebrations. The hilltop bonfires that form a chain are currently held at Kit Hill
, St Breock
beacon, Castle An Dinas, and Redruth
.
Cornish language
Cornish is a Brythonic Celtic language and a recognised minority language of the United Kingdom. Along with Welsh and Breton, it is directly descended from the ancient British language spoken throughout much of Britain before the English language came to dominate...
word for the Midsummer
Midsummer
Midsummer may simply refer to the period of time centered upon the summer solstice, but more often refers to specific European celebrations that accompany the actual solstice, or that take place on a day between June 21 and June 24, and the preceding evening. The exact dates vary between different...
celebrations in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, UK: widespread prior to the late 19th century and most popular in the Penwith
Penwith
Penwith was a local government district in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, whose council was based in Penzance. The district covered all of the Penwith peninsula, the toe-like promontory of land at the western end of Cornwall and which included an area of land to the east that fell outside the...
area and in particular Penzance
Penzance
Penzance is a town, civil parish, and port in Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is approximately 75 miles west of Plymouth and 300 miles west-southwest of London...
and Newlyn
Newlyn
Newlyn is a town and fishing port in southwest Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.Newlyn forms a conurbation with the neighbouring town of Penzance and is part of Penzance civil parish...
. The celebrations were conducted from the 23rd of June (St John's Eve) to the 28th of June (St Peter's Eve) each year, St Peter's Eve being the more popular in Cornish fishing communities. The celebrations were centred around the lighting of bonfire
Bonfire
A bonfire is a controlled outdoor fire used for informal disposal of burnable waste material or as part of a celebration. Celebratory bonfires are typically designed to burn quickly and may be very large...
s and fireworks and the performance of associated rituals. The midsummer bonfire ceremonies (Tansys Golowan in Cornish) were revived at St Ives
St Ives, Cornwall
St Ives is a seaside town, civil parish and port in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town lies north of Penzance and west of Camborne on the coast of the Celtic Sea. In former times it was commercially dependent on fishing. The decline in fishing, however, caused a shift in commercial...
in 1929 by the Old Cornwall Society and since then spread to other societies across Cornwall, as far as Kit Hill
Kit Hill
Kit Hill dominates the area between Callington and the River Tamar in southeast Cornwall, UK. The word 'Kit' comes from Old English for Kite, a reference to birds of prey . Buzzards and Sparrowhawks can still be seen on the hill...
near Callington. Since 1991 the Golowan festival in Penzance
Penzance
Penzance is a town, civil parish, and port in Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is approximately 75 miles west of Plymouth and 300 miles west-southwest of London...
has revived many of these ancient customs and has grown to become a major arts and culture festival: its central event 'Mazey Day' now attracts tens of thousands of people to the Penzance area in late June.
The historic festival
The ancient festival was first described by Dr William BorlaseWilliam Borlase
William Borlase , Cornish antiquary, geologist and naturalist, was born at Pendeen in Cornwall, of an ancient family . From 1722 he was Rector of Ludgvan and died there in 1772.-Life and works:...
in 1754 in his book Antiquities of Cornwall.
Penzance
The Penzance Golowan was one of the last examples of this practice in Cornwall until its prohibition by the Penzance Borough Council in the 1890s due to increased insurance premiums in the town and perceived fire risk. The celebrations themselves were centred around the lighting of fireworks, tar barrels , and torches on the evening of the 23rd of June every year (St John's Eve). Towards the end of these festivities the local youths of the town would take part in the ancient serpent danceSerpent dance
The Serpent dance is a traditional Cornish dance associated with the Midsummer festival of Golowan and Cornish cultural events such as Noze looan...
and jump or pass themselves through the dying embers of the flames. During these celebrations it was also usual to elect a Mock Mayor
Mock Mayor
The election of a Mock Mayor is British folk tradition found in a number of communities throughout the British Isles. Essentially a Mock Mayor is an individual who is elected by a popular informal assembly of individuals as a parody of the official office of Mayor in any given community...
or Mayor of the Quay.
In 1864 it was recorded that the organising committee of the festival let off '258 dozen fire crackers and numerous Roman Candles, Jack-in-box and sky rockets The day after these celebrations, a 'Midsummer's Day' fair took place on Penzance quay; boat rides and other entertainments were included in these celebrations.
St Peter's Eve
PorthlevenPorthleven
Porthleven is a town, civil parish and fishing port in Cornwall, United Kingdom, near Helston. It is the most southerly port on the island of Great Britain and was originally developed as a harbour of refuge, when this part of the Cornish coastline was recognised as a black spot for wrecks in days...
and Newlyn in particular being centres for much of the celebration of St Peter's-tide because of St Peter's role as the patron saint of fishermen. St Peter's-tide is still celebrated in Porthleven however in a far more muted fashion Porthleven Petertide. M. A. Courtney
Margaret Ann Courtney
Margaret Ann Courtney was an author resident in Penzance, Cornwall, UK in the late 19th century. M. A. Courtney is best known for her book Cornish feasts and folklore , first published in 1890...
in her book Cornish Feasts and Feasten Customs describes a delay to the Newlyn festivities in 1883 when the majority of the Newlyn fishing fleet were at sea, returning to celebrate the fire festival many days after the actual event. Polperro
Polperro
Polperro is a village and fishing harbour on the south-east Cornwall coast in South West England, UK, within the civil parish of Lansallos. Situated on the River Pol, 4 miles west of the neighbouring town of Looe and west of the major city and naval port of Plymouth, it is well-known for...
is also believed to be the site of major St Peter's Eve celebrations. Mevagissey
Mevagissey
Mevagissey is a village, fishing port and civil parish in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The village is situated approximately five miles south of St Austell....
feast which occurs around St Peter's Eve continues to be celebrated.
St Just
The people of St Just in PenwithSt Just in Penwith
St Just is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The parish encompasses the town of St Just and the nearby settlements of Trewellard, Pendeen and Kelynack: it is bounded by the parishes of Morvah to the north-east, Sancreed and Madron to the east, St Buryan and Sennen to...
had their own particular practices, Lake's Parochial history of Cornwall (1868) states:
Similar festivals
Throughout Europe there are similar fire festivals held on the 23rd and 24th of June. St. John's EveSt. John's Eve
The evening of June 23, St John's Eve, is the eve of celebration before the Feast Day of St John the Baptist. The Gospel of Luke states that John was born about six months before Jesus, therefore the feast of John the Baptist was fixed on June 21~24, six months before Christmas...
in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, Jāņi
Jani
Jāņi is a Latvian festival held in the night from 23 June to 24 June to celebrate the summer solstice , the shortest night and longest day of the year. The day of Līgo and the day of Jāņi are public holidays, and people usually spend them in the countryside...
in Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
and Saint Jonas' Festival
Saint Jonas' Festival
Saint Jonas' Festival is a midsummer folk festival celebrated on June 24 all around Lithuania. While midsummer day is celebrated throughout Europe, many Lithuanians have a particularly lively agenda on this day...
are but a few examples. Golowan is just one example of a much wider Midsummer
Midsummer
Midsummer may simply refer to the period of time centered upon the summer solstice, but more often refers to specific European celebrations that accompany the actual solstice, or that take place on a day between June 21 and June 24, and the preceding evening. The exact dates vary between different...
European tradition.
Modern Golowan celebrations
The modern Golowan festival in Penzance started in 1990 as an attempt to revive many of the traditions stated above and has grown into one of the UK's most distinctive festivals. The core of the modern festival is 3 days known as Mazey Eve, Mazey Day and Quay Fair Day. Mazey Eve takes place around the harbour area of Penzance and includes a popular election of the 'Mayor of Quay' and a large firework display. The following day – Mazey Day is a large community and arts celebration. Artists, Schools and members of the public take part in a series of processions that include music, giant sculptures and variety of other artistic activities. Contributions from musicians and artists from the Celtic nations are a regular feature as are a variety of other musical contributions. Penzance itself during this day is decorated with large amounts of greenery – mirroring the practice in the town during the ancient festival. A large number of market stalls are also present throughout the town. Mazey Day attracts thousands of visitors to the area and has become an important symbol of the identity of town amongst local people. Quay Fair day is a celebration that is similar in many ways to 'Midsummer Fair' described in the ancient festival with the addition a popular street entertainment.Penglaz the Penzance 'Obby 'Oss
During the evening of Mazey Eve and on the 23rd of June (St John's Eve) every year Penglaz the Penzance 'Obby 'Oss appears. Penglaz owes its origins to the descriptions of the hobby horse that once accompanied the Christmas guisers in their perambulation of Penzance during the nineteenth century. The classic, contemporary account of the guisers’ horse was given by Richard Edmonds who described the horse as being:The horse was a character associated with 'Old Penglaze' in the guisers' games of forfeiture, described by William Sandys:
Barbara Spooner in her work on the Padstow 'Obby 'Oss
'Obby 'Oss festival
Padstow, in Cornwall, UK is internationally famous for its traditional Obby 'Oss day . Held annually on May Day , which in Cornwall, largely dates back to the Celtic Beltane, the day celebrates the coming of Summer....
further describes the 'Obby 'Oss associated with "Old Penglaze".
Her description is of the 'mast' type of hobby horse, and Spooner followed Robert Morton Nance in expressing the view that ‘the May day
May Day
May Day on May 1 is an ancient northern hemisphere spring festival and usually a public holiday; it is also a traditional spring holiday in many cultures....
games and Morris Dances, with their own type of hobby-horse, which includes a rider, had been brought in from England too recently to have acquired Cornish names.’It became imperative amongst the Celtic revivalists
Celtic Revival
Celtic Revival covers a variety of movements and trends, mostly in the 19th and 20th centuries, which drew on the traditions of Celtic literature and Celtic art, or in fact more often what art historians call Insular art...
of the early twentieth century that the Tourney horse (with its rider) should be seen as English, or foreign, whereas the mast horses were to be understood as native, Celtic beasts, complete with Celtic names. In fact, as Edwin Cawte demonstrated in his study of British and European hobby horse practices, the mast type of horse developed during the eighteenth century and was particularly popular during the nineteenth, whereas the Tourney variety predated it by several centuries.
In his Cornish dictionary, Robert Morton Nance
Robert Morton Nance
Robert Morton Nance was a leading authority on the Cornish language, nautical archaeologist, and joint founder of the Old Cornwall Society....
believed the character of Old Penglaze to be the horse and believed that Penglaze was a genuine Celtic noun for a hobby horse, something one of the above mentioned quotations contradicts. Moreover the writer of Bewnans Meriasek, the life of St. Meriasek (or Meriadoc) of Camborne
Camborne
Camborne is a town and civil parish in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is at the western edge of a conurbation comprising Camborne, Pool and Redruth....
, writing in Cornish
Cornish language
Cornish is a Brythonic Celtic language and a recognised minority language of the United Kingdom. Along with Welsh and Breton, it is directly descended from the ancient British language spoken throughout much of Britain before the English language came to dominate...
, understood the hobby horse as feminine in gender, whereas Penglaze is masculine, potentially undermining its status as an example of Cornish language.
Regardless of the accuracy of its linguistic origins and accuracy of naming, etc., the modern Golowan festival's Penglaz takes its appearance from the later quotations descriptions and resembles strongly the Mari Lwyd
Mari Lwyd
The Mari Lwyd , also Y Fari Lwyd, is a Welsh midwinter tradition, possibly to celebrate New Year , although it formerly took place over a period stretching from Christmas to late January...
of Welsh tradition and was first introduced in 1992 at the second revived Golowan festival by Merv Davey Hon piper of Gorseth Kernow
Gorseth Kernow
Gorseth Kernow is a non-political Cornish organisation, which exists to maintain the national Celtic spirit of Cornwall in the United Kingdom.-History:...
. The original horse now forming part of Cornish music group Pyba's Guise dance programme being renamed "Penguise". The current "Oss" being used for the first time in 1993 .
Old Cornwall Society
The ancient Golowan celebrations were also the inspiration for the Old Cornwall SocietiesFederation of Old Cornwall Societies
The Federation of Old Cornwall Societies was formed in 1924, on the initiative of Robert Morton Nance, with the objective of collecting and maintaining "all those ancient things that make the spirit of Cornwall — its traditions, its old words and ways, and what remains to it of its Celtic language...
' midsummer bonfire celebrations. The hilltop bonfires that form a chain are currently held at Kit Hill
Kit Hill
Kit Hill dominates the area between Callington and the River Tamar in southeast Cornwall, UK. The word 'Kit' comes from Old English for Kite, a reference to birds of prey . Buzzards and Sparrowhawks can still be seen on the hill...
, St Breock
St Breock
St Breock is a village and a civil parish in north Cornwall, United Kingdom. St Breock village is 1 mile west of Wadebridge immediately to the south of the Royal Cornwall Showground. The village lies on the eastern slope of the wooded Nansent valley...
beacon, Castle An Dinas, and Redruth
Redruth
Redruth is a town and civil parish traditionally in the Penwith Hundred in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It has a population of 12,352. Redruth lies approximately at the junction of the A393 and A3047 roads, on the route of the old London to Land's End trunk road , and is approximately west of...
.
See also
- Montol FestivalMontol FestivalThe Montol Festival is an annual heritage, arts and community festival in Penzance, Cornwall held between the 16th and 22nd of December each year. The festival is a revival or reinterpretation of many of the traditional Cornish midwinter customs & Christmas traditions formerly practiced in and...
- St. John's EveSt. John's EveThe evening of June 23, St John's Eve, is the eve of celebration before the Feast Day of St John the Baptist. The Gospel of Luke states that John was born about six months before Jesus, therefore the feast of John the Baptist was fixed on June 21~24, six months before Christmas...
- MidsummerMidsummerMidsummer may simply refer to the period of time centered upon the summer solstice, but more often refers to specific European celebrations that accompany the actual solstice, or that take place on a day between June 21 and June 24, and the preceding evening. The exact dates vary between different...
- AllantideAllantideAllantide is a Cornish festival that was traditionally celebrated on 31 October elsewhere known as Hallowe'en. The festival itself seems to have pre-Christian origins similar to most celebrations on this date, however in Cornwall it was popularly linked to St Allen or Arlan a little known Cornish...
- Furry DanceFurry DanceThe Furry Dance, also known as The Flora , takes place in Helston, Cornwall, and is one of the oldest British customs still practised today...
- Tom Bawcock's Eve
- Guise dancingGuise DancingGuise dancing is a folk practice celebrated between Christmas Day and Twelfth Night in Cornwall, UK...
- West Cornwall May Day celebrationsWest Cornwall May Day CelebrationsThe West Cornwall May Day celebrations are an example of folk practices found in the western part of Cornwall, United Kingdom, associated with the coming of spring. The celebration of May Day is a common motif throughout Europe and beyond. In Cornwall there are a number of notable examples of this...
External links
- Official Website of the Golowan Festival[
- Detailed Description of the Ancient Golowan Festival
- The 5.00 pm serpent dance on Mazey Day
- http://www.purelypenzance.co.uk/thetown/festivals.html The Golowan Festival on Purely Penzance, including picture galleries