Holy Fair
Encyclopedia
The Holy Fair was a biennial rural
celebration of the Communion
once common in Scotland
, attended not only by the people of the parish
, but by large numbers of strangers from far and near. Their acts were of questionable decency, however, and were exposed and satirised by the poet Robert Burns
in his poem The Holy Fair.
Rural
Rural areas or the country or countryside are areas that are not urbanized, though when large areas are described, country towns and smaller cities will be included. They have a low population density, and typically much of the land is devoted to agriculture...
celebration of the Communion
Communion (Christian)
The term communion is derived from Latin communio . The corresponding term in Greek is κοινωνία, which is often translated as "fellowship". In Christianity, the basic meaning of the term communion is an especially close relationship of Christians, as individuals or as a Church, with God and with...
once common in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, attended not only by the people of the parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
, but by large numbers of strangers from far and near. Their acts were of questionable decency, however, and were exposed and satirised by the poet Robert Burns
Robert Burns
Robert Burns was a Scottish poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide...
in his poem The Holy Fair.
External links
- The Holy Fair, poem by Robert Burns, 1785.