Folk-Lore of West and Mid-WalesDavies, Jonathan Ceredig
History
Folk-Lore of West and Mid-Wales
Davies, Jonathan Ceredig
Folklore -- Wales; Wales -- Social life and customs
At the close of the harvest it was an universal custom to have a
harvest supper, and after the feast there was a merry time. The
Rev. D. G. Williams mentions "Chware Dai Shon Goch" and "Rhibo"
as favourite games on such occasions.
"Chware Dai Shon Goch" was something as follows:--
Two young men, or two young women would put on some old ragged clothes
kept at the farm for that purpose, and thus attired would proceed
to the barn where a walking-stick was given to each of the two. Then
followed a most curious dance to the great amusement of the company
of beholders. At present, however, the Welshpeople in country places
know nothing of dancing; but it is evident that they were much given
to dancing in former times as well as singing to the harp. Owen Tudor,
the Welsh gentleman who became the grandfather of Henry VII., King
of England, was invited to dance some of the dances of Wales before
Katherine, the beautiful widow of Henry V. While the handsome young
Welshman was dancing one of his wild reels, it chanced that he fell
against the Queen, and the latter with a bewitching smile, said,
"that so far from offending her, it would only increase the pleasure
of herself and company, if he would repeat the same false step or
mistake!" Later on, Katherine and Owen Tudor were married.
Another game on such occasions was "Rhibo" which was something as
follows:--
Six young men were selected for the performance, three standing face
to face to the other three, and each one taking hold of the hands of
the one who faced him. Then upon the arms of these six young men,
a young man and a young woman were placed in a leaning posture who
were thrown up and allowed to fall again into the arms of the young
men, and this ceremony continued for some time, and which appeared
to be rather a rough game, but it is not practised at the present day.
In former times it was customary at some farms to blow the horn
at harvest time to call the reapers both to their work and their
meals. Such horn was made use of for that purpose until very recently
at a farm called Eurglodd, eight miles north of Aberystwyth in
Cardiganshire.
CYNNOS.
"Cynnos" was a practice among the farmers of West Wales, and
particularly Cardiganshire, of taking the corn to the kiln to be dried
on the night before the grinding; it was customary to sit watching it
all night and carefully attend to the drying operations, that is the
turning of the corn on the kiln, and the sweeping of it off, when
it had been sufficiently dried. The meaning of the word "Cynnos"
is unknown, according to some writers it is a form of "cynwys"
(contents)--that is the contents of a stack of corn; but according
to others it meant "cyn-nos" (the night before) that is the night
before the grinding.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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