I’m not sure whether to post this here or wake up the ‘customs’ thread! I decided on here with the notion that it can always get linked and shifted if it sparks any reaction!
BBC recently repeated a series in which Michael Palin travelled round what he called ‘new Europe’. It wasn’t of course. Parts had restored boundaries, parts had recently joined the EU, Germany was reunited, but that was nearly 20 years before the filming in 2007. Anyway, I’d missed it, so recorded it on Sky and finally got around to watching!
I nearly deleted after a bit of the first episode because @tatjana’s lovely country was represented by shots of Palin on a mountain and a mention that Slovenia had voted to leave Yugoslavia and this brought about its break-up. (I believe this is a great simplification and although I paraphrased Palin, I don’t think I did so unfairly!) We know there is a lot more of Slovenia that is worth seeing than one mountain and I was cross! But I did continue to watch. It was all very patchy and haphazard. I doubt most countries would feel well represented, but then Palin is a comedian!
Eventually, we reached Latvia and I stared at the screen and gasped, “Blodeuged!”
It was girls wearing flowers garlands round their hair and then dancing in circles round an oak tree. It was ‘Jani’ he said, which is June 24th and, basically, a solstice festival. I had been instantly struck by the resemblance to the Maiden and her floral dancers presenting the Blodeuged to the crowned or chaired Bard at the Eisteddfod.
I do not believe Iolo Morganwg ever visited Latvia!
Does anyone know if there is evidence of connections between the people of Latvia and those who arrived in Britain after the Ice Age?
Is @seren still with us? I know she knows a lot about customs and Latvia is next to Belarus. Is anyone from Latvia on the Forum?
Or am I chasing a totally spurious similarity? It wasn’t just the garlands and dancers, it was honouring the oak which, I think, the Romans mentioned that we did!
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