At this time of year we gather to give thanks, for many things that have been important to us during the year, but a common theme is thanks for our food. The holiday falls in the time of the harvest. Different cultural groups around the world also celebrate the harvest with a variety of customs […]
Texts and audio of the traditional English folktale “Mr. Fox” from John Brickdale Blakeway, Joseph Jacobs, James Orchard Halliwell, Sidney Oldall Addy, and Ruth Tongue. Links to similar tales including the Brothers Grimm’s “The Robber Bridegroom” and Charles Perrault’s “Bluebeard.”
Episode Thirteen of the Folklife Today Podcast (or Season two, Episode 1) is ready for listening! Find it at this page on the Library’s website, or on iTunes, or with your usual podcatcher. Get your podcast here! This is a special episode for us, for a few reasons. Of course, thirteen is a number with folklore […]
It’s almost Halloween, and therefore time for spooky stories here at Folklife Today! Witches are, of course, a big part of American Halloween, and the witch is one of the most popular characters featured in costumes and decorations. These range from the standard image of a woman with a pointy hat and a broom, to […]
As we rejoice in the splendor of a three-day weekend, it is imperative that we acknowledge the true purpose of Memorial Day: to remember our national history and guiding principles through paying homage to those who laid down their lives for the ideals we hold dear. It’s a day to get to know these individuals, to […]
As you may have figured out, our previous post about having discovered the origin of all folklore everywhere was an April Fools’ Day practical joke. If you followed the link to the podcast, you actually heard about the roots of the April Fools’ Day tradition. This post is to set the record straight! Episode six […]
The following is a guest blog post by Sally Sims Stokes, the daughter of World War II “Code Girl” Jean Ashby Sims. “Dear Library,” my mother begins the World War II memoir she completed in 2008 for the Library of Congress Veterans History Project. This salutation was her way of responding, as if in a […]
In my last post about the origins of Father Christmas in the 17th century, I mentioned that most English people today barely distinguish between Father Christmas and Santa Claus. This merger of the two characters is a 19th century development, and was largely complete by the turn of the 20th century. Three hundred years after […]
During the holiday season, I spend a lot of time dressed in old-fashioned clothes, singing, acting, and making merry as Father Christmas. The character has been part of our AFC mummers’ play since 2010, and part of the tradition of mummers’ plays probably since its inception. Several of the earliest surviving mummers’ play texts, […]
Care must be taken in telling our proud tale not to claim for the British Army an undue share what is undoubtedly the greatest American battle of the war, and will, I believe, be regarded as an ever famous American victory.” – Sir Winston Churchill, addressing the House of Commons on January 18, 1945 Commemorating […]