Christmas traditions are what make the holiday special year in, year out. Some are more conventional, like visiting family or going to carol services. However, the most unusual ones are often the most interesting. One such is Wren Day.
It’s celebrated on St Stephen’s Day, 26th of December, in many countries across Europe. It’s thought to have originated from the Celts in connection with Samhain or a midwinter celebration. The Irish story says that God wanted to know who was the king of all birds. He set a challenge and whichever bird could fly the highest and furthest would win.
The eagle was the one who outshone the others when the race commenced. When the competition had dropped out, the eagle eventually became tired and started to lower itself in the sky. Suddenly, the crafty wren emerged from the eagle’s wing and began to soar higher than the great eagle could.
To celebrate this day, participants “hunt” a fake wren and place it on top of a decorated pole. A crowd of mummers honour the bird. They dress in straw suits, colourful motley clothing as well as masks. The mummers then parade through towns and villages, performing music.
Wren boys would often hide their identity under their disguises in order to play tricks on their friends, like the treacherous wren.
In the 20th century, the mummers would often hunt and catch a real wren. Before placing it on of the pole, the bird would sometimes be killed. However, in keeping with a popular mummers’ parade song, the bird would also be kept alive in a cage on top of the pole. The lyrics go, “A penny or tuppence would do it no harm”.
There were many variations of the song depending on what part of the country, or the world, you were in. In Edmondstown, County Dublin, the song would ask for donations from those watching the parade.
It went, “The wren the wren the king of all birds/ St Stephen’s Day was caught in the furze/ Her clothes were all torn- her shoes were all worn/ Up with the kettle and down with the pan/ Give us a penny to bury the “wran”/ If you haven’t a penny a halfpenny will do/ If you haven’t a halfpenny/ God bless you!”
The donations would pay for the town to have a “Wren Ball” in January. Patrons would often receive a feather from a wren for good luck. The mummers would also go from house to house to gather money for this dance.
While the tradition of Wren Day has died out as the years went on, there are a number of towns around Ireland that still celebrate it today. On the news on September 26th, there will almost always be a feature on the unusual gathering.
This clip from RTÉ News shows a Wren Day procession in Dingle in 2019. This celebration was in aid of charity. People from “far and wide” travelled to see the interesting costumes and the banter between all the participants.
