nLeprechaunsnare said to live alone, as do the fearsome banshees, but Irishnfolklore tells us that some kinds of fairies live together in large,nmerry “troops.”
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Thentrooping fairies live in bushes and in circles of stone that can benfound all over Ireland. These circles of stone are called fairynraths, and they are the remains of ancient buildings. Most farmersndon’t like to disturb them because they’ve heard tales of revengenfrom the fairies that are supposed to live there.
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nSomenof the trooping fairies are said to be beautiful—the sort ofnlong-haired female forms most of us think of when we hear the wordn“fairy.” We are told that they drink milk and honey and flowernnectar, and that they love music and dancing—but also pullingnpranks!
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nMaytimen(the first week of May, especially) is supposed to be the most activentime for the fairies. They sometimes cast fogs onto travelers, tonconfuse them, and they even go so far as to move familiar landmarksnso that people will get lost. (“Wait a minute, didn’t that mountainnused to be over there? And—hey, who moved the old alder tree?”)
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nMostnmodern Irish people do not believe these folktales, and they rushnabout during Maytime doing their normal activities. And they are nonenthe worse for it! But some Irish people are still a bitnsuperstitious. They like to stick close to home in early May, just inncase.
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nInnthe olden days, Irish people who HAD TO travel during Maytime wouldnoften wear their coats inside out, to confuse the fairies. I am notnsure why an inside-out coat would confuse a creature who can movenlandmarks around just as a prank…but folklore isn’t known for itsnlogic, is it?
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nDidnyou know…
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| Merrow |
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nIrishnfolklore is full of “wee folk.” It’s not just leprechauns andnbanshees and beautiful trooping fairies. There are also hairyngrogochs, headless horsemen called Dullahans, human look-alikesncalled changelings, and the horrifying, shape-shifting pooka! Oh, Inalmost forgot! There are also merrows, which are a bit like mermaids.
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| Grogoch |
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| Banshee |
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| Leprechaun |
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nBynthe Way…
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nHappy Star Wars Day – May the Fourth be with you!
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nPlannAhead…
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nChecknout mynPinterest boards of Maynholidays, historicalnevents in May,nand Maynbirthdays.
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nAlsonon this date:
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nBirthdaynof Bartolomeo Cristofori, the inventor of the piano
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nGreenerynDay in Japan