Hairst May 2006
A peerie wird fae da editor
The nights are
drawing in and it’s time for another newsletter. What’s
in store this time?
In the previous
newsletter we were looking forward to a group visit from Shetland and Orkney, so now we hear about their time in Wellington. While the visitors could be assured of a warm welcome from Society members,
the weather may have felt more like Shetland than a visit to South Sea Islands. Those pesky northerlies persisted for much of their stay. Then they were farewelled with thunder, lightening
and hail causing the airport to close, so hail could be removed from the runway, and delaying their flight. They also struck census night during their stay. I guess it would all would add a bit of spice when telling about their trip when they returned home.
Shetland has a
fine tradition of storytelling. In days gone bye the long winter evenings
were ideal for telling tales while sitting at the fireside. Many of the
stories were folktales passed down from generation to generation. In Shetland’s
terrain, surrounded by the sea and with steep cliffs in parts, it is easy to see how stories about mystical beings could be
used to discourage children from wandering from home. While tales of sea
creatures were useful reminders to everyone about the need for constant vigilance when out in boats. We look at some of the creatures found in Shetland’s folklore.
Our Patron,
John Smith, features in Meetin wir Members with the first part of his family story. And we catch up on Society news.
Dat’s hit
fir dis time.
Mary Wood
Trows, Njuggles & more
Shetland
has a strong tradition of storytelling and folklore formed an important part of the tales told. Tales about mystical creatures inhabiting the land or sea, with origins reaching far back into Norse
mythology and shaped by the way of life in times past.
Trows
are the best known of these creatures, ‘peerie folk’ who live in the hills. Trowie tales abound, not just old stories but modern tales as well.
Trows are small mysterious and mischievous folk with a zest for life who could create considerable havoc. They were both feared and tolerated. Care needed to be taken
not to offend them or misfortune would follow. However kindness or a good
deed provided to trows was generously repaid and good luck was experienced for many years.
Trows had a particular love of fiddle music and were good fiddlers. Indeed
there are fiddle tunes today that are attributed to trows, tunes faintly overheard coming from the underground hill caverns
where the trows lived, which humans replicated. Despite being competent
fiddlers, stories tell of trows kidnapping or luring human fiddlers into their trowie hadds to play at weddings and feasts. On these occasions the fiddler believed he spent only a short time away but
when he returned home he discovered that many years had passed.
The profile of
trows is to receive an even greater prominence thanks to projects and funding announced in December last year. The Shetland Folklore Development Group intends
to bring trows to a wider audience through a project working with other folklore groups in the Highlands & Islands and
also Ireland. Folklore is to be collected and selected for an archive of popular tales from these areas. Shetland’s contribution will be tales about trows.
Although trows are well known in Shetland they are little known elsewhere.
The group is also thinking of ways trows can be marketed through trowie merchandising involving music, models, storytelling
and ‘trowie trails’. Another project is to create a trowie
knowe at the new Shetland museum which is currently being built at Hays Dock and is due to open later this year. Jimmy Moncrieff from the Shetland Amenity Trust, which is providing funding for this project, was
quoted as saying “Trows are unique to Shetland and they deserve to be celebrated as a special part of our folklore. Norway
has its trolls, we have trows and it is fitting that they will feature in the new Shetland museum and archives”.
But what
does a trow look like? Does it look like the Norwegian troll? We invite our younger members to send us their drawings of what they think a trow might look like. These will be put on display at our family night in July and a selection published
in our next newsletter. And if any reader has a trowie tale they would like to
share with us we would love to hear from you!*
While trows are
the best known, they are not the only mythical creatures found in Shetland folklore.
The njuggle was a waterhorse which had the appearance of a fine looking horse or Shetland pony. It lived near streams and lochs and often frequented the small stone watermills found around the
countryside which were used for grinding grain. The njuggle would hide
in the underhouse of the mills and stop the wheel turning. A burning peat tossed
down near the wheel would dislodge the njuggle and start the wheel turning again.
While the antics of the njuggle at the mill were largely a nuisance, the njuggle had much more dangerous habits. It could entice travellers, or children, to ride on its back, then take off
at great speed and plunge into the nearest loch, drowning the rider.
As is to be expected,
the sea features strongly in the folklore. There were seal people
who displayed both human and seal characteristics. A benign race, their
home was the sea but they visit the land and on these occasions they remove a seal like ‘skin’ revealing a human
form. If the ‘skin’ was lost or stolen they are doomed to remain
on land. Stories are told of seal people dancing on the shore and a young
man passing by being enchanted by a beautiful seal maiden. He manages to
take and hide her ‘skin’ so when her companions return to the sea she is left behind. He woos and weds the maiden but one day she discovers the hidden ‘skin’. Although she is happy with her life on earth, the call of the sea is overwhelming and she returns
to her former life leaving her heartbroken husband behind.
And then
there were the Finns, a race who possessed magical powers. They were able
to row huge distances with one stroke of the oars. They could change their appearance
and take on the form of fish, birds or even sea monsters that chased fishing boats and pulled them under the waves. The bregdi was a much feared sea monster with huge fins which could grip a boat and
plunge it down into the depths of the ocean. There was also the sifan,
a Loch Ness monster type creature, that was seemingly harmless but its size and appearance made it terrifying.
In The
Shetland Story (Batsford, 1988) Liv Schei draws parallels between some of the folklore characters in Shetland and in Norway.
In doing so she refers to a very old belief in both Shetland and Norway
that a huge sea-serpent, who lived near the edge of the world, controlled the tides, taking 6 hours to draw in his breath
and 6 hours to breathe out.
Shetland Visitor online [www.shetlandtoday.co.uk ] has an article by David Cooper; Shetland folklore – monsters and myths.
He concludes with the following paragraph.
Much
of the island’s folklore is deeply rooted in the past, but on a fine summer evening, if one sits quietly in the gathering
twilight that never quite becomes night, it is easy to find oneself back in that past.
Listening to the sounds of the waves and the lonely cries of the birds and seals breaking the uncanny silence it is
easy to imagine the faint strains of fiddle music emerging from a nearby mound. In
the dim light it’s difficult to tell the movement of a wandering otter from that of a passing trow. Is the boat sliding silently through the water simply a late night fisherman heading home with his
catch, or a Finn man going about his business?
* Please forward any trowie stories to: The Editor, Shetland Society of Wellington, Box 14-708,
Kilbirnie, Wellington.
Society News
Orkney-Shetland Tour Group
Over the years
we’ve been very fortunate in having tour groups visit Wellington, enabling us to renew
and strengthen the strong ties that exist between Shetland and New Zealand. So it was with a great deal of pleasure that we welcomed a touring group of
43 Shetland and Orkney Island visitors to
Wellington. On
Monday 6 March, we were there to meet them at their hotel and then on Wednesday 8 March the group joined the Wellington Society
for dinner at The Pines.
As usual the views
from the venue were stunning and the food top-class. The opportunity to
catch-up and/or make new friendships with our visitors was evident by the volume of the talk.
The highlight of
the evening was the entertainment between main and dessert courses. This
was provided by 20 children aged 8 to 12 years from Postgate School,
Whitby, Porirua.
They were a small group from the PolyPhunk club which fosters Pacific
Island cultures. The
children were dressed in lava lava and leis and were accompanied by four boys drumming Cook Island style. A lively ‘MC’ was provided by parent George Upu who introduced them as they sang and
danced welcome songs in Maori, Samoan and Cook Island languages.
To end their polished
performance each pupil each pupil asked an adult to join them in dancing to the beat of the drummers. A competition for the best couple caused much laughter, with Tony Mouat from Unst being a very popular
winner.
Our visitors found
this Pacifica entertainment quite different and a welcome
change from the Maori performances they had seen earlier on their tour and the children also enjoyed the experience of performing
in front of strangers. They were absolutely awesome ambassadors for their
school.
The Reestit Kiwis
Those who arrived
early at The Pines were both startled and intrigued to fine a camper-van in the car park, emblazoned with the words ‘Reestit
Kiwis’. Certain that the van must belong to more Shetland visitors,
many of us inspected the van from various angles, trying to establish to whom it might belong.
Later that evening
all was revealed as owners Ryan Watt from Trondra and Jamie Powis from Lerwick joined us at The Pines. They owned up to sitting in the van, behind one-way windows chuckling over our puzzled faces. Here on a working holiday, they fairly enjoyed the opportunity to catch up on
news “fae hame” from the visitors, whilst making friends and exploring endless opportunities of what to do with
their time in NZ with Society members.
Their choice of
sign writing on the van certainly ensured that anyone with Shetland connections was bound to take notice!
2006
Viking Ball
There’s no
doubt that the Viking Ball was once again a great success. With the number
of guests exceeding our maximum of 400, we managed to squeeze in the extra 20 or so to make sure that no-one was disappointed.
We have been enjoying
great support from several dance groups and clubs, mainly organized by Suzi Penny.
So thanks Suzi for once again doing a brilliant job so enthusiastically.
Following another
fantastic meal by Tony O’Brien from The Pines, Junior Jarl Fraser Baker paraded his squad through the hall, to be joined
by Jarl Rohin Joyce and the Senior Viking Squad. After the welcoming speeches
the dance floor was filled and stayed that way to the end of the night and Auld Lang Syne.
Membership News
New Members
It always gives
us great pleasure to welcome new members, especially so when we see family continuity.
To Jackie and Dimitrios Pahadjis, a special welcome, they have been supporting our functions for some time now. Jackie is the granddaughter of Jack and Betty Morrison, great stalwarts of the
Society.
A special welcome
back too, to Karen Sutherland, daughter of the late Ralph and Vi Sutherland. Karen’s
sister Angela and husband Les joined some time ago and again it is great to see family continuity in the Society.
And new member
Chris Esther deserves a special welcome. Having found our web site held
a special interest for him, Chris down-loaded our membership application form and applied for membership electronically. Living in Auckland,
we don’t expect to see Chris at many of our functions, but we do hope that one day we may get to welcome him to the
Society in person.
Get Well Wishes
We’re sure
that members will wish to join us in sending our best wishes to Rhinda Burke, following her recent stroke. Rhinda has always been a strong supporter of the Society, even after her move to Auckland a few years ago.
Travelling Awa’
The Committee will
be looking a bit thin for the next two months as we have both the President and Treasurer visiting England and Shetland (of course!).
They will also join another Committee member, Pat Dixon, in Spain
whilst away. Also visiting Shetland is another Committee member, Margaret
Pitt, on her way to Scotland for her aunt’s
80th birthday celebrations. The Committee should be back to
full strength by the end of July!
Obituaries
Farewells are always
a sad time for us and especially when we learnt of the recent death of Life Member, Edna Irvine in her 102nd year. When Jim and Rose visited her just before her 100th birthday they
were amazed at her incredible memory and entranced with her stories. Most
importantly for our Shetland heritage, she has written letters relating her early life as a young wife of a Shetland fisherman
living in Island Bay. She leaves behind a rich legacy of memories and our deepest sympathies go to
Bonnie and all of Edna’s family.
Our condolences
also go to the family of Pam Henderson, who passed away early in March. Pam
was the widow of Drew Henderson, who had been brought up in Brooklyn. Although Pam and Drew lived most of their married life in the Hawkes Bay, they were loyal members and supporters
of the Society and we know Pam continued to enjoy our newsletters and her contact with the Society right up to her death.
We also extend
our deepest sympathies to Peter Glensor and other members of Elsie Mathieson’s extended family. Elsie and her husband Jack had been strong supporters of the Society before moving north to the Bay of Plenty several
years ago. Elsie was ill only for a short time before her death a couple
of weeks ago.
Meetin wir Members
John Smith
Although I wis born in Wellington,
NZ I’m a full-bluided, true-blue 100%, dinky-die ‘midden slew’ as baith my folks wir born and grew up in
Unst. As dey didna really keen each idder in Unst as bairns or teenagers and
only really met here in Wellington in 1925 and as da background and lead-up tae dir separate and ultimate arrivals in NZ is,
I feel, quite interesting, I prepose tae deal wi dem separately – my midder’s story in dis newsletter and my faidder’s
in da nixt issue.
My midder wis born on May 4th 1902 in
West Scraefield, Balista, Baltisound, Unst tae William and Mary Harrison. My graandmidder wis a Sinclair and haed been born i’ da ooter hoose
o’ Shaw – it wis dan, and still is da most northerly hoose i’ da British Isles. I believe dat da Queen, on her visit
tae Shetland, wis no only in da hoose but haed a cup o’
tay forbye. My midder was da third o’ five bairns – three lasses
and twa boys. Dir hoose (West Scraefield) haed da bakeshop on da nort end
and whin she wis auld enyoch took hir turn helpin’
oot i’ dat shop.
Dan in 1916, eftir
much planning and discussion hir folk decided tae try and maak a better life fir dir family by emmigratin’ tae New Zealand.
So dir passage wis bookit, dey haed aa da tickets
and wir packed ready tae leave whin my graandfaidder took ill. He dan got
pneumonia which turned tae double pneumonia an’ he deed. I have aaften
windered if he caught a forerunner o’ da 1917 pandemic influenza dat devastated da world trow 1917 intae 1918 but we’ll
niver fin oot noo!!
Eftir da family
spent a year in mourning an’ dan da 1st World War ended, my graandmidder gathered da family around and said
“noo bairns, as you aa keen your faidder and me wir aa set tae taak you tae New Zealand whin he deed. So I want tae keen whit you aa tink we shud do? Still
go or stay here in Shetland”? Apparently da general consensus wis
tae go so she rebooked an dey aa packed again an’ dis middle-aged Shetland wife – my graandmidder – in 1920
took hir family o’ five (da youngest still at school), aa dir possessions
an’ traipsed aaf tae da eddir side o’ da earth tae start a new life here in Wellington. Dat, I tocht tae mesell, took some guts!! Dey
duly arrived at Wellington, if I remember correctly whit mi midder telt me, on or aboot Wellington anniversary day 1921.
I tink der wis an uncle bidin’ in Kaiwharawhara and he organized a hoose fir dem in Island
Bay in which I wis
tae start my life nearly 19 years later and spend da first 22 years der. A
few years eftir dey arrived, da Wellington Shetland Society wis
formed and mi midder, her eldest sister (mi Aunty Mary) – and probably mi graandmidder and eddir members o’ hir
family – became foundation members. In fact Aunty Mary was a foundation
committee member and many years later wis to be the third-to-last
o’ dat committee to dee at the ripe old age o’ 93 (I think).
During da early
year’s o’ da Society da family wir involved in organisin’ some o’ da first Staap Suppers. In fact I tink mi graandmidder actually made da staap and crappin’ as nae-body else wis sure o’ da recipe.
I mind mi midder tellin’ me dat Peter Isbister delivered several crates o’ Ling tae wir hoos fir dis purpose.
I will cover mi
faidder’s arrival in Wellington and how he came tae
meet mi midder in da nixt issue.
Meanwhile as da
years rolled on mi midder ended up on da committee and fir a few years we wir baith on da committee at da same time. Dan fir several years mi midder wis
‘sick visitor’ fir da Society, havin taen o’er dis role frae Laura Moncrieff.
Laek most o’
da Shetland women mi midder wis an ootstaandin’ knitter
and fir mony years shu haed a full book o’ orders fir shawls for aa da expectant mums around da toon.
Wit a wonderful
mum I haed. Frae quite early on I realized joost how lucky I wis. When I wis
seven I started tae learn da fiddle and fir da first year she took me every week, aa da way frae Island Bay tae Miramar and
back fir mi fiddle lesson. Twa trams each way. Shu condinued tae show dis kind o’ devotion and dedication tae me doon trow da years and fir
several years eftir I started da fiddle shu took mi everywhere I haed tae play, and it got pretty hectic at times. I mind aye period whin I wis aboot ten and a half I wis bookit tae play at 12 different shows and functions inside o’ 10 days and I never
heard hir complain. Dat wis
mi mum!!
I tink dat dis
is more dan enyoch fir noo. See you aa in da nixt issue whin I’ll
tell you aboot mi winderful faider.
Your sadly not
seen often enyoch Patron
Peerie John Smith.
Twatree wirds du maybe dusna ken
Crappin is a dish of
fish-livers mixed with oatmeal (or bere meal) and flour,
seasoned and traditionally cooked in a large
fish head.
Reestit
a traditional means of preserving mutton, which is salted and smoke-
dried, traditionally over a peat fire. Makes a great soup!
Staap a mixture of boiled fish with boiled fish livers forked in and seasoned.
Yummy with a knob of butter!
Trowie hadds trows hiding places
Trowie knowe a hollow chamber inside a hillside mound where trows
live
Book Reviews
Find Your
Family on the Internet
A New Zealand Guide
Author Ros Henry
Publisher Shoal
Bay
Ros Henry is a
book publisher and non-fiction editor who became hooked on discovering her family history using the internet. Her enthusiasm for family research on ‘the net’ is clearly evident and in addition to
researching her family connections she has helped many others with their quests.
The book is based on her experiences and is sprinkled with pertinent and often entertaining examples.
A practical guide,
it provides introductory information on genealogy/family history, basic details about using the internet and advice on getting
started. The bulk of the book contains websites which have proved to be
useful. It starts with New Zealand
and Australian sites and then provides sites in England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland,
USA and Canada.
A paragraph
on the back cover states If you are a Pakeha New Zealander there is one fact you can count on: your ancestors came here from somewhere else, some
time within the last 200 years. The answers to questions about how and why they
turned up in New Zealand may not reveal themselves immediately, if ever, but the knowledge of who they were and where they
came from is quite probably available to anyone with curiosity, a degree of determination and access to a reasonable internet
connection. This book
is a very helpful guide.
With Naught
But Kin Behind Them
Author Nora Kendall
From 1850-1880
hundreds of young women left the smallest archipelago in the northern-most part of the British Empire to begin life in the
largest island (Australia) of the Empire. By using historical references, dairies of the time and archival material, Nora
Kendall has given a factual and often humorous account of the history and the life they left behind and why they sought life
in an unknown land.
Available in New
Zealand from Graham Jones, 139 Hokianga Rd, Dargaville for $15.00 (excluding post/packing).
Cheques to be made out to G Jones. Email gee.jay@xtra.co.nz.
Diary Dates
6-8 July
2006
Scots
Abroad: The New Zealand
Scots In International Perspective.
Conference to be
held at Victoria University. Anyone interested please
contact Megan Simpson,
Irish-Scottish Studies Programme, Stout Research
Centre on phone
463-6439. Email: Megan.Simpson@vuw.ac.nz
Saturday 8 July 2006
Wellington Gaelic Club
75th
Anniversary Ceilidh
The Brierley Theatre,
Wellington College,
at 7.30pm.
Tickets $25 per
head, ph 387-4252 or from McPhees Celtic Centre, Tawa, ph 234-1650
Saturday
29 July
Our Family
Foy
Scots Hall,
Newtown, 4-7pm
Following the success
of the Foy last year, we’re planning another.
Family activities,
plus crafts, display of trowie art works, music and dancing.
Bring a plate of
food to share and a gold coin towards our costs.
Saturday 5 August 2006
Scots
Ball
Hutt Horticultural
Hall, Lower Hutt
Costs to be advised. Ring Margaret Jenkins on 476-8102 for tickets.
Thursday 24 August 2006
Society
AGM
Time Cinema, Lyall Bay.
Saturday 16 September 2006
Hastings Blossom Festival
If you are interested
in joining us please contact Andrew Clark on 027 604-1312.
