What is a wassail ceremony?
Wassailing is an annual tradition which involves blessing orchards to ensure a good harvest for the year to come. The celebrations involve music, song, dancing and a recognition of what orchards give to us.
How do you celebrate wassail?
What generally happens is that pieces of toast soaked in cider are placed around the oldest or finest tree in the orchard, cider is poured round the base then shot guns are fired into the upper branches, buckets are beaten and a general cacophony of noise made to scare away evil spirits and wake the sleeping trees.
What is the history of Wassailing?
Wassailing predates the Battle of Hastings and is thought to have its origins in Ancient Rome, where people would make sacrifices to the Pomona, the Roman Goddess of Fruits. The word Wassail originates from the Anglo-Saxon waes-hael, meaning “to your health” and the word is used just as we would use Cheers! today.
What is the response to wassail?
Those sharing a bowl of wassail would wish each other “was hail,” from the Old English meaning “you be healthy,” with the response “drink hail,” or “drink well.” This holiday season, don’t just sing about wassailing—do it!
Where does the custom of wassail come from?
The term “wassail” can trace its origins to pre-Christian Britain. Anglo-Saxon tradition included a New Year celebration in the halls of the Lord of the Manor, including a mighty feast with a giant bowl of a sort of punch: a mix of cider, ale and mead infused with bountiful spices and crab apples.
Who began wassailing?
One legend about how Wassailing was created, says that a beautiful Saxon maiden named Rowena presented Prince Vortigen with a bowl of wine while toasting him with the words ‘waes hael’. Over the centuries, a great deal of ceremony developed around the custom of drinking wassail.
When did wassailing begin?
The earliest accounts of wassailing fruit trees come from the East of England—in St Albans in 1486 and Kent in 1585. But it isn’t until the 17th and 18th centuries that the wassail truly comes to prominence.
What does Waes hail mean?
It also refers to both the salute ‘Waes Hail’, the term itself is a contraction of the Middle English phrase ‘wæs hæil’, meaning litereally ‘good health’ or ‘be you healthy’.
Where did the word wassail originate?
Etymology. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word “wassail” originated as a borrowing from the Old Norse salutation ves heill, corresponding to Old English hál wes þú or wes hál – literally meaning ‘be in good health’ or ‘be fortunate’.