A Hidden Culture

First coined by William J. Thoms on 22 August 1846, the word ‘folk-lore’ has become an enduring lens through which we analyse and acknowledge ‘informal culture’. ‘Folk-lore’ (yes, initially hyphenated but no longer), turned 170 years old this week.

It’s also a term that has arguably become a victim of its own folklore. What is it? It’s at once fairly simple and horribly messy. More of that later…

To your average punter the word ‘folklore’ has a quaint ring to it, smells vaguely of lavender soap, nostalgia and old books; looks like doilies and things made of wood, string and felt and sounds like ‘world music’ or the music of the 60s and 70s. Some people might think of fairy tales, horror stories, mythology and the supernatural. Many equate folklore with the past; something we’re continuously trying to keep ‘alive’ or ‘revive’.

This blog will soon become a website. The aim will be to find a place for folklore, oral and cultural history amid the day-to-day; internet, Pokemon, doughnut milkshakes and social media. Our era of a thousand passwords.

It will also be a place where you can share your stories and lore.

First and foremost though, I’m wondering what YOU associate with the word folklore? This is a 30 second ‘tick-the-box’ survey. Please consider participating and sharing with your pals on social media. If you’re reading this blog, you probably have an interest and understanding of folklore, though your friends might not. Please add any areas of folklore not mentioned; much has been left out, though this is deliberately so…

Many thanks folks…