Culture of Cornwall
The culture of Cornwall (Cornish: Gonisogeth Kernow) forms part of the culture of the United Kingdom, but has distinct customs, traditions and peculiarities. Cornwall has many strong local traditions. After many years of decline, Cornish culture has undergone a strong revival, and many groups exist to promote Cornwall's culture and language today.
Language
The Cornish language is a
During the 19th century researchers began to study the language from any remaining isolated speakers and in 1904 Henry Jenner published A Handbook in the Cornish Language which started the revival proper. Although less than 1% of Cornwall's population speak the language and 'mother tongue' speakers are in their hundreds rather than thousands, the language continues to play a significant part in the culture of Cornwall.
Some events will use Cornish, in short phrases, openings, greetings or names. There is a healthy tradition of
Cornish literature and folklore
The ancient
Due to language erosion and possible suppression caused by the dominant English language[
However, significant portions of the '
.By the Shakespearean period, these ancient texts still maintained a currency demonstrated by
The earliest Cornish literature is in the Cornish language and Cornwall produced a substantial number of
There is much traditional
The fairy tale Jack the Giant Killer takes place in Cornwall.[4]
Cornish dialect writing
Writing in the Cornish dialect existed from the 19th century; in the 20th century the revival of interest in the Cornish language led eventually to a few of those who had mastered the latter turning to writing in it. Poems, essays and short stories have also been published in newspapers and magazines e.g. The Cornish & Devon Post.[citation needed][5] Then there are literary works in standard English including conversations between dialect speakers,[citation needed] often with a typically Cornish humour.[citation needed][6]
Cornish World, a colour magazine produced in Cornwall and covering all aspects of Cornish life, has proved popular with the descendants of Cornish emigrants as well as Cornish residents. It includes a column in the Cornish language.
Cornish writers and poets
Charles Causley was born in Launceston and is perhaps the best known of Cornish poets.
The Nobel-prizewinning novelist William Golding was born in St Columb Minor in 1911, and returned to live near Truro from 1985 until his death in 1993.[7]
Other notable Cornish writers include
Poetry written about Cornwall
The late
The poet Laurence Binyon wrote "For the Fallen" (first published in 1914) while sitting on the cliffs between Pentire Point and The Rumps and a stone plaque was erected in 2001 to commemorate the fact. The plaque bears the inscription 'For The Fallen Composed on these cliffs 1914'. The plaque also bears the fourth stanza (sometimes referred to as 'The Ode') of the poem.
The English-born poet Sylvia Kantaris returned to the UK in 1971 and settled in Helston in 1974. She was appointed as Cornwall's first Writer in the Community in 1986.[9]
Novels set in Cornwall
Novels or parts of novels set in Cornwall include:
Daphne du Maurier lived in Bodinnick-by-Fowey, Cornwall and many of her novels had Cornish settings, including Rebecca, Jamaica Inn, Frenchman's Creek, My Cousin Rachel, and The House on the Strand.[10] She is also noted for writing Vanishing Cornwall. Cornwall provided the inspiration for "The Birds", one of her terrifying series of short stories, made famous as a film by Alfred Hitchcock.[11]
Conan Doyle's The Adventure of the Devil's Foot featuring Sherlock Holmes is set in Cornwall.[12]
Howard Spring lived in Cornwall from 1939 and set part or all of various novels in the county.
Medieval Cornwall is also the setting of the trilogy by Monica Furlong Wise Child, Juniper, and Colman, as well as part of Charles Kingsley's Hereward the Wake.
Hammond Innes's novel The Killer Mine[13] also has a Cornish setting.
Chapters 24 and 25 of J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows take place in Cornwall (the Harry Potter story at Shell Cottage, which is on the beach outside the fictional village of Tinworth in Cornwall).[15]
Over Sea, Under Stone and Greenwitch from the series of fantasy novels The Dark Is Rising, by Susan Cooper, are set in Cornwall.[16] Ciji Ware* set her 1997 novel A Cottage by the Sea on the Cornish coast.[17][18] Sue Limb's Girl, (Nearly) 16: Absolute Torture is partly set in St Ives on the Cornish coast.[19]
Cornwall is featured heavily in the beginning of The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley as the home of Igraine, wife of Gorlois, Duke of Cornwall. The castle at Tintagel has been said to be where King Arthur was conceived (when Uther Pendragon entered the castle in the form of Gorlois).
In the
Drama and other literary works
Cornwall produced a substantial number of
Thomas Hardy's drama The Queen of Cornwall (1923) is a version of the Tristan story; the second act of Richard Wagner's opera Tristan und Isolde takes place in Cornwall, as do Gilbert and Sullivan's operettas The Pirates of Penzance and Ruddigore. A level of Tomb Raider: Legend, a videogame dealing with Arthurian legend, takes place in Cornwall at a tacky museum above King Arthur's tomb.
The theatre company Kneehigh Theatre is active in Cornwall. Amateur theatre groups exist in many villages, and the open air Minack Theatre is well known.
The fairy tale "Jack the Giant Killer" takes place in Cornwall.
Religion
See also List of Cornish saints
Traditionally, the Cornish have been non-conformists in religion. In 1549, the Prayer Book Rebellion caused the deaths of thousands of people from Devon and Cornwall. The Methodism of John Wesley also proved to be very popular with the working classes in Cornwall in the 18th century.[clarification needed] Methodist chapels became important social centres, with male voice choirs and other church-affiliated groups playing a central role in the social lives of working-class Cornishmen. Methodism still plays a large part in the religious life of Cornwall today, although Cornwall has shared in the post-World War II decline in British religious feeling. [clarification needed]
In contrast to the situation in Wales, the churches failed to produce a translation of the Bible into the local language, and this has been seen by some as a crucial factor in the demise of the language. [by whom?] The Bible was translated into Cornish in 2002.
Recent developments
Renewed interest in Celtic Christianity
In the late 20th century and early 21st century there has been a renewed interest in the older forms of Christianity in Cornwall. Cowethas Peran Sans, the Fellowship of St Piran, is one such group promoting Celtic Christianity.[24] The group was founded by Andrew Phillips and membership is open to baptised Christians in good standing in their local community who support the aims of the group.
The aims of the group are these:
- To understand and embody the spirituality of the Celtic Saints
- To share this spirituality with others
- To use Cornwall’s ancient Christian holy places again in worship
- To promote Cornwall as a place of Christian spiritual pilgrimage
- To promote the use of the Cornish language in prayer and worship
Fry an Spyrys
In 2003, a campaign group was formed called Fry an Spyrys ('free the spirit' in Cornish).[25] It is dedicated to disestablishing the Church of England in Cornwall and to forming an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion – a Church of Cornwall. Its chairman is Dr Garry Tregidga of the Institute of Cornish Studies. The Anglican Church was disestablished in Wales to form the Church in Wales in 1920 and in Ireland to form the Church of Ireland in 1869.
Cornish symbols
The chough (in Cornish = palores) is also used as a symbol of Cornwall. In Cornish poetry the chough is used to symbolise the spirit of Cornwall.[clarification needed] Also there is a Cornish belief that King Arthur lives in the form of a chough. "Chough" was also used as a nickname for Cornish people.[clarification needed]
Another animal with a deep association with Cornwall is the "White Horse of Lyonesse". Arthurian legends tell of a rider escaping on a white horse as the land sunk beneath the waves, surviving and settling in Cornwall.
An anvil is sometimes used to symbolise
Fish, tin and copper together are used symbolically as they show the 'traditional' three main industries of Cornwall. Tin has a special place in the Cornish culture, the '
Although Cornwall has no official flower many people favour the
Cornish studies
The
The historian
The Federation of Old Cornwall Societies is a group of societies of those interested in Cornwall's past which has published a number of books.
Cornish art
So-called '
Cornwall and its dramatic landscape and distinctive remoteness have produced and inspired many later artists.[26] John Opie was the first Cornish-born artist of note and J. M. W. Turner visited in 1811. A number of London artists settled in the Newlyn area in the 1880s, following the building of the Great Western Railway, who went on to form the Newlyn School.
Sickert and Whistler both visited St Ives at the end of the 19th century, and the internationally famous studio potter, Bernard Leach set up his pottery in the town in 1920
At the outbreak of World War II Nicholson came to live in St Ives with his wife Barbara Hepworth, staying initially with the philosopher and writer Adrian Stokes and his wife Margaret Mellis. Naum Gabo also joined them there as well as artists who at the time were at an earlier stage in their careers: John Wells, Wilhelmina Barns-Graham, Terry Frost and Bryan Wynter. Other artists of international repute joined the colony later: notably Patrick Heron, Roger Hilton and Sandra Blow.
There are still a lot of artists in Cornwall, many associated with the Newlyn Society of Artists. Artist led projects like PALP and artsurgery have also been important in the 21st century.
- Some modern crosses
-
The cross on the grave of Charles Bowen Cooke, St Just in Roseland
-
The War Memorial, in the churchyard,Constantine, Kerrier, carved from local stone by Elkana Symons
-
The cross at the end of Higher Bore Street, Bodmin
-
Millennium Cross, Landrake
Architecture
Cornish vernacular architecture is characterised by its use of abundant natural stone, especially Cornubian granite, slate, and local white lime-washing and its plain unadorned simplicity, sharing cultural and stylistic similarities, with the architecture of Atlantic Brittany, Ireland and Wales, as well as neighbouring Devon. The architecture of west Cornish towns such as St Ives is particularly distinctive for its use of solid granite and featuring also the type of early promontory hermitage particularly associated with Celtic Christianity.
Early and continuous use of stone architecture over more than two thousand years, begins with the Romano-British enclosed courtyard houses at
The medieval longhouse was the typical form of housing in early Cornish 'Tre' dispersed settlements of small hamlets of farmsteads and associated field systems apparently originating from before the time of the Norman conquest.[28][29] The longhouse form is notable for its combined accommodation of humans and precious livestock under a single roof in a form found distributed across northwestern Atlantic Europe; France (Longère) Brittany (Ty Hir), Normandy, Devon and South Wales (Ty Hir) .
Ecclesiastical architecture of Cornwall and Devon typically differs from that of the rest of southern England: most medieval churches in the larger parishes were rebuilt in the later medieval period with one or two aisles and a western tower, the aisles being the same width as the nave and the piers of the arcades being of one of a few standard types; the former monastery church at St Germans demonstrates these features over several periods as the former seat of the bishop of Cornwall. Wagon roofs often survive in these churches. The typical tower is of three stages, often with buttresses set back from the angles.[30]
Churches of the Decorated period are relatively rare, as are those with spires. There are very few churches from the 17th and 18th centuries. There is a distinctive type of Norman font in many Cornish churches which is sometimes called the Altarnun type. The style of carving in benchends is also recognisably Cornish.[31]
Music
Cornwall has a rich and vibrant folk music tradition which has survived into the present.
Cornish players are regular participants in inter-Celtic festivals, and Cornwall itself has several lively inter-Celtic festivals such as Perranporth's folk festival, Lowender Peran.[32]
Cornish
Aphex Twin is a Cornish-based electronic music artist, though he was born of Welsh parents in Ireland. Many other pop musicians are based in Cornwall but many of them originate elsewhere.
Recently some bands, such as Hanterhir,[33] have fused classical Cornish folk music with other genres like rock music.
Festivals
There is a long tradition of processional dance and music in Cornwall. The best known tradition is the Helston Furry. The term 'furry' is used generally to describe such a dance or associated tune. These bands have been referred to as 'crowders and horners' and generally have a motley mix of instruments with folk instruments such as the fiddle, bagpipe or crowdy crawn mixed up with brass, reed and anything that can be carried.
Padstow 'Obby 'Oss festival takes place on 1 May, the feast of Beltane to Celtic people.
Lowender Perran is held at the end of October in Perranporth. This is a gathering of musicians and dancers from the six Celtic nations.
Historically Cornwall has had close links with
The
Cornish film
Cornwall has a small but growing film industry, mostly focusing on the Cornish language and culture. Numerous films, short and long, have been made in Cornwall. The Cornish film industry is supported by organisations such as War-rag (War-rag meaning "ahead" in Cornish).[citation needed]
The Celtic Film and Television Festival includes entries from Cornish film makers, and was held in Falmouth in 2006. The Goel Fylm Kernow/Cornwall Film Festival is held once a year, and supports Cornish film making, including films made in the Cornish or English language.[35][36]
Goel Fylm Kernow also hosts workshops, screenings and the "Govynn Kernewek" competition. In this competition applicants can present their ideas for films to be made in the Cornish language. The prizes in the competition consist of financial, material and technical support for making the film. Films made following this award include Kernow's Kick Ass Kung-Fu Kweens (2004), a kung fu film in Cornish.[37]
The only known feature-length film in the Cornish language is Hwerow Hweg (Bitter Sweet), which was filmed alongside an English version.[38][39] It was premiered at the 2002 Cornwall Film Festival and entered for the 2003 Celtic Film Festival.[40] There are a number of short films which have been made in the language.[41][42]
Food
Cornwall is famous for its
are also common.Cornish clotted cream is a popular topping on splits and on scones. Opinion varies as to whether or not the cream should be spread on before or after the jam.[clarification needed] Clotted cream is often served as thunder and lightning (with syrup on bread.)
There are also many types of beers brewed in Cornwall including a stout, and there is some small scale production of cider and wine.
Sports and games
Outdoor sports and games
See Sport in Cornwall.
Cornish wrestling originated in Cornwall, but spread throughout Britain in the middle ages and then throughout the world especially in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the US.
Indoor games
Euchre is a popular [clarification needed] card game in Cornwall, it is normally a game for four players consisting of two teams. Its origins are unclear but some claim it is a Cornish game, and was popularised in part by Cornish immigrants to the United States. [clarification needed] There are several leagues in Cornwall at present. Whist and pub quizzes are also popular in many villages.[citation needed]
Traditional dress
The "traditional dress" of Cornwall for women is a
For men fishermen's smocks, Guernsey sweaters (known as worsted-frocks in Cornwall) and long cut shirts are worn.[43]
The adoption of the Cornish kilt has recently become popular, and these kilts are available in various
The
See also
- Cornish National Library
- List of topics related to Cornwall
- List of Cornish people
- Category:Festivals in Cornwall
- Category:Cornish novels
References
- ^ For example: "Chy-an-Pronter" (a house); Kerenza Peacock (a woman)
- ^ Ferdinand, Siarl (12 February 2013). "A Brief History of the Cornish Language, its Revival and its Current Status". e-Keltoi: Journal of Interdisciplinary Celtic Studies. 2: 204 – via UWM Digital Commons.
- ^ The characters include an Earl of Cornwall
- ^ "English Fairy Tales - Jack the Giant-Killer (by Joseph Jacobs)". www.authorama.com. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
- ^ Sal Tregenna Guy Vox; Launceston Then!
- ^ Quiller-Couch, Arthur The Astonishing History of Troy Town. (The Duchy Edition.) London: J. M. Dent, 1928
- ^ "Biography of William Golding". William-Golding.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 February 2003. Retrieved 11 May 2007.
- ^ "St Enodoc Church". RockInfo.co.uk. Archived from the original on 13 June 2007. Retrieved 11 May 2007.
- ^ "Sylvia Kantaris". A-Gender: Living Published Women Poets in the UK. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ "Daphne du Maurier". DuMaurier.org. Retrieved 11 May 2007.
- ^ "The Birds". MovieDiva.com. Archived from the original on 9 August 2007. Retrieved 11 May 2007.
- ^ "The Adventure of the Devil's Foot". WorldwideSchool.org. Archived from the original on 13 January 2013. Retrieved 11 May 2007.
- ^ "The Killer Mine". BoekBesprekingen.nl. Archived from the original on 8 October 2007. Retrieved 11 May 2007.
- ISBN 0312876491.
- ^ "Shell Cottage". hp-lexicon.org. Retrieved 11 January 2008.
- ^ "Over Sea, Under Stone". Powell's Books. Retrieved 11 May 2007.
- ISBN 978-1-4022-2270-2.
- ^ "A Cottage by the Sea". Goodreads. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
- ^ "Sue Limb's "Girl, (Nearly) 16: Absolute Torture"". Goodreads. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
- ^ "The Cornish Mystery (A Hercule Poirot Short Story)". Barnes & Noble. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
- ^ "Paddington". Paddington. Retrieved 24 November 2022.
- ISBN 1-85109-440-7. Retrieved 23 November 2009.
- ^ Rowse, A. L. (1942) A Cornish Childhood. London: Jonathan Cape
- ^ "Fellowship of St Piran". Archived from the original on 8 May 2008. Retrieved 18 July 2009.
- ^ Fry an Spyrys Archived 6 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Famous Cornish Artists. The History of Cornwall's leading Artists and New Paintings".
- ^ Castles and the Medieval Landscape O.H. Creighton & J. P. Freeman in Medieval Devon and Cornwall ed. Sam Turner, 2006
- ^ "The Medieval Countryside". Historic Cornwall. Archived from the original on 15 May 2016. Retrieved 13 May 2012.
- ^ Medieval Fields at Brown Willy, Bodmin Moor, Peter Herring, 2006
- ^ Wheatley, Reginald F. "The architecture of the Cornish parish church" in: Cornish Church Guide. Truro: Blackford; pp. 225-234, 4 plates
- ISBN 0-300-09589-9' pp. 18-20
- ^ Lowender Peran Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Hanterhir
- ^ Cornish Gorseth Archived 17 August 2015 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Cornwall Film Festival". Archived from the original on 20 May 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2006.
- ^ "Cornwall Film Festival". Mor Media Charity. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
- ^ "The CORNWALL FILM FESTIVAL Govynn Kernewek Award is back and it's bigger!". Digital Peninsula Network. Archived from the original on 14 May 2019. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
- ^ "Cornish film revives language campaign". BBC. 10 April 2002. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
- ^ "Cornish language film to launch local industry". The Guardian. 19 March 2002. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
- ^ "Cornwall Film Festival Builds on First Year's Success". Objective One (Press release). 5 February 2003. Archived from the original on 30 October 2006.
- ^ "IMDb: Earliest Cornish language short films". IMDb. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
- ^ "Free screening of Cornish short films and Govyn Kerewek winner announcement". Devon & Cornwall Film. 16 June 2010. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
- ^ Stewart, Josephine. "Work wear of the Newlyn Area in the Late 19th Century". An Daras: The Cornish Folk Arts Project. Archived from the original on 7 May 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2008.
- ^ Koch, John T. (2005) Celtic Culture: a historical encyclopedia
- Baker, Denys Val (1973) The Timeless Land: the creative spirit in Cornwall. Bath: Adams & Dart
- Paynter, William H. & Semmens, J. (2008) The Cornish Witch-finder: The Witchery, Ghosts, Charms and Folklore of Cornwall. Federation of Old Cornwall Societies.
- Sedding, Edmund H. (1909) Norman Architecture in Cornwall: a handbook to old ecclesiastical architecture; with over 160 plates. London: Ward & Co.
Further reading
- Pill, Colin (2011) Cornish Art Metalwork. Bristol: Sansom & Co. ISBN 978-1-906593-58-2
- Hardie, Melissa, ed. Artists in Newlyn and West Cornwall. Bristol: Sansom & C. ISBN 978-0-953260-96-6
External links
- The Institute of Cornish Studies
- Real Cornwall - explores the themes of food & drink, people & places, sports & games and arts & media
- BBC Nations – Cornish history by Dr Mark Stoyle - The Cornish: A Neglected Nation?