Fabulous Folklore with Icy

Ynys Enlli in north Wales is also known as Bardsey Island, and it's been a pilgrimage destination since the 6th century.

The island lies at the north end of Cardigan Bay, just off the tip of the Llŷn peninsula. Archaeological evidence shows human habitation on the island for at least four millennia.

But where does it get its mysterious name of the Isle of 20,000 Saints? How is it linked with King Arthur and Merlin? And could it be the true location of Avalon? Let's find out in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/bardsey-island/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Enjoyed this episode and want to show your appreciation? Buy Icy a coffee to say 'thanks' at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

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Kris Spisak earned her bachelor’s degree in English from the College of William and Mary, her master of liberal arts from the University of Richmond, and did further graduate work in fiction through the University of Iowa. She taught college writing courses at schools including Virginia Commonwealth University before stepping away from the classroom to pursue her own writing work. Kris has been spotlighted in Writer’s Digest and HuffPost for her work as an editor and author dedicated to helping other writers. She is the author of the novel The Baba Yaga Mask and the forthcoming work Becoming Baba Yaga, which we'll be talking about. Kris fully believes that well-written words and well-told stories have always changed the world and that they will continue to. 

In this chat, we'll talk about Baba Yaga's towering presence in folklore, some of the legends in which she appears, and why she's still so important here in the 21st Century.

Pre-order Becoming Baba Yaga: https://amzn.to/3XsNTya

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Enjoyed this episode and want to show your appreciation? Buy Icy a coffee to say 'thanks' at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

Pre-recorded illustrated talks: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick/shop

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Get extra snippets of folklore on Instagram at https://instagram.com/icysedgwick

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Islay is an island to the west of Scotland, at the entrance to the Firth of Lorn. It's 25 miles north of Northern Ireland. Archaeological evidence shows people lived here from 8000 BCE, with evidence of Neolithic and Bronze Age tombs and burial sites. 

Columba and his missionaries brought Christianity to the island, which Norse raiders also adopted once they settled. Islay lay on the route between Ireland and Scandinavia, making it an easy stop for Vikings. The Hebrides only joined Scotland in 1266.

It's famous for distilling and farming, although tourism provides extra income. But what folklore does Islay have? Let's find out in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/islay-folklore/

Cemetery Lore Talk: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/cemetery-lore-grave-markers-folk-cures-and-graveyard-ghosts-tickets-1000779637837?aff=oddtdtcreator

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Enjoyed this episode and want to show your appreciation? Buy Icy a coffee to say 'thanks' at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

Pre-recorded illustrated talks: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick/shop

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Get extra snippets of folklore on Instagram at https://instagram.com/icysedgwick

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Lindisfarne, or Holy Island, lies some 11.5 miles to the south east of Berwick-upon-Tweed, just off the coast of Northumberland. Only accessible at low tide, the island still possesses a mystical air, no doubt from its time as a Christian pilgrimage site.

Probably most famous as the production centre of the Lindisfarne Gospels, or the island that gave the folk-rock band Lindisfarne their name, the island was also the centre of the Cult of St Cuthbert in the Middle Ages.

But what folklore or legends has the island accrued over the years? Let's find out in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/lindisfarne-legends/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Enjoyed this episode and want to show your appreciation? Buy Icy a coffee to say 'thanks' at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

Pre-recorded illustrated talks: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick/shop

Request an episode: https://forms.gle/gqG7xQNLfbMg1mDv7

Get extra snippets of folklore on Instagram at https://instagram.com/icysedgwick

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It's easy for mythical birds to capture the imagination, whether it's the phoenix rising from the ashes, or Aethon eternally pecking Prometheus' liver. And let's not forget Odin with his ravens, Huginn and Muninn, or Memory and Thought. In Norse myth, they travelled out into the world and flew back to Odin to report on what was happening.

Not all mythical birds are benevolent, or even particularly well-known, as we shall see. Let's explore the phoenix, the Firebird, the martlet, and the Nachtkrapp in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/mythical-birds/

'The Fire Bird - Russian Fairy Tales' by Irina Zheleznova: https://archive.org/details/the-fire-bird

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Enjoyed this episode and want to show your appreciation? Buy Icy a coffee to say 'thanks' at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

Pre-recorded illustrated talks: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick/shop

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Humans have found a whole range of uses for birds over the centuries. Hunting with them, keeping them for their song, using them for food or divination - and because some of them are uncommonly pretty.

Look at the magnificent peacock with its elaborate tail, or the sweet little goldfinch with its black and red mask. Even the humble dove is both provider of meat and gentle garden presence in its dovecote. In Devon, one tradition claimed the devil could take any form except a lamb or a dove.

In this article, we're going to focus on ornamental birds. So that's birds intended for purposes besides consumption. These include pet birds, and birds for breeding. 

Let's find out more about the folklore of peafowl, partridges, doves, and finches in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/ornamental-birds/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Enjoyed this episode and want to show your appreciation? Buy Icy a coffee to say 'thanks' at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

Pre-recorded illustrated talks: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick/shop

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James Wright (Triskele Heritage), is an award winning buildings archaeologist. He has two decades professional experience of ferreting around in people’s cellars, hunting through their attics and digging up their gardens. He hopes to find meaningful truths about how ordinary and extraordinary folk lived their lives in the mediaeval period.

James is the author of the popular Mediaeval Mythbusting Blog and his book Historic Building Mythbusting was released via The History Press in June 2024.

In this chat, we'll explore what buildings archaeology is, some popular myths about historic buildings, and what this can tell us about folklore.

James website: https://triskeleheritage.com/

Buy Historic Building Mythbusting: Uncovering Folklore, History and Archaeology: https://amzn.to/3LYWPGl

Find James on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jpwarchaeology/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Enjoyed this episode and want to show your appreciation? Buy Icy a coffee to say 'thanks' at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

Pre-recorded illustrated talks: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick/shop

Request an episode: https://forms.gle/gqG7xQNLfbMg1mDv7

Get extra snippets of folklore on Instagram at https://instagram.com/icysedgwick

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It's often easy to overlook what we see every day, or at least regularly. Perhaps that's why we overlook our humble garden birds in favour of majestic eagles or mischievous ravens as our favourite birds.

Yet the commonality of these small, yet often noisy, birds explains why there is a comparative dearth of folklore about them. Compared to other birds, there's a plethora to choose from. Death omens, cheeky tricksters in myth, and stars of nursery rhymes - these birds do it all!

Let's find out more about the folklore of blackbirds, sparrows, wrens, and robins in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/garden-birds/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Enjoyed this episode and want to show your appreciation? Buy Icy a coffee to say 'thanks' at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

Pre-recorded illustrated talks: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick/shop

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Get extra snippets of folklore on Instagram at https://instagram.com/icysedgwick

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Birds of prey have an interesting relationship to humans, having been both competing predators and avian companions for leisure pursuits. They've provided omens through the practice of augury, or divination by flight pattern. They appear in heraldic badges or become associated with deities in mythology.

But they also have links with ordinary people who shared the landscape with these fascinating hunters. Who wouldn't be stunned by the speed of an osprey as it accelerates towards a lake, pulling free of the water with a huge fish in its talons? Or marvel at the flight prowess of a kestrel, hovering in mid-air even in the face of a gale?

Let's find out more about the folklore of red kites, falcons, hawks, buzzards, ospreys, and shrikes in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/birds-of-prey/

21st Century Ghosts, Morbid Anatomy class: https://www.morbidanatomy.org/classes/21st-century-ghosts-exploring-the-history-and-continuing-experience-of-ghost-stories-with-folklorist-icy-sedgwick

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Enjoyed this episode and want to show your appreciation? Buy Icy a coffee to say 'thanks' at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

Pre-recorded illustrated talks: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick/shop

Request an episode: https://forms.gle/gqG7xQNLfbMg1mDv7

Get extra snippets of folklore on Instagram at https://instagram.com/icysedgwick

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Thersa Matsuura, an American author living in Japan, explores lesser-known aspects of Japanese culture, folklore, superstitions, and myths. Fluent in Japanese, she uses her research to write stories and for her podcast Uncanny Japan. She's also the author of The Book of Japanese Folklore, which explores a range of spirits, monsters, and yokai for Japanese lore. 

In this chat, we talk about some specific yokai, discuss where people might have encountered these figures in popular media, and talk about what to do if you think you've encountered a yokai!

Thersa website: https://thersamatsuura.com/

The Book of Japanese Folklore: An Encyclopedia of the Spirits, Monsters, and Yokai of Japanese Myth: https://amzn.to/46Fx3k4

Thersa on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/uncannyjapan/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Enjoyed this episode and want to show your appreciation? Buy Icy a coffee to say 'thanks' at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

Pre-recorded illustrated talks: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick/shop

Request an episode: https://forms.gle/gqG7xQNLfbMg1mDv7

Get extra snippets of folklore on Instagram at https://instagram.com/icysedgwick

'Like' Fabulous Folklore on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fabulousfolklore/

Find Icy on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/icysedgwick.bsky.social

Tweet Icy at https://x.com/IcySedgwick