Wassailing! Did you know . . .
Wassailing was a tradition in which carolers would travel from house to house, hoping for a drink from the Wassail bowl, a bit of food or even money. Wassail comes from the old Anglo-Saxon phrase ‘waes hael’ which meant ‘good health.’
It was also common in parts of England to go wassailing amongst the fruit trees. Singers would go out to the orchards and sing to the trees, awakening them, letting them know that the seasons were turning and spring was on the way. It was meant to increase the harvest in the following autumn. In some parts, they would also hang a piece of toast soaked in beer in a tree, to give thanks for a good crop of apples. There are places in the UK today where the tradition still lives on.
Wassailing was a tradition in which carolers would travel from house to house, hoping for a drink from the Wassail bowl, a bit of food or even money. Wassail comes from the old Anglo-Saxon phrase ‘waes hael’ which meant ‘good health.’
It was also common in parts of England to go wassailing amongst the fruit trees. Singers would go out to the orchards and sing to the trees, awakening them, letting them know that the seasons were turning and spring was on the way. It was meant to increase the harvest in the following autumn. In some parts, they would also hang a piece of toast soaked in beer in a tree, to give thanks for a good crop of apples. There are places in the UK today where the tradition still lives on.
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