Uncommon Folk
The world of folklore is a diverse, thriving mix of ancient traditions, old gods, strange beasts and curious tales.
Every land has their own folk traditions, and while some themes are universal, each has something special about them that makes them unique.
Join stand-up comedian, writer, and folklore PhD candidate Dan Mitchell as he dives into the dark oceans of folk, hoping to find a never before found denizen of the deep. Featuring exclusive interviews with academics, folklorists, scientists, poets, magical practitioners, and many more special guests from around the world, Uncommon Folk hopes to unearth the bones of folklore and resurrect them with incantations long forgotten.
From deep dives to short nuggets, Uncommon Folk will enlighten, enthuse, and entertain the folk community.
Uncommon Folk
Uncommon Folk 31 Days of Winter - Ursul, The Bear Dance
The Bear Dance in Romania blends ancient traditions with modern celebrations, invoking powerful folklore and community spirit during New Year's Eve. Delving into its origins with the Roma and exploring both the joyous and darker elements of the tradition captivates listeners with rich storytelling.
• Exploring the Bear Dance tradition in Romania
• Celebration of New Year's Eve through unique customs
• Role of the Roma in shaping the Bear Dance
• Interesting practice of ‘Bear Therapy’
• Examining the historical treatment of performing bears
• Community joy and its significance in cultural heritage
Thanks for listening!
Visit https://uncommonfolk.buzzsprout.com and subscribe for updates, events and news as it comes.
You can also write to us to suggest local myths, traditions and stories for us to discuss in future micro episodes, or just provide us with feedback.
Ursel, the bear dance. Now, in Romania, on New Year's Eve, it's traditional for certain carolers to dress in bear costumes in order to drive away evil spirits and they it helps enrich the soil for the new year. Um, these might be scary. I mean, it could be quite scary seeing people. They would often wear real bear skins, these uh costumes. It's actually a joyful celebration, um, so they would dance around, roaring and having a great time wearing these bear skins, um, and it would look actually quite beautiful, um, even though I can imagine in the sort of like the firelight. Uh, that could be terrifying. That could be terrifying. Uh, they would drive away evil spirits with this.
Speaker 1:But according to some sources, it owes its origins to the time when local the Roma, the travellers, the gypsies, however they are known, they would descend into the towns from the forest in which they lived and they would bring actually real bears with them. They would be tame bears, naturally. I don't think anyone wants to welcome a wild bear into their town. The townsfolk would actually pay the Roma in exchange for letting the bear cubs walk up and down their backs, which is apparently a cure for backache. It's quite interesting. It'd probably be quite nice. It'd probably just the right weight, as long as their claws are not too long.
Speaker 1:Older bears would be made to dance. This is quite horrible actually. They'd be made to dance by being placed on hot metal plates that would make them hop up and down. That took place as recently as the 1930s, so you know. People recall seeing these bears on leashes being led down from the forest. Obviously this is undefined because the Roma traditionally don't write their history down, but a lot of people who were alive there have witnessed this sort of tradition. But they would wear bear skins, they would dance around and drive away evil spirits. And that's Ørsel, the Bear Dan.
