Episode 85: Auld Croovie

House of Legends: World Myths & Legends

We're a bit past midsummer but it's such a great story, I couldn't resist!
This is another Celtic story taken from my new book Scottish Myths & Legends Volume II, told by me. It's an old pagan tale of dancing trees which, to me, is an illustration of the overflowing of life and light we experience in Scotland in the middle of summer, when the nights never truly darken. I wonder if the people of Ancient Scotland might have believed that all the trees, not just those in this one glen, danced on midsummer's night.
My version of the story comes from a version by the influential Traveller singer and storyteller Stanley Robertson. Supposedly Stanley’s family would camp at a Traveller site near Lumphanan in Aberdeenshire when they were working on the flax harvest; Auld Croovie was the name of a tree near the site. In some versions, the trees dance only once every fifty years. The word ‘Croovie’ is from the Gaelic word ‘craobh’ for tree.

Stanley Robertson had a profound influence on many singers and storytellers, including the celebrated singer Sam Lee who was his apprentice. You can listen to some recordings of Stanley on Soundcloud here.
Go out and tell this story to the trees.
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