Headlines this weekend read that Queen Elizabeth II had
to cancel her trip to Wales due to illness. The reason for her visit was to present leeks to the Welsh military on March 1 in honor of St. David’s Day. Leeks, yes leeks.
Saint David’s Day has been celebrated as far back as the
late Middle Ages in honor of Saint David, founder of a Celtic monastic
community and was known as a teacher and loyalist. The tradition of eating and
wearing leeks dates back to the 6th century. Origins of the
word can be traced back as early as early Old English (600-950). In
addition to referring to the vegetable, the word is used to represent other plants
of similar shape, something of little value, distinctive color, and submitting to
humiliation ("Leek." The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd. ed.
1989). Leeks are one of two Welch emblems, the other being the daffodil. Welsh soldiers were said to have worn leeks on their uniforms to distinguish
themselves from the enemy Saxons, and thereby winning an important battle. This
tradition carries forward to the military today in the ceremony that the Queen was to have participated in.
Long favored by cooks and even other royalty, leeks have been seen in wall carvings, drawings, and found in archeological sites of Mesopotamia and ancient
Egypt.The symbolism of the leek was not lost on Shakespeare. One of the most moving scenes in Henry V has Henry himself wearing a leek to show his patriotism. The lowly leek has appeared on British pound coin and even the coronation gown of Queen Elizabeth II.
England is not alone in their reverence towards of leeks.
Jews use the leek as one of the symbolic foods eaten during Rosh Hashanah asking that
“enemies be destroyed.” The Oltenia region of southwest Romania holds the leek
in high esteem connecting it symbolically to strong leadership. Perhaps this
long and slender relation to both onion and garlic worked to ward off the
vampires of Transylvania as well. Moving northward in Europe to Germany, the
Grimm brothers are said to have collected many expressions which feature leeks,
including references from forging swords to divination. Leeks were hung in
homes to ward off misfortune and gifted to bring strength and bravery (taken
from Taking Up the Runes: A Complete Guide to Using Runes in
Spells, Rituals, by Diana L. Paxson).
What does all of this talk of leeks tell us about this
lengthy onion? When I read all of the stories and the lore, I am struck by the
common theme – people will avoid others with onion breath. This sounds like a rather shallow summary but I think that truth can often be found in simplicity. Whether this is the
desired effect or not, it seems that this vegetable’s function has always been to
attract like-minded (or smelling) soldiers, and repel those who do not partake.
So, why has the leek developed its own fan club? Perhaps the answer lies in its
use. Onions are common and readily
available while the leek remains special and symbolic, with lovely green
sheaths, similar in form to the daffodil which the Welsh refer to
as “Peter’s leek.” The leek is one of the vegetables that can be wintered in the ground, and harvested as needed. Seeing both leek and flower in spring must be
a sure sign of winters end and give us hope that spring is nearly upon us. So, perhaps leeks are loved because they represent strong flavor and freedom from oppression.
References: Wearing leeks on St David's Day By Bee Wilson
A recent discovery of ramps, also known as the Appalachian leek led to the discovery of many festivals connected with this glorious vegetable. Below is a list from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allium_tricoccum
ReplyDeleteof nine ramp festivals in the southern United States:
The community of Richwood, West Virginia, holds the annual "Feast of the Ramson" in April. Sponsored by the National Ramp Association, the "Ramp Feed" (as it is locally known) brings thousands of ramp aficionados from considerable distances to sample foods featuring the plant. During the ramp season (late winter through early spring), restaurants in the town serve a wide variety of foods containing ramps.[12]
The city of Elkins, West Virginia, hosts the "Ramps and Rails Festival" during the last weekend in April of each year. This festival features a cook-off and ramp-eating contests, and is attended by several hundred people each year.[13]
The town of Cosby, Tennessee, bordering Great Smoky Mountains National Park, has held the largest and one of the oldest ramp festivals in the United States, the "Cosby Ramp Festival," on the first weekend in May since 1954. The festival has played host to as many as 30,000 visitors in years past, has been attended by ex-President Harry Truman, and has featured such notable musical acts as Tennessee Ernie Ford, Eddy Arnold, Roy Acuff, Bill Monroe, Minnie Pearl, and Brenda Lee. Besides the food, heritage music, dancing, and adulation of the ramp, each year a young woman is crowned "Maid of Ramps".[14]
The community of Flag Pond, Tennessee, hosts its annual Ramp Festival on the second Saturday each May. The festival features a wide variety of ramp-inspired foods, and includes music from an assortment of Appalachian groups. Hundreds of people attend the festival each year.[15]
The community of Whitetop, Virginia, holds its annual ramp festival the third weekend in May. It is sponsored by the Mount Rogers volunteer fire department and features local music from Wayne Henderson and other bands, along with a barbecued chicken feast complete with fried potatoes and ramps and local green beans. A ramp-eating contest is held for children and adults.[16]
At the "Ramp It Up! Festival" held in the Native American outpost of Cherokee, North Carolina on the eastern side of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, ramps and rainbow trout are the focus.
An annual ramp convention in Haywood County, North Carolina has drawn as many as 4,000 participants at a time since its inception circa 1925.[17]
Mason Dixon Park, located on the border of West Virginia and Pennsylvania near Interstate 79, hosts the annual "Mason-Dixon Ramp Festival", typically on the third weekend in April. This festival is unique in having a "ramp rally", where ramp lovers pulling Serro Scotty campers gather to celebrate both ramps and the Scotty, a travel trailer which was manufactured in this area from 1957 until the local factory burned down in 1997.
In Bradford, Pennsylvania, on the first Saturday in May, an annual event called "Stinkfest" is held. Local food vendors, providing Chinese, German, Italian, and traditional American cuisine, offer their dishes with leeks included. Highlights include the dip tasting contest, the outhouse races (where teams from local business build rolling outhouses and power them down the main thoroughfare), and appearances by local musical groups.