Wren boys on the march at Christmas

IN the days coming up to Christmas, wrenboy groups are again preparing for a time-honoured, St Stephen’s Day tradition in which the eponymous little bird was once the centrepiece. 

The custom of hunting and killing the ‘wran’ is remembered in song and story. Groups would, long ago, display on a holly bush a wren they had killed, going from house to house playing music and collecting money for festivities, later.

Thankfully, this inoffensive bird is no longer killed. However, wrenboys still go out on December 26, with the tradition remaining vibrant in areas such as the north Kerry/west Limerick region and in Dingle, where several, colourfully-costumed local groups parade on the day. The Dingle parade is nowadays a tourist attraction of sorts, watched by hundreds of visitors to the town.