Imagine a time unlike ours. When there were no engines, amplifiers, and speakers, and the sounds you heard were made by the actions of men, beasts, or the elements of nature. Be quiet and listen. Can you hear the chatter of children and vendors, and the hooves of horses on the streets? Can you hearContinue reading “One Day, All the Sunken Church Bells Will Surface and Speak to Us Sternly”
Tag Archives: legends
Hengist and Horsa — Frisian Horses from Overseas That Founded the Kentish Kingdom
It is at the inn The Prancing Pony in the village of Bree that the Hobbits find refuge from the screeching Nazgûl on their coal-black horses. It is also here that they encounter Strider, the mysterious wanderer who is later revealed to be Aragorn — future king of the Reunited Kingdom. Horses, wanderers, fugitive royalty,Continue reading “Hengist and Horsa — Frisian Horses from Overseas That Founded the Kentish Kingdom”
The Chronicles of Warnia. When History Seems a Fantasy Story
The fate of tribes and their names in the age of the Great Migration, between the fourth and sixth centuries, was anything but certain. Most simply disappeared. Celtic and Germanic peoples alike faded from the stage of history — some crushed by alliances of stronger tribes, others absorbed into new tribes, and still others vanishingContinue reading “The Chronicles of Warnia. When History Seems a Fantasy Story”
Stavoren. Balancing on a Slack Rope of Religion, Trade, Land, Water, Holland, and Frisia
For many turbulent centuries, the town of Stavoren was a tightrope walker before it finally settled as a small harbour at the Lake IJsselmeer. Living in retirement from well-to-do owners of white yachts, sailing boats, and other pleasure vessels. Now it looks back on when Saint Odulf arrived in the ninth century to convert theContinue reading “Stavoren. Balancing on a Slack Rope of Religion, Trade, Land, Water, Holland, and Frisia”
How Great Was Great Pier? (the Sequel II)
Breaking! Great Pier (or Grutte Pier) measured around 2.30 meters in height! This question has been bugging the Frisians for centuries. Now we know. How? Keep reading… Granted. We asked ourselves this very same question in a previous blog post. We explored how great Pier was… as a leader. This time we are asking theContinue reading “How Great Was Great Pier? (the Sequel II)”
How Great Was Great Pier? (the Sequel I)
Most Frisians know the name of Great Pier, or ‘Grutte Pier’ in Frisian. But what do we really know about him? Well, all we know for sure is that he was tall. Very tall. Spoiler alert: his name gave away that he was tall, right? If you would ask your friends and family what theyContinue reading “How Great Was Great Pier? (the Sequel I)”
Who’s Afraid of Voracious Woolf? — The Dread Beast Is Back
Who’s afraid of Jóða Fenris, ‘the offspring of Fenrir’? Afraid of hund hrynsævar hræva, ‘the hound of the roaring sea of corpses’? Who, today, fears the wolf? The dark creature that once haunted the shadowed forests of the East is rising again in Europe. Nearly two centuries have passed, yet the wolf has returned toContinue reading “Who’s Afraid of Voracious Woolf? — The Dread Beast Is Back”
Don’t Believe Everything They Say About Sweet Cunera
Imagine this: one day your husband brings home a young, unmarried woman. A virgin, even. He simply takes her into your house, openly shows her affection — and who knows what else. But that is not all. He also gives this maiden full access to your pantry and your savings account, which she — forContinue reading “Don’t Believe Everything They Say About Sweet Cunera”
Dissolute Elisabeth and Her Devil
In the Middle Age lived a once promiscuous girl named Elisabeth. She had come to repentance, found honourable employ as a maid, and had established herself at the hamlet of Vrieswijc, modern Friezenwijk. This hamlet is located near the scenic village of Heukelum in the region of Batavia (viz. the region of Betuwe) in theContinue reading “Dissolute Elisabeth and Her Devil”
Walfrid, You’ll Never Walk Alone
This blog post is not about Aindreas Ó Céirín (1840-1915), better known as Brother Walfrid from Ireland and who founded the Scottish football club Celtic. No, this blog post is about the original, the one and only. The Frisian named Walfrid. Who was murdered by a bunch of roaming Vikings in the late tenth century.Continue reading “Walfrid, You’ll Never Walk Alone”
Frisia Coast Trail 