Overview

Comprehensive and engaging, this colourful study covers the whole sweep of ritual history from the earliest written records to the present day. From May Day revels and Midsummer fires, to Harvest Home and Hallowe'en, to the twelve days of Christmas, Ronald Hutton takes us on a fascinating journey through the ritual year in Britain. He challenges many common assumptions about the customs of the past, and debunks many myths surrounding festivals of the present, to illuminate the history of the calendar year we live by today.

Full Product Details

9780192854483

Table of Contents

Reviews

. ..a highly readable text that will serve the scholar and general reader alike to provide the first truly complete survey of the history of communal, seasonal rites and customs....In this engaging exploration his work will be useful to students of popular culture and literature, folklorists, historians, and even the old-fashioned enthusiast. --Journal of Ritual Studies. ..a breath of much-needed fresh air...a well-organized, methodical analysis... --American Reporter This book, with its rich combination of history and folklore, is a valuable work of reference. --American Historical Review

Author Information

Ronald Hutton is Reader in History at the University of Bristol.

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