The customs of the women of the Corca Dhuibhne Gaeltacht as they celebrate Nollaig na mBan.
Nollaig na mBan also known as Women's Christmas or Little Christmas is a day when men are expected to undertake all household chores and women gather for a drink to celebrate the end of Christmas. The tradition of Nollaig na mBan remains strong in the southwest of Ireland particularly with the women of the Corca Dhuibhne Gaeltacht in west Kerry.
Here the tradition of Nollaig Beag is as enduring as the women who celebrate it. Máirín Uí Laoithe recalls the tradition of eating salty ling with white sauce the night before Nollaig na mBan. On this evening, every house in the parish lights three candles in the window. The most important tradition on this twelfth and final day of Christmas is to place the statues of the Three Kings in the crib.
Caitlín Uí Mhórain explains a sheaf of rushes is left outside on the doorstep on the eve of Nollaig na mBan to welcome home the spirits of the dead.
Máirín Uí Chathalláin remembers the old women would gather in the house for a chat and to drink some porter. They would heat the porter on the fire in a saucepan and they drank a drop of sherry.
For her grand-daughter, the Kerry journalist Sláine Ní Chathalláin, Nollaig na mBan is a social night-out when women celebrate with a meal and a drink. This year with COVID-19 restrictions people must stay at home except for essential reasons. Nollaig na mBan has adapted accordingly. Women might have a nice meal at home or gather on Zoom to celebrate.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 6 January 2021. The reporter is Seán Mac an tSíthigh.
