How trees were of huge importance in Irish folklore and history

Analysis: as well as their importance for building, firewood and shelter, trees were also of spiritual significance for many of our ancestors

You wouldn't think it today looking at the green patchwork of fields that characterises the landscape, but Ireland once was host to a vast blanket of deciduous forests. These ancient arboreal wonderlands persisted for thousands of years. In stark contrast to that time, the country currently has the lowest forest cover in western Europe and this has been the case following the deforestation that occurred around 400 years ago.

The fields are evident of the dominance of agriculture, yet Ireland’s timber supply was once the envy of Europe. Irish oak was highly valued by continental wine producers for their barrels and was sought out for prestige building projects abroad.

But the very value of Irish timber led to its downfall. Timber was sold, it was sought for ship building and iron smelting, and forests were cleared for farming. For English colonisers, there were political motivations in clearing the forests which gave native rebels their hiding places. With no replanting of trees on the same scale, the forests gradually disappeared. With this came a loss of woodworking and coppicing skills, the general understanding of trees and the veneration and respect with which they were once held in Ireland.

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From RTÉ Lyric FM's Culture File, Paddy Woodworth talks about Roger Deakin's book on wood and woods, Wildwood: A Journey through Trees

Trees were previously embedded in the very history and, at times, identity of Ireland. To the ancient Irish, trees were of great importance and had spiritual significance. The ancient popular religions featured tree worship with beliefs that trees embodied spirits and were a source of wisdom. Groves of trees considered sacred were used to conduct some ceremonies and particular trees were symbolically important.

Early Christians adopted the old sacred sites, marked as they were with holy trees, and the tradition continued in a modified form. We still have elements of such 'sacred tree’ associations in Ireland to this day, with offerings left at rag trees at holy wells and other sites.

Many trees were seen as holy, curative and important. They were useful for building, firewood and transport and provided shelter and protection. With their connection to the earth, they became associated with the local community. The life and health of the trees represented the power and symbolic protection of the local chieftain and his people.

From RTÉ Radio 1's Today With Claire Byrne, environmentalist and author Éanna Ní Lamhna on trees and woodland walks

Important emphasis was often placed on individual trees and was a feature of Gaelic society. The 'sacred' trees were referred to as bile and were often linked with Irish royal inauguration sites, royal residences or a holy or curative place. Trees were notable in early Irish poetry and were crucial in the development of the Ogham alphabet.

There was once such reverence for trees in Ireland that they were specifically legislated for. According to Brehon Laws, trees were divided into four classes of importance, practical value and symbolism. First, there was the 'nobles of the wood', including oak, ash and yew. Next came the 'commoners of the wood' (such as alder, birch and rowan) and the 'lower division of the woods' (including elder and blackthorn). Finally, there was the 'bushes of the wood' (gorse, heather and wild rose). All four classes were protected, and damage to them carried graduated ﬁnes which were owed to the tree’s owner.

From RTÉ Lyric fm's Naturefile, the life of an oak tree

Trees featured in much Irish folklore, and had associations with health and luck, with some believed to have curative properties. Various types of trees were viewed as sources of magical power in folk customs and superstitions. Rowan trees are noted in mythology for their magical properties and their red berries featured in much Irish folklore as a means of enchantment. There are many references to magic apples in Irish folklore. Hazelnuts were important to Irish diets and those which fell from a sacred tree into the River Boyne were said to have given the Salmon of Knowledge his potency.

Sacred trees feature in Irish mythology, and stories of them often feature people incurring bad luck after cutting them down. In the tale of The King with the Donkey's Ears, the secret of the story is given away by a speaking harp, which was made using the timber of a sacred tree. All yew trees were considered sacred, they could not be cut down and only fallen yews could be used to make objects and even then, these were associated with sacred rituals, such as wands and staffs.

From RTÉ Archives, Michael Ryan reports for RTÉ News on a campaign to save ancient oak trees in Coolattin Woods, Co Wicklow in 1992

Wood is one of the most perishable materials so wooden artefacts, as any archaeologist will tell you, are vulnerable to rotting, fire and other forms of destruction. Over time, wooden objects such as buildings, statues, vessels, furniture, and other material objects disappeared from the record. On the rare occasion that wooden objects from the past return to us - usually miraculously preserved in a bog - it provides a whisper of the vast and rich material culture of wood lost to us.

To our more recent ancestors many trees were not only useful in domestic life but were seen as potential protectors of fertility, particularly in livestock and crops. Associations with trees could also protect a house and property along with vulnerable people, like children and the sick. In Ireland, elder and holly trees were believed to deter fire and many were planted close by houses for this reason.

From RTÉ Lyric fm's Naturefile, all you need to know about the birch tree

Willow, known in Ireland as salleys (from the Latin salix), are renowned for their practical uses. Willows grow so well in Ireland that they are regarded by many as a weed, but they were valued in the past for their ability to be coppiced and regenerate quickly. They were used in basket making and to secure thatch. People believed that leaving willow in milk would act as protection from faeries and prevent it from spoiling.

Gorse was useful to the home as occasional fuel and its stems were used for cleaning chimneys and scouring surfaces. It was seen as particularly potent against faeries and evil spirits who disliked the bright yellow-coloured flowers and was hung over doors on May Day to discourage bad luck from entering the home. Hawthorn in particular, had potent, magical and Otherworldly associations that endured through the generations. Many of these beliefs extended to most Irish rural people, who ensured that the faith in the magical and protective power of trees persisted up until the recent past - and some even continue to this day.

The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ

How trees were of huge importance in Irish folklore and history

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