Fairy Trees
Fairy Trees
Many trees are regarded as sacred in Ireland and throughout the world, they are symbols of medicinal value and healing and have a natural spiritual connection woven historically into our folklore. In north Antrim we find the following associated species of trees having reverence and mystique in local communities and folklore, Hawthorn, Blackthorn, Rowan, Ash and Oak. This folklore has passed from generation to generation and encapsulates the major changes in spiritual philosophy from Druid to Christianity and from this we find a rich mixture of mystical and spiritual associations which are still very evident in the landscape.
Hawthorn and Blackthorn in church grounds or ancient sites are symbolic of both pagan and christian belief, a clear cross-over or meeting place between two beliefs and practices. You can see this at 'holy wells', springs and ancient baptismal stones. These trees are revered for there spiritual and physical healing properties which they are believed to encapsulate. They are protected with stones placed carefully around the base of the trunk, a shrine to another world. The Hawthorn and Blackthorn in particular play a significant role in Irish folklore, you will find 'fairy trees' with no association to religious sites growing in fields where they have a mystical presence that is associated with the ‘fairies’ or the ‘wee folk’, the spirits of ancient deities.
It was and still is said, that if you cut a fairy tree down then bad luck will befall you, although generations pass by and this awareness becomes faded, you will still find many townlands where the practice of leaving a single 'fairy tree' to grow unhindered occurs. Examples of these can be seen as you drive through the rural landscapes of north Antrim. Some Hawthorns and Blackthorns were dedicated to saints, and have been purposely associated with holy wells or are involved in burial customs. Some believe that Christ’s crown of thorns was made from Hawthorn and that this link to Christianity gave the tree healing power and confirms the Christian connection emerging from paganism, the tree is well known for its medicinal qualities for cardiac and digestive problems.
The Hawthorn can live over four hundred years and there are many stories around Ireland of dire things happening to those foolhardy or reckless enough to cut one down. There are incidents of road works being halted because a fairy tree stood in the way, others where roads have been changed to avoid cutting a tree down. One recent story relates to the DeLorean Car manufacturer at Dunmurray, Belfast. During the clearing of the site for the factory an ancient fairy tree was removed, some would say the companies subsequent failure was down to this. You can also find fairy trees acting as boundaries in fields and corner posts of fields where landowners have reached agreement based on the location of a fairy tree.