Other places · Northern Ireland
Ould Lammas Fair
The Ould Lammas Fair is a traditional fair held in Ballycastle, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, every year on the last Monday and Tuesday of August. It is associated with the Lammas harvest festival.
Eric Jones — CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 1 h–2 h
About
The Ould Lammas Fair is a traditional fair held in Ballycastle, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, every year on the last Monday and Tuesday of August. It is associated with the Lammas harvest festival. The fair has been running for nearly 400 years, with records dating back to the 17th century but having origins possibly much older. Traditionally most of the crowds attending the fair would have been traders from throughout Ireland and from Kintyre, Islay, Jura and elsewhere along the Scottish coast. It is widely considered to be the oldest fair in Ireland. Various goods are traditionally sold at the fair. These include livestock and traditional foods such as yellowman, which is a local variant of honeycomb, and dulse, which is a type of edible seaweed. A ballad, The Ould Lammas Fair in Ballycastle O, was written by local shopkeeper and bog oak carver John Henry MacAuley and enhanced the local fame of the fair. MacAuley was also a well known fiddler, but died in 1937 before his song became famous.
Photo gallery
From the Wikipedia article
The Ould Lammas Fair is a traditional fair held in Ballycastle, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, every year on the last Monday and Tuesday of August. It is associated with the Lammas harvest festival. The fair has been running for nearly 400 years, with records dating back to the 17th century but having origins possibly much older. Traditionally most of the crowds attending the fair would have been traders from throughout Ireland and from Kintyre, Islay, Jura and elsewhere along the Scottish coast. It is widely considered to be the oldest fair in Ireland. Various goods are traditionally sold at the fair. These include livestock and traditional foods such as yellowman, which is a local variant of honeycomb, and dulse, which is a type of edible seaweed. A ballad, The Ould Lammas Fair in Ballycastle O, was written by local shopkeeper and bog oak carver John Henry MacAuley and enhanced the local fame of the fair. MacAuley was also a well known fiddler, but died in 1937 before his song became famous.
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
History
Widely considered to be one of the oldest annual fairs in Ireland, The Ould Lammas Fair has been running for over 400 years with records dating back to the 17th century. However the origins of the festival may go back further. The ruined fortress of Dunaneeny Castle which overlooks the harbour is said to be where the fair first began. In 1571 the local chieftain Sorley Boy MacDonnell ordered the celebration of public games for the coming of age of his nephew Gillaspick MacDonnell. The Lammas Fair can trace its origins to these games and the sheep markets held in the area. The Irish language name of the castle, Dún an Aonaigh translates as "fort of the assembly" or "fort of the fair" -…
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 55.2010, -6.2520
- Address
- 59 Castle Street, Ballycastle, BT54 6AS
Sources
- wikipedia: Ould Lammas Fair (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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Frequently asked questions
- Where is Ould Lammas Fair?
- Ould Lammas Fair is in Northern Ireland, in the United Kingdom — coordinates 55.2010°, -6.2520°.