Meanwhile in Ireland

    SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER!

    What's Hot

    Top 5 all-time STRONGEST Irish accents EVER on film

    February 3, 2023

    Top 10 things that were illegal in Ireland 100 years ago

    February 2, 2023

    10 tongue-twisting longest PLACE NAMES in Ireland

    February 2, 2023
    Facebook Twitter Instagram
    Meanwhile in Ireland
    • Home
    • News
    • Craic
    • Sports
    • More
      • Culture
      • Dublin
      • Funny
      • Irish People
      • Interesting News
      • Satire
      • The Drink!
      • Travel
      • TV and Movies
      • Viral
    Facebook YouTube Instagram TikTok
    Meanwhile in Ireland
    You are at:Home » News » Culture » Irish funerals and keening: why the tradition died out
    Culture Irish People Irish Stories

    Irish funerals and keening: why the tradition died out

    Katie MorrisBy Katie MorrisAugust 24, 2022No Comments4 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter WhatsApp Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Share:
    Facebook Twitter WhatsApp Pinterest Email

    Up until the middle of the last century, keening would often be heard at an Irish wake. However, how and why did this Irish tradition die out?

    Keening is an ancient Irish tradition that involved women, and exclusively women, crying out loudly in grief and anguish to mourn the dead.

    This tradition remained in Ireland for centuries, but by the middle of the 20th century, it was largely an old and outdated practice.

    Let’s take a look into the origins and development of keening across the years and just why exactly it died out in Ireland.

    What is keening? – an old Irish tradition

    An ancient Irish tradition.
    Credit: commonswikimedia.org

    Keening was a vocal ritual performed at wakes or gravesides by women in Ireland, as well as less predominantly in Scotland when mourning the dead. It began around the 16th century and was carried out exclusively by women.

    The word itself is the anglicised version of the Gaelic ‘caoineadh’, meaning ‘crying’. Women would gather around at a funeral or wake and wail in grief.

    Sometimes, women were paid with a glass of whiskey to lament the dead with these vocal cries of anguish. The women would do this whether they knew the dead person or not. Essentially, some were paid actors.

    While many believe the tradition to have roots in Ireland, it actually derives from various other cultures around the world.

    The history of keening – derived from outside Ireland

    The old tradition of keening.
    Credit: jenikirbyhistory.getarchive.net

    Acts similar to keening have been portrayed throughout literature for centuries. Homer, the ancient Greek poet, wrote about female mourners who cried loudly in the 12th to 8th centuries BCE.

    Plus, in the 5th century BCE, the Greek historian Herodotus described something similar to keening among Egyptian women and the women of Sparta.

    The ancient Roman poet Virgil also referenced keening-like behaviour in the epic poem ‘Aeneid’, which was written in the 1st century BCE.

    These precursors to keening often involved many similarities to the Irish ritual. These include wailing and crying loudly, physical movements like rocking and clapping, dishevelled appearances and beating of breasts.

    Why did the tradition die out? – disapproval from the church

    Why did keening die out?
    Credit: pixnio.com

    Once woven into Irish tradition, the practice has almost completely died out. The end of keening came about in the 1950s. The Catholic Church began to express disapproval of the tradition, as they said it came from paganism.

    They would regard it as inappropriate. Families began to fear that to engage in the practice would appear backwards and they would be looked down on.

    However, modern theorists assert that the real reason the church didn’t want keeners at funerals was because priests didn’t want to them to overshadow their sermons, especially because they were women.

    The end of the tradition – an exploration into the end

    The women would cry at gravesides.

    Presenter Marie-Louise Muir explored the end of the tradition in a 2016 BBC Radio 4 documentary called ‘Songs for the Dead’.

    In the documentary, Muir explains how priests started to feel uncomfortable with the presence of keeners at funerals coming to take over the mourning process after the priest had laid prayers over the body.

    She said, “Can you imagine the awkwardness of the keener coming in and the ceding — the priest having to give way to this what I suppose he might have considered almost pagan custom? Where does the priest put himself?”

    Muir believes that the lack of tradition in modern-day Ireland has actually led to our difficulty with mourning and grief.

    Of this, she said, “Our grief now is too contained. We rely on taking anti-depressants. We go to a grief counsellor, but these people, in a way, letting it all out, having a good scream, coming from the feet up, a good cry, a good purging.”

    Even if you didn’t partake in keening, it was a wholly cathartic experience. It was like putting a voice to grief.

    Keening songs today – ancient practice through modern music

    While keening has now died out almost entirely. However, there are still many enduring examples of Irish keening songs.

    These songs are often played at modern funerals. They are beautiful pieces of music to lament the passing of a loved one.

    These songs include ‘Song of Keening’ by Aine Minogue. An Irish singer and harpist, Minogue uses her intrinsic knowledge of keening to improvise and relate to it in the traditional style.

    Another beautiful example is ‘Grief’ by the late Eithne Ní Uallacháin. She was a stunning and gifted singer and flautist. This particular song drew elements from an ancient lament called “Caoineadh Airt Uí Laoghaire”.

    Now, keening has largely disappeared. However, you might still find the practice at a more traditional Irish wake in certain parts of the country among certain families.

    Share. Facebook Twitter WhatsApp Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Avatar photo
    Katie Morris

    Katie Morris is the Editor of Meanwhile in Ireland. She has a degree in English and French which has given her the opportunity to teach English across the world. Having worked in Thailand for over two years, Katie has a keen interest in the unbelievable travel opportunities Asia has to offer. Katie currently lives in her hometown of Belfast and loves discovering all the new and exciting things to see and do all over Ireland. She has written and edited articles for a diverse range of sites, from travel around Ireland and the rest of the world to satire and news sites.

    Related Posts

    Top 10 things that were illegal in Ireland 100 years ago

    By Grainne KavanaghFebruary 2, 2023

    10 times the BRITISH claimed the IRISH as their own in the media

    By Katie MorrisFebruary 1, 2023

    Top 20 IRISH SLANG words for getting DRUNK

    By Grainne KavanaghJanuary 31, 2023

    KILKENNY CATS: the HISTORY of this iconic phrase

    By Grainne KavanaghJanuary 19, 2023
    Latest Articles

    Top 5 all-time STRONGEST Irish accents EVER on film

    February 3, 2023

    Top 10 things that were illegal in Ireland 100 years ago

    February 2, 2023

    10 tongue-twisting longest PLACE NAMES in Ireland

    February 2, 2023

    10 times the BRITISH claimed the IRISH as their own in the media

    February 1, 2023
    Stay In Touch
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • TikTok
    Don't Miss

    5 ways to tell if your partner is cheating on you

    By Gerald LeinsterJanuary 14, 2021

    We research infidelity and discuss five ways to tell if your partner is cheating on…

    VIRAL VIDEO: Irish dad gives son instructions on how to turn on the hoover…

    April 9, 2016

    NEW DUP REVOLT: Jeffrey Donaldson ousted in favour of Sammy Wilson

    October 19, 2021

    Five reasons why Conor McGregor is revolutionising the opinion of Irish men

    March 16, 2017

    Subscribe to our Newsletter!

    We specialise in Bizarre Irish News, Viral Videos and general Irish Craic.

    • Home
    • About us
    • Contact us
    • Guests Posts
    • Team
    • Work for us
    • Terms of use
    • Privacy policy
    • Disclaimer
    • Copyright
    Follow us

    Connect with us on your favourite social media app.

    Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube TikTok
    Contact us

    19 Arthur St, Belfast, Northern Ireland, BT1 4GA.

    [email protected]

    Subscribe to our Newsletter!

    ©Copyright 2019 - Meanwhile in Ireland | Trading under Emerald Green Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.