| Abstrakt: |
This article is an analysis of the role of holy wells and mass stones in the Republic of Ireland. The piece is based on participant observation and ethnographic interviews with parishioners and local historians from Bantry, in West Cork, as well as some of its surrounding communities. Through an analysis of the ritual activities that surround such places, and the way in which these activities help to shape a relationship between people and place, the essay argues that while places are imbued with cultural and historical meanings, they are experienced through embodied rituals that affirm an intrinsically reciprocal relationship between people and place. During an era of rapid social, economic and cultural changes, holy wells and mass rocks remain fixed features in the landscape where local people connect to place, to their heritage, and to a sense of what it means to be Irish. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
