Lowender - An Daras paint swirl
Lowender - An Daras paint swirl

         An Daras

                         Cornish Folk Arts Portal

An Daras (the door / portal in Cornish) was created in 2003 as an outreach project of Lowender Peran (now Lowender) to provide information about Cornish traditional culture, the folk arts described below. Since then the project has produced a series of publications and videos and collaborated with other Cornish heritage organisations to bring Cornish traditions to life and accessible to all.    

Tonyow / Tunes

Cornish Tunes for Cornish sessions! Jobbing tunes used for the processions, dances and feast days of the 19th century joined by an ever in creasing number of new compositions. Visit for links to scores and videos plus backstory of these tunes. 

 

Donsyow / Dances

The timeline of Cornish Dance stretches from the lappiores of the 12th century Vocabularium Cornicum , through Scoot (step) dances, Geeze dancers, Furry Dances and Country House sets to Social Dance in the 21st Century.

 

Kanow Kernewek

Singing in Kernewek is a brilliant way to get a feel for the language. Browse through to add something in Cornish to your repertoire. Visit "Kenewgh! Sing"  for videos with Cornish Language subtitles

 

 

 

Songs / Kanow

The collecting expeditions of Sharp, Baring Gould, Gardiner, Carpenter and Kennedy together with the work of the Old Cornwall Societies has provided us with a wonderful canon of traditional songs in Cornwall. Have a browse through the songs and recordings.

 

 

Costume / Gwiskas

The fishing and mining industries in 19th century Cornwall gave rise to some very distinctive traditional costumes in Cornwall. Find out about Gooks, Fishwives and Bal Maidens. 

 

 

Dialect / Ranyeth

Cornish Dialect, “anglo-cornish”, sits alongside of Kernewek as part of Cornwall’s linguistic heritage. A living means of expression today it also has a long history as a  story-telling folk art.

 

 

Geeze Dancing / Dons Geys

Cornish Geeze Dancing (often spelt Guise or Guize but pronounced Geeze) is a set of customs rather than a specific style of dance. It has its roots in the Cornish mystery plays and involves a procession with costumes, disguise, beasts and a piece of “folk business” such as a dance play or song. Find out more.  

 

Wrestling / Omdowl

Cornish Wrestling is a Celtic sport and art that has been passed on from generation to generation since pre-Roman times in Cornwall. Visit the Cornish Wrestling Association for more information.