“Mother was there, and some mummers, too…”
Because of Canada’s rich history of diversity, different parts of the country have different holiday traditions. Newfoundland is no different. Newfoundlanders have a knack for being dramatic, loud, and hospitable — we love music, food, and a good ol’ Sunday dinner. In my family, tales of mummers and a bowl full of mashed carrots, cabbage, and turnip are among the staples of every Christmas dinner.
1. FOOD, FOOD, GLORIOUS FOOD
Newfies love to fire up a scoff. Every Sunday after church, without fail, Newfoundlanders will gather in their homes for some turkey, potatoes, turnip, cabbage, carrots, beets, dressing (bread crumbs mixed with savoury spice), pudding (bread), and of course, salted beef and gravy. This happens multiple times over the Christmas holidays — when family is over, on Sundays, and on Christmas Day. These Newfoundland dinner recipes and little tips and tricks are passed down from generation to generation. My grandma passed them down to my mother, and my mom will pass them down to me.
2. “MUMMERING”: A TERRIFYING TRADITION
Though it has been around since the 1800s, the act of “mummering” has, thankfully, died out in recent years. It’s terrifying. The origin of it is nice: friends and family dressing up and going from home to home in small communities, singing while the hosts try to figure out who’s who. Sounds nice enough, right? What was terrifying were the costumes that mummers used to wear — they would dress up in anything they could find. This included masks (usually pillow cases with holes cut out for eyes and mouths painted on) and other ridiculous attire that when put together could be utterly horrifying.
3. A GOOD OL’ JIG
Newfies are notorious for their eastern folk music and jigs, namely “I’s the B’y” or Buddy Wasisname’s “Saltwater Joys.” What you may not know is that almost every Newfoundlander is willing to break into song at any moment, especially during Christmas (we’re really fond of old hymns). Aside from my island-born parents — two of the most musically gifted people I know — I have dozens of aunts, uncles, and other relatives from The Rock who can play a myriad of instruments. The accordion is the instrument of choice. If they don’t play an instrument, they’re always willing to lend a voice — even if they can’t hold a tune.In other words, they’re always ready to give ’er a go.
4. VISITS UPON VISITS
People from The Rock love to talk, and it’s no secret. A 10-minute visit can easily turn into hours. This is because of the historical way of life on the island, working during the day with the land and the sea, and then having time in the evenings to spend sitting around telling stories. Even today, Newfoundlanders love to visit, and visit they do. The Christmas holidays are a perfect excuse to drop over, bumbuy.
5. WE’RE ALL FAMILY HERE, LOVE
I can’t count the number of times my family has welcomed strangers and new friends into our home for holiday dinners. They can’t take no for an answer, even if you wanted them to. If someone heard you say, “I’m alright, I’ll spend Christmas Eve with my cat!” They would undoubtedly respond with, “Mind now! There’ll be none o’ dat!” The bottom line is: we’re all family here, love.
Note: It has been debated whether or not the term “Newfie” is offensive. As a Newfoundlander, the word holds a sense of endearment and pride, and is held in the highest regard.
Photo by Leslie Thompson/The Ontarion
Have you, yourself, been to Newfoundland? It’s great that your parents and relatives seem to be from there but it seems that you’re missing much of the point of things like mummering. And, we hardly have turkey dinners every Sunday! Jesus, Mary and Joseph what kind of pay do you think we’re making out here? Brush up before you speak to represent our culture!
Hi there! I have been to Newfoundland, many times, and in fact lived there for a while. These are based on my own family traditions that are true on both sides of my family, from two completely different parts of the island, and two different walks of life. I’m sorry if this is not representative of every Newfoundlander, but it rings true in my family and our many friends who are from there as well!
She doesnt say we have turkey every sunday but we do have jiggs dinner every sunday..and mummering has died off …and shes as newfie as you get ..great article with great insight ..thanks for writing such an in depth , well researched article…sums us up to a tee…keep up the good work leslie…obviously amother tradition that some newfies have lost is sense of humour and a lack of seeing a youth get ahead…good job keep up the good work