About the Book :
Literally by "folk" we
mean people or a group of people, especially those who share a common culture,
background, or community. Folklore, i.e., lore about the folk--all folklores
are oral traditions, the lore, traditional knowledge and beliefs of cultures
often having no written language and they are transmitted, generally, by word
of mouth. Like the written literature they contain both prose and verse
narratives in addition to myths, dramas, rituals etc. All the cultures have
their own folklores. Thus, one can peep through folklores to the civilization
of the societies of yore.
The Handbook of Folklore,
authored/edited by George Laurence Gomme was first published in 1890. It served
as a guide for the study of folklore, covering various aspects of the field
including its history, different types, and role in society. The book also
provided practical advice for folklore research and collection.
This still remains an
authoritative and a popular reference work.
About Author :
Sir George Laurence Gomme, FSA (18 December 1853-23 February 1916) was a public servant and antiquarian. His main interests were folklore and old buildings. He helped found both the Victoria County History and the Folklore Society, and persuaded the London County Council to administer the blue plaque commemorative scheme.He attended the City of London School to the age of sixteen, when he started work, first with a railway company, then with the Fulham board of works, finally, in 1873, with the Metropolitan Board of Works: he remained with it and its successor, the London County Council, until his retirement in 1914. He has published Primitive Folk Moots (1880), and many books and articles concerning folklore, including Folklore Relics of Early Village Life (1883), Ethnology in Folklore (1892) and Folklore as a Historical Science (1908). His work is now generally regarded as too dependent on a survivals theory, which tried to trace folk customs back to earlier stages of civilisation; but it retains value as a collection.
