Gudemans croft

From Traditional Witchcraft Wiki Project

Gudeman's(Goodman's) Croft, in Scotland,( known also as Halyman's Rig, clouties Croft, or the Black Faulie) was a small patch of land dedicated variously to some land-spirits, the fairies, witches or the 'Gudeman'(devil of the witches) which neither spade nor plough was permitted to touch. These areas were to be untouched and left to grow wild, such patches were located usually in the corner of the farmer's field.

Scotchmen still living remember the corner of a field being left for the goodman's croft.Tylor: Primitive Culture, ii. 370.

It is in common belief of the Gudeman's croft that unless some such place were left the spirit of that land would either damage the crop or cause mischief in ones everyday life. At Elgin, in 1602, they explained that such a croft was an offering to the devil, that he might abstain from blighting or otherwise harming their crops and animals. Other resources see the Gudeman's croft as a mere place dedicated to the land-spirits much like a temple. Sir Walter Scott compares the Gudeman's croft to the Temenos of the Greek temple-a piece of land marked off from common uses and dedicated to the god.

References

• The silver bough-Scottish folklore and folk-belief, pg-62 by F.Marian McNeill
• Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft: Addressed to J.G.Lockhart, pg-87 by Walter Scott