OxBlog

Wednesday, March 01, 2006

# Posted 6:39 AM by Patrick Belton  

WHY PANCAKES? Enquiring minds have wanted to know. The British and Irish custom of pancakes on Shrove Tuesday (shrive, to absolve: thence the last name Shrivener - one who absolves. and perhaps also sires children on the side) was created because milk and eggs were given up during the medieval fast. So hence the need to use them up.

Incidentally, see this on a group of C of E bishops who are living on minimum wage during Lent, giving the remainder of their salaries to mentoring schemes for youths and the homeless in the Midlands.
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Comments:
patrick - can always count on you for odd history tit bits...happy ash wednesday btw.
 
Huh. A very non-American use of "scheme." Must have a more neutral connotation across the pond.
 
The idea of a medieval pancake feast clashes markedly with my conception of the Middle Ages. Of course, it consists entirely of ideas extrapolated from fiction and The Canterbury Tales.
 
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