Tristan : Letter to the Online Readers
Submitted by Tristan Times (Juanita Brock) 15.01.2006 (Article Archived on 05.03.2006)

The following was received by Tristan Times for publication in these pages as well as SARTMA. Please either e-mail Mr. Millington direct or contact him through this website.

The Mysterious Okalolies – Please Tell Me More

You never know whether it's a wolf in sheep's clothing or a sheep in wolves clothing.

Daniel Schreier and Karen Lavarello Schreier’s excellent book on Tristan da Cunha roused my curiosity, when I read about the Okalolies:

“Another favourite tradition is the so-called Okalolies on New Year’s Eve, when the men dress up and wander round the settlement with masks (or, in former time, with painted faces) to scare the folks”.

Trawling the Internet for more information, I happened upon the mysterious party photograph SARTMA and Tristan Times published in December 2004, which shows what must be the Okalolies in front of the Tristan Administrator’s house. (Do I win a prize for guessing correctly?)

As far as I can tell, the Okalolies are unique to Tristan da Cunha. Nonetheless, there are some interesting similarities with customs elsewhere – notably on Newfoundland and the islands of Agersø and Omø in Denmark - where the visitors also go to great lengths to remain unrecognised.

I wish to find out more about the Okalolies and Old Year’s Night, and I would be very grateful for any information and photographs your readers could email me. Apart from wanting to know more about what goes on, I would also be interested to know how the tradition has changed over the years, and what effects the Volcano Years may have had. Presumably, women view the tradition differently to the men who participate – likewise children and non-islanders. I would love to receive any anecdotes concerning the Okalolies visits.

Ultimately, I plan to use the material I gather to write an article about the Okalolies for publication online. I will acknowledge my sources, but I promise not to give personal details without permission.

Anything on similar traditions on the other South Atlantic Islands covered by SARTMA  and Tristan Times would also be welcome.

Peter Millington

www.folkplay.info