well-dressing

American  

[wel-dres-ing] / ˈwɛlˌdrɛs ɪŋ /

noun

1. (in parts of rural Britain) a traditional ceremony of decorating wells with flowers in thanks for the blessing of an abundant supply of pure water.

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well dressing British  

noun

1. the decoration of wells with flowers, etc: a traditional annual ceremony of great antiquity in some parts of Britain, originally associated with the cult of water deities

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Other Word Forms

• welldresser noun

Example Sentences

An annual well-dressing festival with roots believed to date back as far as the 14th Century has returned to an English village - this time, with a Ukrainian theme.

From BBC

The village of Tissington is noted for the maintenance of an old custom, that of “well-dressing.”

From Project Gutenberg

Here she came with the other children, at the festival of the well-dressing, to spread their garlands around it, and sing, and eat their supper on the green.

From Project Gutenberg

Pins, nails, and rags are still offered, and the custom of "well-dressing," shorn of its pagan associations and adapted to Christian usage, exists in all its glory at Tissington, Youlgrave, Derby, and several other places.

From Project Gutenberg

Well-dressing was a custom common in Derbyshire, and also on a much smaller scale in some of the neighbouring counties; but this village of Tissington was specially noted in this respect, for it contained five wells, all of which had to be dressed.

From Project Gutenberg