Oertha-hist-msg - 2/13/09
Histories of the Principality of Oertha, Kingdom of the West. (Alaska)
NOTE: See also the files: SCA-hist2-msg, West-hist-msg, SCA-stories2-msg, placenames-msg, snow-msg.
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NOTICE -
This file is a collection of various messages having a common theme that I have collected from my reading of the various computer networks. Some messages date back to 1989, some may be as recent as yesterday.
This file is part of a collection of files called Stefan's Florilegium. These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org
I have done a limited amount of editing. Messages having to do with separate topics were sometimes split into different files and sometimes extraneous information was removed. For instance, the message IDs were removed to save space and remove clutter.
The comments made in these messages are not necessarily my viewpoints. I make no claims as to the accuracy of the information given by the individual authors.
Please respect the time and efforts of those who have written these messages. The copyright status of these messages is unclear at this time. If information is published from these messages, please give credit to the originator(s).
Thank you,
Mark S. Harris AKA: THLord Stefan li Rous
Stefan at florilegium.org
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From: sandradodd at aol.com (SandraDodd)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Origin of "Oertha," channeled
Date: 9 Sep 1996 16:07:58 -0400
Subj: Re: Names of Kingdoms
Date: Mon, Sep 9, 1996 2:50 PM EDT
From: ftamy at aurora.alaska.edu
To: sandradodd at aol.com
Unto Mistress Alflaed of Duckford
greetings from
Mistress Annora de Montfort of Shadowood in the Principality of Oertha.
My Lady,
It has been a long time since I was a newbie in Eskalya taking on the post
of seneschale and writing to you for advice. Much has happened since then,
including the ability to communicate with the rest of the SCA world via
e-mail.
I happened to be browsing the Rialto,(a new ability for me) and saw the
piece of the thread talking about place names. I wanted to pass on the
correct story of the naming of Oertha, but as I am not a subscriber to the
list (just thru my university) I thought I would pass it on to you.
In the early days, (1979) Alaska had two groups, Eskalya and Winter's
Gate. We were part of the Principality of Antir. When Antir petitioned for
kingdom status, Alaska asked to remain part of the West. That wish was
granted. We were then termed the Northern Marches. As we got closer to
principality status, the groups started thinking of a name for the whole
unit; the North being the odds on favorite. However, the heralds vetoed the
North and we went back to the drawing board. Enter Sir Kylson Skyfire. He
was returning by airplane from somewhere Outside, and was reading the
airline magazine. He says one of the articles talked about northern lands
and the word oertha. According to the article, oertha meant "guardian of
the North". He presented the name to the Council of the North and to the
populace where it was approved. Now comes the odd part. We never actually
had a copy of the magazine or the article. The language may be celtic...we
know it isn't Yupik or Inupiaq eskimo, but we're not sure anymore. There
is a welsh word for north or northern that sounds like it, but...
So, for the purposes of myth and legend, Oertha means Guardian of the
North.
From: Megan nic Alister of Thornwood <megan at mail.wco.com>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: New Princess by Right of Arms
Date: 19 Jan 1997 01:18:01 GMT
Today, in the Principality of Oertha (mundanely Alaska) in the Kingdom of
the West, Virissa de Lighthaven won the Coronet Tournament for the honor
of her lord. She will be invested as Princess tomorrow. Congratulations
to both her and her lord.
Countess Megan, West
Date: Tue, 23 Aug 2005 20:32:56 -0800
From: Sharron Albert <morgana at gci.net>
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Tiki Torch Recall
To: Cooks within the SCA <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
> Here in the West, Tiki Torches (generic) are utterly totally
> thoroughly irrevocably forbidden at our events - since most are
> camping - and there's no reason to have then at the one-day events.
> --
> Urtatim (that's err-tah-TEEM)
> the persona formerly known as Anahita
We don't use them much in Oertha (Alaska) either (G). Unless we're
down on the Kenai Peninsula or the Panhandle, it doesn't get dark
enough during the short summer camping season to use them, and it's
way too cold in the winter to do outdoor courts etc. I've done
needlework in mid-July at midnight with ambient light in Winter's
Gate (Fairbanks), which is a delightful feeling.
I do remember an evening court in An Tir once, that had the main
corridor flanked by Tiki Torches. It was definitely dramatic watching
people walk up to Their Majesties, to receive awards, etc.
Morgana
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Morgana yr Oerfa, OP
Winter's Gate/Oertha/West
Date: Sun, 22 Jan 2006 17:24:32 -0900
From: Sharron Albert <morgana at gci.net>
Subject: [Sca-cooks] OT: Weather in Oertha
To: Cooks within the SCA <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
> I have friends from Oertha who said it was indeed a very chilly
> Coronet :) And here I was complaining of 20 degree mornings.
>
> -Muiriath
Yeah. We often [think] you guys down in the states (what we call Outside) are
really wimps. A hint of rain and some people don't go to events, and
drive 50 miles, that's just too far (G). Our next closest group --
that you can drive to -- is nearly 400 miles away. And there are two
groups in Oertha you either only fly to (Kotzebue) or fly/take the
ferry (Kodiak). You gotta be a traveling fool to live in Alaska...
Morgana
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Morgana yr Oerfa, OP
Winter's Gate/Oertha/West
Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2008 01:32:47 -0900
From: Sharron Albert <morgana at gci.net>
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Blessed are the non-cooks
To: Cooks within the SCA <sca-cooks at lists.ansteorra.org>
----- Original Message -----
From: Audrey Bergeron-Morin <audreybmorin at gmail.com>
>> Anybody who is willing to come in and deal with things when I am
>> brainfried and tired is SO BLESSED.
>
> Well, thank you :-) The local cooks' guild must thinks so too since
> they gave me an official apron and offered me to join...
One of my favorite times was at a small midwinter coronet in Juneau,
Alaska. The local cooks had beaten themselves up providing an
exquisite feast (not period, but this was years before we knew much
about that), and had just taken themselves off the bed, muttering
"we'll take care of it in the morning." The counters were covered
with dirty dishes (although the food had been put away).
So I put some dishes in to soak, and then cleared a corner of the
counter and set it up for draining/drying dishes. I washed the
soaking ones, stacked them, and put more in to soak, then cleared the
next area. And so on until I was done.
It was with great delight I heard the cooks in the morning, groaning
in anticipation as they approached the kitchen, only to be faced with
clean dishes waiting for them. I don't think anyone ever told them
who did it, which made it all the more fun.
I've been on both sides, and always appreciated it when others came
in to clean up.
Morgana yr Oerfa
Date: Wed, 20 Feb 2008 20:26:27 -0900
From: Sharron Albert <morgana at gci.net>
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Feast costs/budgets
To: Cooks within the SCA <sca-cooks at lists.ansteorra.org>
Up in Oertha (Alaska), the head cooks for our twice-yearly coronets
are expected to coordinate a brunch on Saturday, a feast for Saturday
dinner, and a breakfast/brunch on Sunday. Brunch is usually
soup/stews and bread and fingerfoods. Especially in the winter, the
fighters need something warm after tourney and they come inside
(unless it below -15F, they usually fight outdoors).
Dinner is a regular feast, of varying periodness and courses,
according to who is cook. Sometimes the numbers are reservations
only, sometimes feast included in the event fee (with offboard for
those who know they're not feasting). Breakfast is usually warmed-up
feast leftovers, liquids and maybe muffins/breads. We might get
breakfast, but it's not fancy, at least in midwinter. Midsummer,
breakfast Saturday and Sunday is often a donations-accepted
fundraiser for the principality, cooked by Pied Powder Inn members
and friends, which includes pancakes and fixin's, juice/coffee,
sausage (often homemade from moose), bacon. I've never donated less
than $5 and that was over the event fees.
But when you consider people routinely drive nearly 400 miles to go
to coronet (or fly from Outside or the Juneau area), it helps if you
don't have to drag camping/cooking gear with you. And we obviously do
not camp outside in the January tourney. I certainly appreciate that
I, as a single older woman, don't have to worry about the food issue.
And, our feasts seldom reach 100 people, although we come close more
often than we used to. And having up to a 100 people scatter for
lunches and dinners really breaks up the mood of the events.
Different areas and climates, different customs. We started coronet
feasts nearly 30 years ago, before we were a principality and our
numbers might have reached 50 people at the event.
Morgana yr Oerfa
Date: Wed, 20 Feb 2008 21:53:15 -0900
From: Sharron Albert <morgana at gci.net>
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Current farm prices and affects on feast
budgeting
To: Cooks within the SCA <sca-cooks at lists.ansteorra.org>
> Well, here in NoCal in the Central West, the fee for most period
> feasts is about $15, although some are less. We gradually raised the
> prices over the past few years because with the very high cost of
> sites, they just weren't doing so well... sometimes losing a bit of
> money, sometimes breaking even - when, i gather, the idea is to make
> a small amount as a cushion for those that don't break even - when
> the weather is rainy, often fewer folks show up than have RSVP'd.
>
> Urtatim (that's err-tah-TEEM)
> the persona formerly known as Anahita
Our Barony usually does potluck dinners. But we hold one annual feast
in October, and it's as period as we can make it. We charge around
$15 a person, partly because food is expensive in Alaska, and partly
because indoor sites with good kitchens are mostly too expensive for
our small feast (50+). We almost always lose money, but it's not
much, and it's expected. We plan for it but making sure we make money
on other events and via fundraising year-round.
We're rather proud of this feast tradition, which goes back to about
AS XIV, and people travel the previously-mentioned 400 miles to eat
with us (G).
Morgana yr Oerfa, the Oerthan expert today (the other Oerthans hereon
are either returning from or recovering from Estrella)
<the end>