Celebration of Cornish culture and identity at St Piran’s event

The nature of Cornwall’s identity and how it is experienced by different people in the Duchy will be among the topics of conversation at an annual public event celebrating St Piran in March.

‘This is Our Cornwall’ will present a series of short talks from public figures drawn from a variety of sectors, each focusing on a different aspect of Cornwall and how that is manifest in their work or life.

The ten-minute talks are at the heart of the St Piran’s celebration, which will be hosted by the Institute of Cornish Studies at the University of Exeter, Cornwall, on Friday 8 March.

The day will also include a ‘Cultural Marketplace’, with stands from a range of local organisations celebrating their work on Cornish culture, heritage, and identity. The evening then culminates with a buffet and live Cornish music.

“Through this series of talks, stands, and entertainment we will be celebrating organisations from across our local communities,” says Dr Joanie Willett, co-lead of the Institute. “We will be exploring what makes up modern Cornish identities and how Cornish culture feeds in to the arts, businesses, communities, education and research across Cornwall and the wider Cornish diaspora.”

Among those people speaking as part of This is Our Cornwall include Nik Elvey, of the Curious School of the Wild; Kim Conchie, at Cornwall Chamber of Commerce; and Mark Trevarthan and Jowdy Davey, of Cornwall Council’s Culture project.

This year’s event is also part of the 20th anniversary celebrations for the University of Exeter, Cornwall marking two decades of the Penryn campus.

“Celebrating and promoting the distinctiveness of Cornwall’s culture and heritage, and engaging people with the work that is taking place right across the Duchy, is an important aspect of the University’s civic responsibility,” says event organiser Mark Plummer. “Our St Piran’s event maintains a proud tradition of supporting the festival of Pirantide, and it launched our year of celebratory events here at the University.”

For more details on forthcoming 20th anniversary events, visit the University’s website.