The Lifework and Legacy of Iona and Peter Opie

Book excerpt: Iona and Peter Opie were twentieth-century pioneers. Their research and writing focused on the folklore of British children – their games, rhymes, riddles, secret languages and every variety of the traditions and inventions of the children’s collective physical and verbal play. Such closely observed, respectful, good-humoured and historically attuned writing about the traditions of childhood was a revelation to English-language readers around the world. Their numerous books were a rare phenomenon: they attracted a popular readership far beyond the professional and academic communities. For those who work with children, their collaborative research was a powerful influence in confirming the immense capacities of the young for cooperation, conservation, invention and imagination. Their books challenged – then and now – the bleak and limited view of children which focuses on their smallness, ignorance and powerlessness. The writers in this volume pay their tribute to the Opies by exploring a wonderfully varied topography of children's play, from different countries and different perspectives. Their research is vivid and challenging; that is, as it should be, in the tradition of the Opies. This book was originally published as a special issue of the International Journal of Play.