Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Samhain was one of four Gaelic seasonal festivals: Samhain (~1 November), Imbolc (~1 February), Bealtaine (~1 May), and Lughnasa (~1 August). Of these, Samhain and Bealtaine, marking the transitions into winter and summer respectively, are thought to have been the most significant.
The term Latha Buidhe Bealltainn (Scottish) or Lá Buidhe Bealtaine (Irish), "the bright or yellow day of Beltane", means the first of May. In Ireland it is referred to in a common folk tale as Luan Lae Bealtaine; the first day of the week (Monday/ Luan) is added to highlight the first day of summer. [7]
Beltane, the May 1 pagan holiday, is a celebration of fertility and fire.
Neopagans honoring the dead as part of a Samhain ritual. Samhain (/ ˈ s ɑː w ɪ n /), or Sauin, is the name of a traditional Gaelic festival held around 1 November. Its Welsh name is Calan Gaeaf. For Wiccans, it is a time to celebrate the lives of those who have passed on, and it often involves paying respect to ancestors, family members ...
[4] [page needed] According to Irish mythology, Samhain (like Bealtaine) was a time when the 'doorways' to the Otherworld opened, allowing supernatural beings and the souls of the dead to come into our world; while Bealtaine was a summer festival for the living, Samhain was essentially a festival for the dead.
The light half of the year started at Calan Haf/Bealtaine (around 1 May, modern calendar). This observance of festivals beginning the evening before the festival day is still seen in the celebrations and folkloric practices among the Gaels, such as the traditions of Oíche Shamhna (Samhain Eve) among the Irish and Oidhche Shamhna among the Scots.
Diagram comparing the Celtic, astronomical and meteorological calendars. The Irish calendar is the Gregorian calendar as it is in use in Ireland, but also incorporating Irish cultural festivals and views of the division of the seasons, presumably inherited from earlier Celtic calendar traditions.
The Celtic Ritual Year was in 4 parts – Beltaine (May), Samhain (November) the main parts and Imbolg (February) and Lughnasa (August). Beltany may be linked to marking both sunrise and sunset at these important ritual and ceremonial events in the year.