Global InformationSamhain information
| Samhain | |
|---|---|
 A Neopagan celebration of Samhain | |
| Observed by | Historically: Gaels Today:
|
| Type |
|
| Significance | End of the harvest season, beginning of winter |
| Celebrations |
|
| Date | 1 November (or 1 May for Neopagans in the S. Hemisphere) |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Related to |
|
Samhain (/ˈsɑːwɪn/ SAH-win, /ˈsaʊɪn/ SOW-in, Irish: [ˈsˠəunʲ], Scottish Gaelic: [ˈs̪ãũ.ɪɲ]), Sauin (Manx: [ˈsoːɪnʲ]) or Oíche Shamhna (/ˈiːhə ˈhaʊnə/ EE-hə HOW-nə) is a Gaelic festival on 1 November marking the end of the harvest season and beginning of winter or "darker half" of the year.[1] It is also the Irish language name for November. Celebrations begin on the evening of 31 October, since the Celtic day began and ended at sunset.[1] This is about halfway between the autumnal equinox and winter solstice. It is one of the four Gaelic seasonal festivals along with Imbolc, Bealtaine, and Lughnasa. Historically it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. A similar festival is held by the Brittonic Celtic people, called Calan Gaeaf in Wales.
Samhain is believed to have Celtic pagan origins, and some Neolithic passage tombs in Ireland and Britain are aligned with the sunrise at the time of Samhain.[2] It is mentioned in the earliest Irish literature, from the 9th century, and is associated with many important events in Irish mythology. The early literature says great gatherings and feasts marked Samhain when the ancient burial mounds were open, which were seen as portals to the Otherworld. Some of the literature also associates Samhain with bonfires and sacrifices.
The festival was not recorded in detail until the early modern era. It was when cattle were brought down from the summer pastures and livestock were slaughtered. Special bonfires were lit, which were deemed to have protective and cleansing powers.[3] Like Bealtaine, Samhain was a liminal or threshold festival, when the boundary between this world and the Otherworld blurred, making contact with the aos sí (the 'spirits' or 'fairies') more likely. Most scholars see them as remnants of pagan gods. At Samhain, they were appeased with offerings of food and drink to ensure the people and livestock survived the winter. The souls of dead kin were also thought to revisit their homes seeking hospitality, and a place was set at the table for them during a meal. Mumming and guising were part of the festival from at least the early modern era, whereby people went door-to-door in costume, reciting verses in exchange for food. The costumes may have been a way of imitating and disguising oneself from the aos sí. Divination was also a big part of the festival and often involved nuts and apples. In the late 19th century, John Rhys and James Frazer suggested it had been the "Celtic New Year", but that is disputed.[4]
In the 9th century, the Western Church endorsed 1 November as the date of All Saints' Day, possibly due to the influence of Alcuin, and 2 November later became All Souls' Day. It is believed that Samhain and All Saints'/All Souls' influenced each other and the modern Halloween.[5] Most American Halloween traditions were inherited from Irish and Scottish immigrants.[6] Folklorists have used the name 'Samhain' to refer to Gaelic 'Halloween' customs until the 19th century.[7]
Since the later 20th century Celtic neopagans and Wiccans have observed Samhain, or something based on it, as a religious holiday.[8]
- ^ a b Ó hÓgáin, Dáithí. Myth Legend and Romance: An Encyclopaedia of the Irish Folk Tradition. Prentice Hall Press, 1991. p. 402. Quote: "The basic Irish division of the year was into two parts, the summer half beginning at Bealtaine (May 1st) and the winter half at Samhain (November 1st) ... The festivals properly began at sunset on the day before the actual date, evincing the Celtic tendency to regard the night as preceding the day".
- ^ Meehan, Pádraig (September 2012). "A Possible Astronomical Alignment marking Seasonal Transitions at Listoghil, Sligo, Ireland". Internet Archaeology. 32.
- ^ O'Driscoll, Robert (ed.) (1981) The Celtic Consciousness New York: Braziller ISBN 0-8076-1136-0 pp. 197–216: Ross, Anne "Material Culture, Myth and Folk Memory" (on modern survivals); pp. 217–42: Danaher, Kevin "Irish Folk Tradition and the Celtic Calendar" (on specific customs and rituals)
- ^ Hutton, Ronald (1996) Stations of the Sun: A History of the Ritual Year in Britain. Oxford: Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-288045-4, p. 363.
- ^ Simpson, John; Weiner, Edmund (1989). Oxford English Dictionary (second ed.). London: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-861186-2. OCLC 17648714.
- ^ Brunvand, Jan (editor). American Folklore: An Encyclopedia. Routledge, 2006. p.749
- ^ Hutton, Ronald. The Stations of the Sun: A History of the Ritual Year in Britain. Oxford University Press, 1996. pp. 365–69
- ^ Hutton, Ronald (1993). The Pagan Religions of the Ancient British Isles: Their Nature and Legacy. Oxford: Blackwell. pp. 327–41. ISBN 0-631-18946-7.