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Winston Hope Smith Newspaper from Ireland |

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Halloween - The Festival of Samhain! |

Published in Ireland - Social interactions and entertainment - 3 - 31 Oct 23 00:00

The Festival of Samhain! 

Or know to you lessor mortals as Halloween 

Samhain is a Celtic Festival timed for the ending of the harvest season and ushering in the Winter and Darker seasons. the Date is generally Novermber 1st but of course calendars changed since the old day... I blame the Romans!

It is one of the 4 main seasons of the year the others being...
Imbolc - 1st February
Beltaine - 1st May
and Lughnasadh - 1st August

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Because of its timing just before the days get seriously shorter it is for this reason it is associated with the dark spirits. The door to the Otherworld was opened and allowed in the souls of the dead and supernatural beings into our world.

There is a cave in County Roscommon called Cruachan that is said to be the gate to this underworld.

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The tradition of carving Turnips is part of this festival...  

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The festival was celebrated through time and in the time of the Great Hunger, the British caused famine in Ireland, and many Irish people emigrated to America bringing this festival and traditions with them.  Not having Turnips to
carve they made with the local Pumpkin and so began the change to the association of Pumpkins with the festival.

There are many other traditions associated with Samhain.  Like bonfire lighting on the tops of hills, going from house to house in costumes for gifts of food etc (sound familiar?), the use of apples and hazelnuts in household games... something I did in my youth but seems not to have survived to the modern era of the Americanisation of the festival into Halloween.

So all you who went Trick r Treating and dress up in costumes, carved your Pumpkins etc you owe your fun to my ancestors (and in the other Celtic nations) who ushered in the Winter with the festival of Samhain.
 
 

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Comments (3)

31 Oct 23 00:23
elhichko

Интересно

31 Oct 23 02:19
tavi29

Haleluia, not anymore!... The door the the Otherworld was opened and allowed in the souls of the dead and supernatural beings into to our world.

31 Oct 23 21:04
islandwoodsie

Well, such a fun Holiday? It just had to be : IRISH