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Human hair color
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"Hair color" redirects here. For hair color of horses, see Equine coat color. For hair colorants, see Hair coloring.
A variety of the human hair colors. From top left, clockwise: black, brown, blonde, white, red.
Hair color is the pigmentation of hair follicles due to two types of melanin: eumelanin and pheomelanin. Generally, if more eumelanin is present, the color of the hair is darker; if less eumelanin is present, the hair is lighter. The darker a person's natural hair color is, the more individual hair follicles they have on their scalp. Levels of melanin can vary over time causing a person's hair color to change, and it is possible to have hair follicles of more than one color on the same person. Particular hair colors are associated with ethnic groups. Gray or white hair is associated with age.
The Fischer–Saller scale, named after Eugen Fischer and Karl Saller (de), is used in physical anthropology and medicine to determine the shades of hair color. The scale uses the following designations: A (very light blond), B to E (light blond), F to L (blond), M to O (dark blond), P to T (light brown to brown), U to Y (dark brown/black) and Roman numerals I to IV (red) and V to VI (red blond).[1]
Contents
[hide]
1 Genetics and biochemistry of hair color
2 Natural hair colors
2.1 Image gallery
2.2 Black hair
2.3 Brown hair
2.4 Blond hair
2.5 Auburn hair
2.6 Red hair
2.7 Gray and white hair
3 Conditions affecting hair color
3.1 Aging or achromotrichia
3.2 Stress
3.3 Medical conditions
3.4 Artificial factors
3.5 Changes after death
4 Hair coloring
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
Genetics and biochemistry of hair color[edit]
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See also: Human genetic variation, Race and genetics, and Human genetic clustering
Two types of pigment give hair its color: eumelanin and pheomelanin. Pheomelanin colors hair orange and red. All humans have some pheomelanin in their hair. Eumelanin, which has two subtypes of black or brown, determines the darkness of the hair color. A low concentration of brown eumelanin results in blond hair, whereas a higher concentration of brown eumelanin results in brown hair. High amounts of black eumelanin result in black hair, while low concentrations result in white hair.
Pheomelanin is more bio-chemically stable than black eumelanin, but less bio-chemically stable than brown eumelanin, so it breaks down more slowly when oxidized. This is why bleach gives darker hair a reddish tinge during the artificial coloring process. As the pheomelanin continues to break down, the hair will gradually become red, then orange, then yellow, and finally white.
The genetics of hair colors are not yet firmly established. According to one theory, at least two gene pairs control human hair color.
One phenotype (brown/blonde) has a dominant brown allele and a recessive blond allele. A person with a brown allele will have brown hair; a person with no brown alleles will be blond. This explains why two brown-haired parents can produce a blond-haired child. However, this can only be possible if both parent are heterozygous in hair color- meaning that both of them have one dominant brown hair allele and one recessive allele for blond hair, but as dominant traits mask recessive ones the parents both have brown hair. The possibility of which trait may appear in an offspring can be determined with a Punnett square.
The other gene pair is a non-red/red pair, where the non-red allele (which suppresses production of pheomelanin) is dominant and the allele for red hair is recessive. A person with two copies of the red-haired allele will have red hair.
The two-gene model does not account for all possible shades of brown, blond, or red (for example, platinum blond versus dark blond/light brown), nor does it explain why hair color sometimes darkens as a person ages. Several gene pairs control the light versus dark hair color in a cumulative effect. A person's genotype for a multifactorial trait can interact with the environment to produce varying phenotypes (see quantitative trait locus).
Natural hair colors[edit]
Natural hair color can be black, blond, brown, red, or white; all natural hair colors including grey, white and lightest blond, are shades of brown.
Image gallery[edit]
Black hair
Natural black hair
Deepest brunette hair
Dark brown hair
Medium brown hair
Lightest brown hair
Natural brown hair
Light brown hair
Chestnut brown hair
Light chestnut brown hair
Auburn hair
Copper hair
Red hair
Titian hair
Strawberry blond hair
Light blonde hair
Dark blond hair
Golden blond hair
Medium blond hair
Grey hair
White hair
White hair caused by albinism
Black hair[edit]
Main article: Black hair
Black hair is the darkest hair color. It has large amounts of eumelanin and is less dense than other hair colors.[2]
Brown hair[edit]
Main article: Brown hair
Brown hair is characterized by higher levels of eumelanin and lower levels of pheomelanin. Of the two types of eumelanin (black and brown), brown-haired people have brown eumelanin; they also usually have medium-thick strands of hair. Brown-haired girls or women are often known as brunette.
Chestnut hair is a hair color which is a reddish shade of brown hair. In contrast to auburn hair, the reddish shade of chestnut is darker. Chestnut hair is common among the native peoples of Northern, Central, Western, and Eastern Europe.
Blond hair[edit]
Main article: Blond
Blond (or blonde for women) hair ranges from nearly white (platinum blond, tow-haired) to a dark golden blonde. Strawberry blond, a mixture of blond and red hair, is a much rarer type containing the most pheomelanin.[citation needed]
Blond hair can have almost any proportion of pheomelanin and eumelanin, but has only small amounts of both. More pheomelanin creates a more golden or strawberry blond color, and more eumelanin creates an ash or sandy blond color. Many children born with blond hair develop darker hair as they age, with the majority of natural blonds developing a hair color of a dark blond hue by the time they reach middle age. Pregnancy hormones hasten this process. Natural light blond hair is rare in adulthood, with claims of the world's population ranging from 2% naturally blond[3][self-published source] to 16% in the US.[4] Blond hair is most commonly found in Northern and Western Europeans and their descendants but can be found spread around most of Europe. Studies in 2012 showed that naturally blond hair of Melanesians is caused by a recessive mutation in tyrosinase-related protein 1 (TYRP1). In the Solomon Islands, 26% of the population carry the gene; however, it is absent outside of Oceania.[5]
Auburn hair[edit]
Main article: Auburn hair
Auburn hair ranges along a spectrum of light to dark red-brown shades. The chemicals which cause auburn hair are eumelanin (brown) and pheomelanin (red), with a higher proportion of red-causing pheomelanin than is found in average brown hair. It is most commonly found in individuals of Northern and Western European descent.
Red hair[edit]
Main article: Red hair
Red hair ranges from light strawberry blond shades to titian, copper and less commonly "true" red. It is caused by a variation in the Mc1r gene and is recessive.[6] Red hair has the highest amounts of pheomelanin, around 67%, and usually low levels of eumelanin. At 1–2% of the population, it is the least common hair color in the world. It is most prominently found in the British Isles. Scotland has the highest proportion of redheads; 13 percent of the population has red hair and approximately 40 percent carries the recessive redhead gene.[7][8][9]
Gray and white hair [edit]
"White hair" redirects here. For the Native American leader, see White Hair. For the fictional character, see Whitehair.
Gray or white hair—sometimes colloquially called "salt and pepper" when it is 'peppered' throughout dark hair—is not caused by a true gray or white pigment, but is due to a lack of pigmentation and melanin. The clear hairs appear as gray or white because of the way light is reflected from the hairs. Gray hair color typically occurs naturally as people age (see Aging or achromotrichia below). For some people this can happen at a very young age, even as young as 10.[medical citation needed]
In some cases, gray hair may be caused by thyroid deficiencies, Waardenburg syndrome or a vitamin B12 deficiency.[10] At some point in the human life cycle, cells that are located in the base of the hair's follicles slow, and eventually stop producing pigment.[11] Piebaldism is a rare autosomal dominant disorder of melanocyte development, which may cause a congenital white forelock.[12]:867
Caucasian people often begin to grow gray hairs in their mid-thirties while Asian people begin graying in their late thirties, but most African people retain their original hair color until their mid-forties.[13][14]
Graying is a gradual process; according to a study by L'Oreal, overall, of those between 45 and 65 years old, 74 per cent had some grey hair, covering an average of 27 per cent of their head ,and approximately 1 in 10 people had no gray hairs even after the age of 60.[15][16]
Conditions affecting hair color[edit]
Aging or achromotrichia[edit]
Children born with some hair colors may find it gradually darkens as they grow. Many blond, light brown, or red haired infants experience this. This is caused by genes being turned off and on during early childhood and puberty.[17]
Changes in hair color typically occur naturally as people age, eventually turning the hair gray and then white. This is called achromotrichia. Achromotrichia normally begins in the early to mid-twenties in men and late twenties in women. More than 60 percent of Americans have some gray hair by age 40. The age at which graying begins seems almost entirely due to genetics. Sometimes people are born with gray hair because they inherit the trait.[18]
The order in which graying happens is usually: nose hair, hair on the head, beard, body hair, eyebrows.[19]
In non-balding individuals hair may grow faster once it turns gray.[20]
Several genes appear to be responsible for the process of graying. Bcl2 and Bcl-w[21] were the first two discovered, then in 2016, the IRF4 (interferon regulatory factor 4) gene was announced after a study of 6,000 people living in five Latin American countries. However, it found that environmental factors controlled about 70% of cases of hair graying.[22]
The change in hair color occurs when melanin ceases to be produced in the hair root and new hairs grow in without pigment. The stem cells at the base of hair follicles produce melanocytes, the cells that produce and store pigment in hair and skin. The death of the melanocyte stem cells causes the onset of graying. It remains unclear why the stem cells of one hair follicle may die well over a decade before those in adjacent follicles less than a millimeter apart.
Graying of hair may be triggered by the accumulation of hydrogen peroxide. Abnormally low levels of the enzyme catalase, which breaks down hydrogen peroxide and relieves oxidative stress in patients suffering from vitiligo. Since vitiligo can cause eyelashes to turn white, the same process is believed to be involved in hair on the head (and elsewhere) due to aging.[23][unreliable source?]
The anti-cancer drug imatinib has recently been shown to reverse the graying process.[24] However, it is expensive and has potentially severe and deadly side effects, so it is not practical to use to alter a person's hair color. Nevertheless, if the mechanism of action of imatinib on melanocyte stem cells can be discovered, it is possible that a safer and less expensive substitute drug might someday be developed. It is not yet known whether imatinib has an effect on catalase, or if its reversal of the graying process is due to something else.[25]
Stress[edit]
Anecdotes report that stress, both chronic and acute, may induce achromotrichia earlier in individuals than it otherwise would have.[26] Proponents point to survivors of disasters, such as Titanic survivor Harold Bride, or high-level politicians such as Bill Clinton or Barack Obama. There is some evidence for chronic stress causing premature achromotrichia,[27] but no definite link has been established. It is known that the stress hormone cortisol accumulates in human hair over time, but whether this has any effect on hair color has not yet been resolved.[28]
Medical conditions[edit]
Albinism is a genetic abnormality in which little or no pigment is found in human hair, eyes, and skin. The hair is often white or pale blond. However, it can be red, darker blond, light brown, or rarely, even dark brown.
Vitiligo is a patchy loss of hair and skin color that may occur as the result of an auto-immune disease. In a preliminary 2013 study, researchers treated the buildup of hydrogen peroxide which causes this with a light-activated pseudo-catalase. This produced significant media coverage that further investigation may someday lead to a general non-dye treatment for grey hair.[29]
Malnutrition is also known to cause hair to become lighter, thinner, and more brittle. Dark hair may turn reddish or blondish due to the decreased production of melanin. The condition is reversible with proper nutrition.
Werner syndrome and pernicious anemia can also cause premature graying.
A 2005 uncontrolled study demonstrated that people 50–70 years of age with dark eyebrows but gray hair are significantly more likely to have type II diabetes than those with both gray eyebrows and hair.[30]
Artificial factors[edit]
A 1996 British Medical Journal study found that tobacco smoking may cause premature graying. Smokers were found to be four times more likely to begin graying prematurely, compared to nonsmokers.[31]
Gray hair may temporarily darken after inflammatory processes, after electron-beam-induced alopecia, and after some chemotherapy regimens. Much remains to be learned about the physiology of human graying.[32]
There are no special diets, nutritional supplements, vitamins, nor proteins that have been proven to slow, stop, or in any way affect the graying process, although many have been marketed over the years. However, French scientists treating leukemia patients with a new cancer drug noted an unexpected side effect: some of the patients' hair color was restored to their pre-gray color.[25]
Changes after death[edit]
The hair color of mummies or buried bodies can change. Hair contains a mixture of black-brown-yellow eumelanin and red pheomelanin. Eumelanin is less chemically stable than pheomelanin and breaks down faster when oxidized. It is for this reason that Egyptian mummies have reddish hair. The color of hair changes faster under extreme conditions. It changes more slowly under dry oxidizing conditions (such as in burials in sand or in ice) than under wet reducing conditions (such as burials in wood or plaster coffins).[33]
Hair coloring[edit]
Main article: Hair coloring
A hairdresser colors a client's hair.
Hair color can be changed by a chemical process. Hair coloring is classed as "permanent" or "semi-permanent".
Permanent hair color means that the hair's structure has been chemically altered until it is eventually cut away. This does not mean that the synthetic color will remain permanently. During the process, the natural color is removed, one or more shades, and synthetic color has been put in its place. All pigments wash out of the cuticle. Natural color stays in much longer and artificial will fade the fastest (depending on the color molecules and the form of the dye pigments).
Permanent hair color gives the most flexibility because it can make hair lighter or darker as well as changing tone and color, but there are negatives. Constant (monthly or six-weekly) maintenance is essential to match new hair growing in to the rest of the hair, and to remedy fading. A one-color permanent dye creates a flat, uniform color across the whole head, which can look unnatural and harsh, especially in a fair shade. To combat this, the modern trend is to use multiple colors—usually one color as a base with added highlights or lowlights in other shades.
Semi-permanent color washes out over a period of time—typically four to six weeks, so root regrowth is less noticeable. The final color of each strand is affected by its original color and porosity, so there will be subtle variations in color across the head—more natural and less harsh than a permanent dye. However, this means that gray and white hair will not dye to the same color as the rest of the head (in fact, some white hair will not absorb the color at all). A few gray and white hairs will blend in sufficiently not to be noticeable, but as they become more widespread, there will come a point where a semi-permanent alone will not be enough. The move to 100% permanent color can be delayed by using a semi-permanent as a base color, with permanent highlights.
Semi-permanent hair color cannot lighten hair.[34] Hair can only be lightened using chemical lighteners, such as bleach. Bleaching is always permanent because it removes the natural pigment.
"Rinses" are a form of temporary hair color, usually applied to hair during a shampoo and washed out again the next time the hair is washed.
See also[edit]
Human eye color
Human skin color
References[edit]
Jump up ^ "Change in Hair Pigmentation in Children from Birth to 5 Years in a European Population (Longitudinal Study)". Forensic Science Communications. Archived from the original on 2014-03-20. Retrieved 2014-03-19.
Jump up ^ Ito, S.; Wakamatsu, K. (2011). "Diversity of human hair pigmentation as studied by chemical analysis of eumelanin and pheomelanin". Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology. 25: 1369–1380. |access-date= requires |url= (help)
Jump up ^ "Race". Webspace.ship.edu. Retrieved 2012-04-03.
Jump up ^ "Light-colored hair can be golden for women". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
Jump up ^ Melanesian blond hair is caused by an amino acid change in TYRP1. Kenny EE, Timpson NJ, Sikora M, Yee MC, Moreno-Estrada A, Eng C, Huntsman S, Burchard EG, Stoneking M, Bustamante CD, Myles S (May 2012). "Melanesian blond hair is caused by an amino acid change in TYRP1". Science. 336 (6081): 554. doi:10.1126/science.1217849. PMC 3481182  . PMID 22556244.
Jump up ^ In males, the supposedly recessive trait is often expressed in parts of the facial hair or beard. Valverde P, Healy E, Jackson I, Rees JL, Thody AJ (November 1995). "Variants of the melanocyte-stimulating hormone receptor gene are associated with red hair and fair skin in humans". Nat. Genet. 11 (3): 328–30. doi:10.1038/ng1195-328. PMID 7581459.
Jump up ^ "Scientists question whether rare reds are headed for extinction". Azcentral.com. 2005-05-05. Retrieved 2012-04-03.
Jump up ^ "The Genetics of Red Hair: What Causes Natural Red Hair?". Brighthub.com. 2009-09-04. Retrieved 2012-04-03.
Jump up ^ "Michigan twins featured in book about rare red hair". MLive.com. Retrieved 2012-04-03.
Jump up ^ Juangbhanich C, Nitidanhaprabhas P, Sirimachan S, Areekul S, Tanphaichitr VS (June 1991). "Vitamin B12 deficiency: report of a childhood case". J Med Assoc Thai. 74 (6): 348–54. PMID 1744541. CS1 maint: Uses authors parameter (link)
Jump up ^ Weir, Sarah B. (2012-10-02). "Why does hair turn grey?". Yahoo! Lifestyle UK. Archived from the original on 2012-10-07. Retrieved 2012-11-10.
Jump up ^ James, William; Berger, Timothy; Elston, Dirk (2005). Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: Clinical Dermatology. (10th ed.). Saunders. ISBN 0-7216-2921-0.
Jump up ^ "Premature Graying: Reasons, Options". WebMD.
Jump up ^ Burford, Michelle (6 August 2009). "Gray Hair Myths and Facts". AOL Health. Archived from the original on 6 August 2009. Retrieved 6 August 2009.
Jump up ^ Copping, Jasper (30 September 2012). "Grey hair 'less prevalent than previously thought'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 22 January 2017.
Jump up ^ Giana, Bosa. "What Causes Hair To Go White? Let Us Find The Exact Reasons". gaizupath.com. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
Jump up ^ "Understanding Genetics: Human Health and the Genome". Archived from the original on 2011-07-24. Retrieved 2011-07-25.
Jump up ^ Pandhi, D; Khanna, D (2013). "Premature graying of hair". Indian journal of dermatology, venereology and leprology. 79 (5): 641–53. doi:10.4103/0378-6323.116733. PMID 23974581.
Jump up ^ 鼻毛にも白髪は生えるの？ (in Japanese). Retrieved 3 July 2012.
Jump up ^ Ralph M Trüeb (Jan–Jun 2009). "Oxidative Stress in Ageing of Hair". Int J Trichology. 1 (1): 6. doi:10.4103/0974-7753.51923. PMC 2929555  . PMID 20805969.
Jump up ^ "Research yields clues to why hair turns gray". Associated Press. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
Jump up ^ Carina Storrs, Special to CNN (1 March 2016). "First gray hair gene found, plucked out of research". CNN.
Jump up ^ Nsikan Akpan (3 May 2013). "Cure For Gray Hair Is Almost Here, Vitiligo Study Claims". Medical Daily. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
Jump up ^ Etienne, Gabriel; Cony-Makhoul, Pascale; Mahon, François-Xavier (8 August 2002). "Imatinib Mesylate and Gray Hair". New England Journal of Medicine. 347 (6): 446–446. doi:10.1056/NEJM200208083470614. PMID 12167692.
^ Jump up to: a b "Cancer drug restores hair colour". BBC News. 2002-08-08.
Jump up ^ Saling, Joseph. "The Effects of Stress on Your Hair". Web MD. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
Jump up ^ Ballantyne, Coco. "Fact or Fiction?: Stress Causes Grey Hair". Scientific American. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
Jump up ^ Robert Preidt (17 Apr 2013). "Seriously Stressed? Hair Analysis Tells All, Study Finds". WebMD.
Jump up ^ Bazian (7 May 2013). "No evidence of cure to prevent hair going grey". Filey and Hunmanby Mercury.
Jump up ^ Department of Dermatology, Academic Teaching Hospital Dresden-Friedrichstadt (14 December 2005). "Eyebrow color in diabetics". Acta Dermatovenerol Alp Panonica Adriat. 14 (4): 157–60. PMID 16435045.
Jump up ^ Mosley JG, Gibbs AC (1996). "Premature grey hair and hair loss among smokers: a new opportunity for health education?". BMJ. 313 (7072): 1616. doi:10.1136/bmj.313.7072.1616. PMC 2359122  . PMID 8991008.
Jump up ^ Cline DJ (April 1988). "Changes in hair color". Dermatol Clin. 6 (2): 295–303. PMID 3288386.
Jump up ^ "Interactive Dig Hierakonpolis - Archaeological Hair". Archaeology.org. Retrieved 2012-04-03.
Jump up ^ Aguh, Crystal; Okoye, Ginette (2016-12-06). Fundamentals of Ethnic Hair: The Dermatologist's Perspective. Springer. ISBN 9783319456959.
External links[edit]
Media related to Human hair color at Wikimedia Commons
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Alpine lake
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
For other uses, see Alpine lake (disambiguation).
Alpine lakes and forest, Denali National Park, Alaska
Alpine lakes are classified as lakes or reservoirs at high altitudes, usually starting around 5,000 feet (1524 metres) in elevation above sea level[1] or above the tree line.[2]
Alpine lakes are usually clearer than lakes at lower elevations due to the colder water which decreases the speed and amount of algae and moss growth in the water. Often these lakes are surrounded by varieties of pine trees, aspens, and other high altitude trees.[citation needed]
Famous alpine lakes[edit]
Lake Sevan, Armenia
Crater Lake, USA
Heaven Lake, North Korea/China
Issyk Kul, Kyrgyzstan
Lake Tahoe, USA
Lake Titicaca, Peru/Bolivia (Largest natural alpine lake in the world)
Yellowstone Lake, USA
Lake Saiful Muluk, Pakistan
Tenaya Lake, USA
Lake Baikal, Russia
Changu Lake, India 14,000 feet ASL
See also[edit]
Alpine tundra
Alpine climate
References[edit]
Jump up ^ Ward, Henry B.; Marsh, C. Dwight; Birge, E. A. (September 1904). "A Biological Reconnoissance of Some Elevated Lakes in the Sierras and the Rockies, with Reports on the Copepoda and on the Cladocera". Transactions of the American Microscopical Society. 25: 127. doi:10.2307/3220874.
Jump up ^ Pérez, María Teresa; Sommaruga, Ruben (November 2006). "Differential effect of algal- and soil-derived dissolved organic matter on alpine lake bacterial community composition and activity". Limnology and Oceanography. 51 (6): 2527–2537. doi:10.4319/lo.2006.51.6.2527.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alpine_lake&oldid=742101735"
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Samhain
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
This article is about the Gaelic holiday. For other uses, see Samhain (disambiguation).
Samhain
Also called
Samhuinn/Samhainn (Scottish Gaelic)
Sauin (Manx Gaelic)
Observed by
Historically: Gaels
Today: Irish people, Scottish people, Manx people, Celtic neopagans, Wiccans
Type
Cultural,
Pagan (Celtic polytheism, Celtic neopaganism, Wicca)
Significance
End of the harvest season, beginning of winter
Celebrations
Bonfires, guising/mumming, divination, feasting
Date
Sunset 31 October – sunset 1 November
(or ~1 May for Neopagans in the S. Hemisphere)
Frequency
Annual
Related to
Halloween, Hop-tu-Naa, Calan Gaeaf, Kalan Gwav, All Saints' Day, All Souls' Day, Dziady
Samhain (/ˈsɑːwɪn, ˈsaʊɪn/; Irish: [sˠəuɪnʲ]) is a Gaelic festival marking the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter or the "darker half" of the year. Traditionally, it is celebrated from 31 October to 1 November, as the Celtic day began and ended at sunset. This is about halfway between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice. It is one of the four Gaelic seasonal festivals, along with Imbolc, Bealtaine and Lughnasadh. Historically, it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. Similar festivals are held at the same time of year in other Celtic lands; for example the Brythonic Calan Gaeaf (in Wales), Kalan Gwav (in Cornwall), and Kalan Goañv (in Brittany).
Samhain is believed to have Celtic pagan origins and there is evidence it has been an important date since ancient times. Some Neolithic passage tombs in Ireland are aligned with the sunrise around the time of Samhain. It is mentioned in some of the earliest Irish literature and many important events in Irish mythology happen or begin on Samhain. It was the time when cattle were brought back down from the summer pastures and when livestock were slaughtered for the winter. As at Bealtaine, special bonfires were lit. These were deemed to have protective and cleansing powers and there were rituals involving them.[1] Like Bealtaine, Samhain was seen as a liminal time, when the boundary between this world and the Otherworld could more easily be crossed. This meant the Aos Sí, the 'spirits' or 'fairies', could more easily come into our world. Most scholars see the Aos Sí as remnants of the pagan gods and nature spirits. At Samhain, it was believed that the Aos Sí needed to be propitiated to ensure that the people and their livestock survived the winter. Offerings of food and drink were left outside for them. The souls of the dead were also thought to revisit their homes seeking hospitality. Feasts were had, at which the souls of dead kin were beckoned to attend and a place set at the table for them. Mumming and guising were part of the festival, and involved people going door-to-door in costume (or in disguise), often reciting verses in exchange for food. The costumes may have been a way of imitating, and disguising oneself from, the Aos Sí. Divination rituals and games were also a big part of the festival and often involved nuts and apples. In the late 19th century, Sir John Rhys and Sir James Frazer suggested that it was the "Celtic New Year", and this view has been repeated by some other scholars.[2]
In the 9th century AD, the Western Christian Church shifted the date of All Saints' Day from the month of May to 1 November, while 2 November later became All Souls' Day. Over time, Samhain and All Saints'/All Souls' merged to create the modern Halloween.[3] Historians have used the name 'Samhain' to refer to Gaelic 'Halloween' customs up until the 19th century.[4]
Since the later 20th century, Celtic neopagans and Wiccans have observed Samhain, or something based on it, as a religious holiday.[5] Neopagans in the Southern Hemisphere often celebrate Samhain at the other end of the year (about 1 May).
Contents
[hide]
1 Etymology
1.1 Coligny calendar
2 History
2.1 In Irish mythology
2.2 Historic customs
2.3 Celtic Revival
3 Related festivals
3.1 Allhallowtide
4 Neopaganism
4.1 Celtic Reconstructionism
4.2 Wicca
5 See also
6 References
7 Secondary sources
8 Further reading
9 External links
Etymology[edit]
In Modern Irish the name is Samhain [ˈsˠaunʲ], in Scottish Gaelic Samhainn/Samhuinn [ˈsaũ.iɲ], and in Manx Gaelic Sauin. These are also the names of November in each language, shortened from Mí na Samhna (Irish), Mì na Samhna (Scottish Gaelic) and Mee Houney (Manx). The night of 31 October (Halloween) is Oíche Shamhna (Irish), Oidhche Shamhna (Scottish Gaelic) and Oie Houney (Manx), all meaning "Samhain night". 1 November, or the whole festival, may be called Lá Samhna (Irish), Là Samhna (Scottish Gaelic) and Laa Houney (Manx), all meaning "Samhain day".
These names all come from the Old Irish samain, samuin or samfuin [ˈsaṽɨnʲ] all referring to 1 November (latha na samna: 'samhain day'), and the festival and royal assembly held on that date in medieval Ireland (oenach na samna: 'samhain assembly'). Its meaning is glossed as 'summer's end', and the frequent spelling with f suggests analysis by popular etymology as sam ('summer') and fuin ('end'). The Old Irish sam is from Proto-Indo-European (PIE) *semo-; cognates include Welsh haf, Breton hañv, English summer and Old Norse sumar, all meaning 'summer', and the Sanskrit sáma ('season').[6][7]
In 1907, Whitley Stokes suggested an etymology from Proto-Celtic *samani ('assembly'), cognate to Sanskrit sámana, and Gothic samana.[8] J. Vendryes concludes that samain is unrelated to *semo- ('summer'), remarking that the Celtic 'end of summer' was in July, not November, as evidenced by Welsh gorffennaf ('July').[9] We would therefore be dealing with an Insular Celtic word for 'assembly', *samani or *samoni, and a word for 'summer', saminos (from *samo-: 'summer') alongside samrad, *samo-roto-.
Samonios on the Coligny calendar
Coligny calendar[edit]
Further information: Celtic calendar
The Gaulish month name SAMON[IOS] "(pertaining to) Summer" on the Coligny calendar is likely related to the word Samhain.[10] A festival of some kind may have been held during the 'three nights of Samonios' (Gaulish trinux[tion] samo[nii]). The Gaulish calendar seems to have split the year into two-halves: the first beginning with the month SAMON[IOS] and the second beginning with the month GIAMONIOS, which is related to the word for winter, PIE *g'hei-men- (Latin hiems, Latvian ziema, Lithuanian žiema, Slavic zima, Greek kheimon, Hittite gimmanza), cf. Old Irish gem-adaig ('winter's night'). Samonios may represent the beginning of the summer season and Giamonios (the seventh month) the beginning of the winter season. The lunations marking the middle of each half-year may also have been marked by festivals.[citation needed]
History[edit]
Samain or Samuin was the name of the feis or festival marking the beginning of winter in Gaelic Ireland. It is attested in some of the earliest Old Irish literature, from the 10th century onward. It was one of four Gaelic seasonal festivals: Samhain (~1 November), Imbolc (~1 February), Bealtaine (~1 May) and Lughnasadh (~1 August). Samhain and Bealtaine, at the witherward side of the year from each other, are thought to have been the most important. Sir James George Frazer wrote in The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion that 1 May and 1 November are of little importance to European crop-growers, but of great importance to herdsmen. It is at the beginning of summer that cattle are driven to the upland summer pastures and the beginning of winter that they are led back. Thus, Frazer suggests that halving the year at 1 May and 1 November dates from a time when the Celts were mainly a pastoral people, dependent on their herds.[11]
Some Neolithic passage tombs in Ireland are aligned with the sunrise around the times of Samhain and Imbolc. These include the Mound of the Hostages (Dumha na nGiall) at the Hill of Tara,[12] and Cairn L at Slieve na Calliagh.[13]
In medieval Ireland the festival marked the end of the season for trade and warfare and was a time for tribal gatherings. These gatherings are a popular setting for early Irish tales.[14]
In Irish mythology[edit]
The hero Fionn fighting Aillen, who is said to have burned Tara each Samhain
Irish mythology was originally a spoken tradition, but much of it was eventually written down in the Middle Ages by Christian monks,[15][16] who Christianized it to some extent. Nevertheless, these tales may shed some light on what Samhain meant and how it was marked in ancient Ireland.
Irish mythology tells us that Samhain was one of the four seasonal festivals of the year, and the 10th-century tale Tochmarc Emire ('The Wooing of Emer') lists Samhain as the first of these four "quarter days".[14] The tales say it was marked by great gatherings where they held meetings, feasted, drank alcohol,[17] and held contests.[14]
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; but while Bealtaine was a summer festival for the living, Samhain "was essentially a festival for the dead".[18] The Boyhood Deeds of Fionn says that the sídhe (fairy mounds or portals to the Otherworld) "were always open at Samhain".[19] It tells us that the High King of Ireland hosted a great gathering at Tara each Samhain. Each year the fire-breather Aillen emerges from the Otherworld and burns down the palace of Tara after lulling everyone to sleep with his music. One Samhain, the young Fionn mac Cumhaill is able to stay awake and slays Aillen with a magical spear, for which he is made leader of the fianna. Acallam na Senórach ('Colloquy of the Elders') tells how three female werewolves emerge from the cave of Cruachan (an Otherworld portal) each Samhain and kill livestock. When Cas Corach plays his harp, they take on human form, and the fianna warrior Caílte then slays them with a spear.[20]
Some tales may suggest that offerings or sacrifices were made at Samhain. In the Lebor Gabála Érenn (or 'Book of Invasions'), each Samhain the people of Nemed had to give two-thirds of their children, their corn and their milk to the monstrous Fomorians. The Fomorians seem to represent the harmful or destructive powers of nature; personifications of chaos, darkness, death, blight and drought.[21][22] This tribute paid by Nemed's people may represent a "sacrifice offered at the beginning of winter, when the powers of darkness and blight are in the ascendant".[23] According to the later Dindsenchas and the Annals of the Four Masters—which were written by Christian monks—Samhain in ancient Ireland was associated with a god or idol called Crom Cruach. The texts claim that a first-born child would be sacrificed at the stone idol of Crom Cruach in Magh Slécht. They say that King Tigernmas, and three-fourths of his people, died while worshiping Crom Cruach there one Samhain.[24]
The legendary kings Diarmait mac Cerbaill and Muirchertach mac Ercae each die a threefold death on Samhain, which involves wounding, burning and drowning, and of which they are forewarned. In the tale Togail Bruidne Dá Derga ('The Destruction of Dá Derga's Hostel'), king Conaire Mór also meets his death on Samhain after breaking his geasa (prohibitions or taboos). He is warned of his impending doom by three undead horsemen who are messengers of Donn, god of the dead.[25] The Boyhood Deeds of Fionn tells how each Samhain the men of Ireland went to woo a beautiful maiden who lives in the fairy mound on Brí Eile (Croghan Hill). It says that each year someone would be killed "to mark the occasion", by persons unknown.[26] Some academics suggest that these tales recall human sacrifice,[27] and argue that several ancient Irish bog bodies (such as Old Croghan Man) appear to have been kings who were ritually killed,[28] some of them around the time of Samhain.[29]
In the Echtra Neraí ('The Adventure of Nera'),[30] King Ailill of Connacht sets his retinue a test of bravery on Samhain night. He offers a prize to whoever can make it to a gallows and tie a band around a hanged man's ankle. Each challenger is thwarted by demons and runs back to the king's hall in fear. However, Nera succeeds, and the dead man then asks for a drink. Nera carries him on his back and they stop at three houses. They enter the third, where the dead man drinks and spits it on the householders, killing them. Returning, Nera sees a fairy host burning the king's hall and slaughtering those inside. He follows the host through a portal into the Otherworld. Nera learns that what he saw was only a vision of what will happen the next Samhain unless something is done. He is able to return to the hall and warns the king.
The tale Aided Chrimthainn maic Fidaig ('The Killing of Crimthann mac Fidaig') tells how Mongfind kills her brother, king Crimthann of Munster, so that one of her sons might become king. Mongfind offers Crimthann a poisoned drink at a feast, but he asks her to drink from it first. Having no other choice but to drink the poison, she dies on Samhain eve. The Middle Irish writer notes that Samhain is also called Féile Moingfhinne (the Festival of Mongfind or Mongfhionn), and that "women and the rabble make petitions to her" at Samhain.[31][32]
Many other events in Irish mythology happen or begin on Samhain. The invasion of Ulster that makes up the main action of the Táin Bó Cúailnge ('Cattle Raid of Cooley') begins on Samhain. As cattle-raiding typically was a summer activity, the invasion during this off-season surprised the Ulstermen.[33] The Second Battle of Magh Tuireadh also begins on Samhain.[34] The Morrígan and The Dagda meet and have sex before the battle against the Fomorians; in this way the Morrígan acts as a sovereignty figure and gives the victory to the Dagda's people, the Tuatha Dé Danann. In Aislinge Óengusa ('The Dream of Óengus') it is when he and his bride-to-be switch from bird to human form, and in Tochmarc Étaíne ('The Wooing of Étaín') it is the day on which Óengus claims the kingship of Brú na Bóinne.[27]
Oweynagat ('cave of the cats'), one of the many 'gateways to the Otherworld' whence beings and spirits were said to have emerged on Samhain.
Several sites in Ireland are especially linked to Samhain. Each Samhain a host of otherworldly beings was said to emerge from Oweynagat ("cave of the cats"), at Rathcroghan in County Roscommon.[35] The Hill of Ward (or Tlachtga) in County Meath is thought to have been the site of a great Samhain gathering and bonfire;[17] the Iron Age ringfort is said to have been where the goddess or druid Tlachtga gave birth to triplets and where she later died.
In The Stations of the Sun: A History of the Ritual Year in Britain (1996), Ronald Hutton writes: "No doubt there were [pagan] religious observances as well, but none of the tales ever portrays any". The only historic reference to pagan religious rites is in the work of Geoffrey Keating (died 1644), but his source is unknown. Hutton says it may be that no religious rites are mentioned because, centuries after Christianization, the writers had no record of them.[14] Hutton suggests Samhain may not have been particularly associated with the supernatural. He says that the gatherings of royalty and warriors on Samhain may simply have been an ideal setting for such tales, in the same way that many Arthurian tales are set at courtly gatherings at Christmas or Pentecost.[36]
Historic customs[edit]
Samhain was one of the four main festivals of the Gaelic calendar, marking the end of the harvest and beginning of winter.[17] Samhain customs are mentioned in several medieval texts. In Serglige Con Culainn ('Cúchulainn's Sickbed'), it is said that the festival of the Ulaid at Samhain lasted a week: Samhain itself, and the three days before and after. It involved great gatherings at which they held meetings, feasted, drank alcohol, and held contests.[14] The Togail Bruidne Dá Derga notes that bonfires were lit at Samhain and stones cast into the fires.[37] It is mentioned in Geoffrey Keating's Foras Feasa ar Éirinn, which was written in the early 1600s but draws on earlier medieval sources, some of which are unknown. He claims that the feis of Tara was held for a week every third Samhain, when the nobles and ollams of Ireland met to lay down and renew the laws, and to feast.[38] He also claims that the druids lit a sacred bonfire at Tlachtga and made sacrifices to the gods, sometimes by burning them in the fire. He adds that all other fires were doused and then re-lit from this bonfire.[39]
Traditionally, Samhain was a time to take stock of the herds and food supplies. Cattle were brought down to the winter pastures after six months in the higher summer pastures.[17] It was also the time to choose which animals would need to be slaughtered for the winter. This custom is still observed by many who farm and raise livestock[1][40] because it is when meat will keep since the freeze has come and also since summer grass is gone and free foraging is no longer possible. It is thought that some of the rituals associated with the slaughter have been transferred to other winter holidays. On St. Martin's Day (11 November) in Ireland, an animal – usually a rooster, goose or sheep – would be slaughtered and some of its blood sprinkled on the threshold of the house. It was offered to Saint Martin, who may have taken the place of a god or gods,[41] and it was then eaten as part of a feast. This custom was common in parts of Ireland until the 19th century,[42] and was found in some other parts of Europe. At New Year in the Hebrides, a man dressed in a cowhide would circle the township sunwise. A bit of the hide would be burnt and everyone would breathe in the smoke.[41] These customs were meant to keep away bad luck, and similar customs were found in other Celtic regions.[41]
Bonfires were a big part of the festival in many areas (pictured is a Beltane bonfire in Scotland)
As at Bealtaine, bonfires were lit on hilltops at Samhain and there were rituals involving them.[17] However, by the modern era, they only seem to have been common in parts of the Scottish Highlands, on the Isle of Man, in north and mid Wales, and in parts of Ulster.[43] F. Marian McNeill says that a force-fire (or need-fire) was the traditional way of lighting them, but notes that this method gradually died out.[40] Likewise, only certain kinds of wood were traditionally used, but later records show that many kinds of flammable material were burnt.[44] It is suggested that the fires were a kind of imitative or sympathetic magic – they mimicked the Sun, helping the "powers of growth" and holding back the decay and darkness of winter.[40][41][45] They may also have served to symbolically "burn up and destroy all harmful influences".[45] Accounts from the 18th and 19th centuries suggest that the fires (as well as their smoke and ashes) were deemed to have protective and cleansing powers.[46] In Moray, boys asked for bonfire fuel from each house in the village. When the fire was lit, "one after another of the youths laid himself down on the ground as near to the fire as possible so as not to be burned, and in such a position as to let the smoke roll over him. The others ran through the smoke and jumped over him". When the bonfire burnt down, they scattered the ashes, vying with each other who should scatter them most.[46] Sometimes, two bonfires would be built side by side, and the people – sometimes with their livestock – would walk between them as a cleansing ritual. The bones of slaughtered cattle were said to have been cast upon bonfires. In the pre-Christian Gaelic world, cattle were the main form of wealth and were the center of agricultural and pastoral life.
People also took flames from the bonfire back to their homes. In parts of Scotland, torches of burning fir or turf were carried sunwise around homes and fields to protect them.[43] In some places, people doused their hearth fires on Samhain night. Each family then solemnly re-lit its hearth from the communal bonfire, thus bonding the community together.[1][40] The 17th century writer Geoffrey Keating claimed that this was an ancient tradition, instituted by the druids.[14] Dousing the old fire and bringing in the new may have been a way of banishing evil, which was done at New Year festivals in many countries.[41]
Snap-Apple Night (1833), painted by Daniel Maclise, shows people playing divination games on 31 October in Ireland
The bonfires were also used in divination rituals. In 18th century Ochtertyre, a ring of stones—one for each person—was laid round the fire, perhaps on a layer of ashes. Everyone then ran round it with a torch, "exulting". In the morning, the stones were examined and if any was mislaid it was said that the person it represented would not live out the year. A similar custom was observed in north Wales[46] and in Brittany.[47] James Frazer says that this may come from "an older custom of actually burning them" (i.e. human sacrifice) or may have always been symbolic.[48] Divination has likely been a part of the festival since ancient times,[17] and it has survived in some rural areas.[49] At household festivities throughout the Gaelic regions and Wales, there were many rituals intended to divine the future of those gathered, especially with regard to death and marriage.[17][50] Apples and hazelnuts were often used in these divination rituals or games. In Celtic mythology, apples were strongly associated with the Otherworld and immortality, while hazelnuts were associated with divine wisdom.[51] One of the most common games was apple bobbing. Another involved hanging a small wooden rod from the ceiling at head height, with a lit candle on one end and an apple hanging from the other. The rod was spun round and everyone took turns to try to catch the apple with their teeth.[52] Apples were peeled in one long strip, the peel tossed over the shoulder, and its shape was said to form the first letter of the future spouse's name.[53] Two hazelnuts were roasted near a fire; one named for the person roasting them and the other for the person they desired. If the nuts jumped away from the heat, it was a bad sign, but if the nuts roasted quietly it foretold a good match.[54][55] Items were hidden in food—usually a cake, barmbrack, cranachan, champ or sowans—and portions of it served out at random. A person's future was foretold by the item they happened to find; for example a ring meant marriage and a coin meant wealth.[56] A salty oatmeal bannock was baked; the person ate it in three bites and then went to bed in silence without anything to drink. This was said to result in a dream in which their future spouse offers them a drink to quench their thirst.[57] Egg whites were dropped in water, and the shapes foretold the number of future children. Children would also chase crows and divine some of these things from the number of birds or the direction they flew.[1][40][44]
As noted earlier, Samhain was seen as a liminal time, when the boundary between this world and the Otherworld could more easily be crossed.[58] This meant the aos sí, the 'spirits' or 'fairies', could more easily come into our world. Many scholars see the aos sí as remnants of the pagan gods and nature spirits.[59][60] At Samhain, it was believed that the aos sí needed to be propitiated to ensure that the people and their livestock survived the winter. As such, offerings of food and drink would be left outside for the aos sí.[61][62] Portions of the crops might also be left in the ground for them.[63] One custom—described a "blatant example" of a "pagan rite surviving into the Christian epoch"—was observed in the Outer Hebrides until the early 19th century. On 31 October, the locals would go down to the shore. One man would wade into the water up to his waist, where he would pour out a cup of ale and ask 'Seonaidh' ('Shoney'), whom he called "god of the sea", to bestow blessings on them.[43] People also took special care not to offend the aos sí and sought to ward-off any who were out to cause mischief. They stayed near to home or, if forced to walk in the darkness, turned their clothing inside-out or carried iron or salt to keep them at bay.[17] The dead were also honored at Samhain. The beginning of winter may have been seen as the most fitting time to do so, as it was a time of 'dying' in nature.[64] The souls of the dead were thought to revisit their homes seeking hospitality. Places were set at the dinner table and by the fire to welcome them.[1][65] The belief that the souls of the dead return home on one night of the year and must be appeased seems to have ancient origins and is found in many cultures throughout the world.[66] James Frazer suggests "It was perhaps a natural thought that the approach of winter should drive the poor, shivering, hungry ghosts from the bare fields and the leafless woodlands to the shelter of the cottage".[67] However, the souls of thankful kin could return to bestow blessings just as easily as that of a wronged person could return to wreak revenge.[68]
A Mari Lwyd, the Welsh equivalent of the Láir Bhán
Mumming and guising was a part of Samhain from at least the 16th century and was recorded in parts of Ireland, Scotland, Mann and Wales.[69] It involved people going from house to house in costume (or in disguise), usually reciting songs or verses in exchange for food.[69] It is suggested that it evolved from a tradition whereby people impersonated the aos sí, or the souls of the dead, and received offerings on their behalf.[69] Impersonating these spirits or souls was also believed to protect oneself from them.[70] S. V. Peddle suggests the guisers "personify the old spirits of the winter, who demanded reward in exchange for good fortune".[71] McNeill suggests that the ancient festival included people in masks or costumes representing these spirits and that the modern custom came from this.[72] In Ireland, costumes were sometimes worn by those who went about before nightfall collecting for a Samhain feast.[69]
In parts of southern Ireland during the 19th century, the guisers included a hobby horse known as the Láir Bhán (white mare). A man covered in a white sheet and carrying a decorated horse skull (representing the Láir Bhán) would lead a group of youths, blowing on cow horns, from farm to farm. At each they recited verses, some of which "savoured strongly of paganism", and the farmer was expected to donate food. If the farmer donated food he could expect good fortune from the 'Muck Olla'; not doing so would bring misfortune.[73] This is akin to the Mari Lwyd (grey mare) procession in Wales, which takes place at Midwinter. In Wales the white horse is often seen as an omen of death.[74] In some places, young people cross-dressed.[69] In Scotland, young men went house-to-house with masked, veiled, painted or blackened faces,[44][75] often threatening to do mischief if they were not welcomed.[69] This was common in the 16th century in the Scottish countryside and persisted into the 20th.[76] It is suggested that the blackened faces comes from using the bonfire's ashes for protection.[72] Elsewhere in Europe, costumes, mumming and hobby horses were part of other yearly festivals. However, in the Celtic-speaking regions they were "particularly appropriate to a night upon which supernatural beings were said to be abroad and could be imitated or warded off by human wanderers".[69]
An Irish Seán Na Gealaí turnip lantern from the early 20th century at the Museum of Country Life
Hutton writes: "When imitating malignant spirits it was a very short step from guising to playing pranks". Playing pranks at Samhain is recorded in the Scottish Highlands as far back as 1736 and was also common in Ireland, which led to Samhain being nicknamed "Mischief Night" in some parts.[69] Wearing costumes at Halloween spread to England in the 20th century, as did the custom of playing pranks, though there had been mumming at other festivals.[69] At the time of mass transatlantic Irish and Scottish immigration, which popularised Halloween in North America, Halloween in Ireland and Scotland had a strong tradition of guising and pranks.[77] Trick-or-treating may have come from the custom of going door-to-door collecting food for Samhain feasts, fuel for Samhain bonfires and/or offerings for the aos sí. Alternatively, it may have come from the All Saints/All Souls custom of collecting soul cakes.
The "traditional illumination for guisers or pranksters abroad on the night in some places was provided by turnips or mangel wurzels, hollowed out to act as lanterns and often carved with grotesque faces".[69] They were also set on windowsills. By those who made them, the lanterns were variously said to represent the spirits or supernatural beings,[78] or were used to ward off evil spirits.[75][79][80] These were common in parts of Ireland and the Scotland into the 20th century.[69] They were also found in Somerset (see Punkie Night). In the 20th century they spread to other parts of England and became generally known as jack-o'-lanterns.[69]
Celtic Revival[edit]
During the late 19th and early 20th century Celtic Revival, there was an upswell of interest in Samhain and the other Celtic festivals. Sir John Rhys put forth that it had been the "Celtic New Year". He inferred it from contemporary folklore in Ireland and Wales, which he felt was "full of Hallowe'en customs associated with new beginnings". He visited Mann and found that the Manx sometimes called 31 October "New Year's Night" or Hog-unnaa. The Tochmarc Emire, written in the Middle Ages, reckoned the year around the four festivals at the beginning of the seasons, and put Samhain at the beginning of those. However, Hutton says that the evidence for it being the Celtic or Gaelic New Year's Day is flimsy.[81] Rhys's theory was popularised by Sir James George Frazer, though at times he did acknowledge that the evidence is inconclusive. Frazer also put forth that Samhain had been the pagan Celtic festival of the dead and that it had been Christianized as All Saints and All Souls.[81] Since then, Samhain has been popularly seen as the Celtic New Year and an ancient festival of the dead. The calendar of the Celtic League, for example, begins and ends at Samhain.[82]
Related festivals[edit]
Further information: Halloween
In the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages, Samhain is known as the 'calends of winter'. The Brythonic lands of Wales, Cornwall and Brittany held festivals on 31 October similar to the Gaelic one. In Wales it is Calan Gaeaf, in Cornwall it is Allantide or Kalan Gwav and in Brittany it is Kalan Goañv.[27]
The Manx celebrate Hop-tu-Naa on 31 October, which is a celebration of the original New Year's Eve. The term is Manx Gaelic in origin, possibly from Shogh ta'n Oie, meaning "this is the night". Traditionally, children carve turnips rather than pumpkins and carry them around the neighborhood singing traditional songs relating to hop-tu-naa.[citation needed]
Allhallowtide[edit]
The Roman Catholic holy day of All Saints (or All Hallows) was introduced in the year 609, but was originally celebrated on 13 May.[83] In 835, Louis the Pious switched it to 1 November in the Carolingian Empire, at the behest of Pope Gregory IV.[83] However, from the testimony of Pseudo-Bede, it is known that churches in what are now England and Germany were already celebrating All Saints on 1 November at the beginning of the 8th century.[83][84][85] Thus, Louis merely made official the custom of celebrating it on 1 November. James Frazer suggests that 1 November was chosen because it was the date of the Celtic festival of the dead (Samhain) – the Celts had influenced their English neighbours, and English missionaries had influenced the Germans. However, Ronald Hutton points out that, according to Óengus of Tallaght (d. ca. 824), the 7th/8th century church in Ireland celebrated All Saints on 20 April. He suggests that the 1 November date was a Germanic rather than a Celtic idea.[83] In the 11th century, 2 November became established as All Souls' Day. This created the three-day observance known as Allhallowtide: All Hallows' Eve (31 October), All Hallows' Day (1 November), and All Souls' Day (2 November).
It is widely believed that many of the modern secular customs of All Hallows' Eve (or Halloween) were influenced by the festival of Samhain.[86][87]
Neopaganism[edit]
See also: Wheel of the Year
Samhain and Samhain-based festivals are held by some Neopagans. As there are many kinds of Neopaganism, their Samhain celebrations can be very different despite the shared name. Some try to emulate the historic festival as much as possible. Other Neopagans base their celebrations on sundry unrelated sources, Gaelic culture being only one of the sources.[5][88][89] Folklorist Jenny Butler[90] describes how Irish pagans pick some elements of historic Samhain celebrations and meld them with references to the Celtic past, making a new festival of Samhain that is inimitably part of neo-pagan culture.
Neopagans usually celebrate Samhain on 31 October – 1 November in the Northern Hemisphere and 30 April – 1 May in the Southern Hemisphere, beginning and ending at sundown.[91][92][93][94] Some Neopagans celebrate it at the astronomical midpoint between the autumn equinox and winter solstice (or the full moon nearest this point). In the Northern Hemisphere, this midpoint is when the ecliptic longitude of the Sun reaches 225 degrees.[95] In 2015, this is on 7 November, at 17:44 GMT.[96]
Celtic Reconstructionism[edit]
Like other Reconstructionist traditions, Celtic Reconstructionist Pagans emphasise historical accuracy. They base their celebrations and rituals on traditional lore as well as research into the beliefs of the polytheistic Celts.[89][97]
Celtic Reconstructionist Pagans (or CRs) often celebrate Samhain on the date of first frost, or when the last of the harvest is in and the ground is dry enough to have a bonfire.[98] Some follow the old tradition of building two bonfires, which celebrants and livestock then walk or dance between as a ritual of purification.[1][40] For CRs, it is a time when the dead are especially honoured. Though CRs make offerings at all times of the year, Samhain is a time when more elaborate offerings are made to specific ancestors.[98] This may involve making a small shrine. Often there will be a meal, where a place for the dead is set at the table and they are invited to join. Traditional tales may be told and traditional songs, poems and dances performed. A western-facing door or window may be opened and a candle left burning on the windowsill to guide the dead home. Divination for the coming year is often done, whether in all solemnity or as games for the children. The more mystically inclined may also see this as a time for deeply communing with their deities, especially those seen as being particularly linked with this festival.[1][40][89][97][98]
Wicca[edit]
Wiccans celebrate a variation of Samhain as one of the yearly Sabbats of the Wheel of the Year. It is deemed by most Wiccans to be the most important of the four "greater Sabbats". Samhain is seen by some Wiccans as a time to celebrate the lives of those who have died, and it often involves paying respect to ancestors, family members, elders of the faith, friends, pets and other loved ones who have died. In some rituals the spirits of the dead are invited to attend the festivities. It is seen as a festival of darkness, which is balanced at the opposite point of the wheel by the spring festival of Beltane, which Wiccans celebrate as a festival of light and fertility.[99]
Wiccans believe that at Samhain the veil between this world and the afterlife is at its thinnest point of the whole year, making it easier to communicate with those who have left this world.[100]
See also[edit]
Holidays
Bealtaine
Imbolc
Lammas
Lughnasadh
Calendars
Celtic calendar
Irish calendar
Welsh Holidays
Early Irish literature
Serglige Con Culainn
Togail Bruidne Dá Derga
Cath Maige Tuired
Mesca Ulad
Tochmarc Étaíne
Christianisation of saints and feasts
Samhain in popular culture
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Jump up ^ "All Saints Day," The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, 3rd edition, ed. E. A. Livingstone (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997), 41–42; The New Catholic Encyclopedia, eo.loc.
Jump up ^ "BBC – Religions – Christianity: All Hallows' Eve". British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2011. It is widely believed that many Hallowe'en traditions have evolved from an ancient Celtic festival called Samhain which was Christianised by the early Church
Jump up ^ Merriam-Webster's Encyclopædia of World Religions. Merriam-Webster. 1999. Retrieved 31 October 2011. Halloween, also called All Hallows' Eve, holy or hallowed evening observed on October 31, the eve of All Saints' Day. The Irish pre-Christian observances influenced the Christian festival of All Hallows' Eve, celebrated on the same date.
Jump up ^ Adler, Margot (1979, revised edition 2006) Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America Today. Boston, Beacon Press ISBN 0-8070-3237-9. pp.3, 243–299
^ Jump up to: a b c McColman, Carl (2003) Complete Idiot's Guide to Celtic Wisdom. Alpha Press ISBN 0-02-864417-4. pp.12, 51
Jump up ^ Butler, Jenny (2009), "Neo-Pagan Celebrations of Samhain" 67–82 in Foley, M. and O'Donnell, H., ed. Treat or Trick? Halloween in a Globalising World, Cambridge: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN 1-4438-0153-4
Jump up ^ Nevill Drury (2009). "The Modern Magical Revival: Esbats and Sabbats". In Pizza, Murphy; Lewis, James R. Handbook of Contemporary Paganism. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill Publishers. pp. 63–67. ISBN 9789004163737.
Jump up ^ Hume, Lynne (1997). Witchcraft and Paganism in Australia. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press. ISBN 9780522847826.
Jump up ^ Vos, Donna (2002). Dancing Under an African Moon: Paganism and Wicca in South Africa. Cape Town: Zebra Press. pp. 79–86. ISBN 9781868726530.
Jump up ^ Bodsworth, Roxanne T (2003). Sunwyse: Celebrating the Sacred Wheel of the Year in Australia. Victoria, Australia: Hihorse Publishing. ISBN 9780909223038.
Jump up ^ "Equinoxes, Solstice, Cross Quarters shown as seasonal cusps, worshipped by pagans and later religious holidays". Archaeoastronomy.com. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
Jump up ^ "Chart of 2015 equinox, solstice and cross quarter dates and times, worldwide from". archaeoastronomy.com. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
^ Jump up to: a b Bonewits, Isaac (2006) Bonewits's Essential Guide to Druidism. New York, Kensington Publishing Group ISBN 0-8065-2710-2. pp.179, 183–4, 128–140
^ Jump up to: a b c Kathryn NicDhana et al. The CR FAQ: An Introduction to Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism. 2007. pp.97–98
Jump up ^ Starhawk (1979, 1989) The Spiral Dance: A Rebirth of the Ancient Religion of the Great Goddess. New York, Harper and Row ISBN 0-06-250814-8 pp.193–6 (revised edition)
Jump up ^ Nevill Drury (2009). "The Modern Magical Revival". In Pizza, Murphy; Lewis, James R. Handbook of Contemporary Paganism. Leiden: BRILL. p. 65. ISBN 9789004163737.
Secondary sources[edit]
Arnold, Bettina (31 October 2001). "Bettina Arnold – Halloween Lecture: Halloween Customs in the Celtic World". Halloween Inaugural Celebration. University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee: Center for Celtic Studies. Archived from the original on 4 January 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2018.
Campbell, John Gregorson. The Gaelic Otherworld, edited by Ronald Black. (1900, 1902, 2005). Birlinn Ltd. pp. 559–62. ISBN 1-84158-207-7
Danaher, Kevin. "Irish Folk Tradition and the Celtic Calendar." In The Celtic Consciousness, ed. Robert O'Driscoll. New York: Braziller, 1981. pp. 217–42. ISBN 0-8076-1136-0. On specific customs and rituals.
Ross, Anne "Material Culture, Myth and Folk Memory". In The Celtic Consciousness, ed. Robert O'Driscoll. New York: Braziller, 1981. 197–216. ISBN 0-8076-1136-0.
Stokes, Whitley (1907). "Irish etyma". Zeitschrift für vergleichende Sprachforschung. 40: 243–9.
Vendryes, J. Lexique Étymologique de l'Irlandais Ancien. 1959.
Further reading[edit]
Carmichael, Alexander (1992). Carmina Gadelica. Lindisfarne Press ISBN 0-940262-50-9
Danaher, Kevin (1972) The Year in Ireland. Dublin, Mercier ISBN 1-85635-093-2
Evans-Wentz, W. Y. (1966, 1990) The Fairy-Faith in Celtic Countries. New York, Citadel ISBN 0-8065-1160-5
MacKillop, James (1998). Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-280120-1
McCone, Kim R. (1980). "Firinne agus torthúlacht". Léachtaí Cholm Cille. 11: 136–173.
McNeill, F. Marian (1959) The Silver Bough, Vol. 1–4. William MacLellan, Glasgow.
External links[edit]
Look up samhain in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
A to Z of Halloween – Ancient and modern Samhain and Halloween traditions in Ireland.
Feast of Samhain/Celtic New Year/Celebration of All Celtic Saints – Celtic Christians in Massachusetts, USA.
Halloween and Samhain – Bilingual, Irish folklore.
Samhain: Season of Death and Renewal – Celtic Studies and Reconstructionism.
Samhain at the Hill of Tara, 2007 – Photos of the lighting of the signal fires on Tlachtga and Tara
The Witches' New Year – A ReClaiming Wiccan's account of her celebrations and beliefs regarding Samhain.
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