Changes

== Etymology ==

== Etymology ==

The word Samhain is derived from Old Irish ''Samain''. The earliest known usage is in the ninth century text ''Felire Oengusso.''<ref name="Morgan">Morgan, Bernard, "[https://www.academia.edu/30803038/The_semantic_shift_of_Samain_from_Summer_to_Winter The semantic shift of Samain from Summer to Winter]".</ref> ''Samain'' is from Proto-Celtic ''*samani'', meaning "assembly."<ref name="etymol">Stokes, Whitley (1907). “Irish etyma.” ''Zeitschrift für vergleichende Sprachforschung.'' 40:245.<br/>Matasović, Ranko, ''Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic'', Brill, 2009. "GOID MIr. ''samain'' (assembly on the) 1st of November [i f]"</ref> In pagan times, the Feast of Tara (''feis Temrach'') met around the time of Samhain.<ref name="Cormac">"[https://sejh.pagesperso-orange.fr/keltia/version-en/echtraCormacB.html The Irish Ordeals, Cormac's Adventure in the Land of Promise, and the Decision as to Cormac's Sword.]," Trans. Whitley Stokes.</ref>

The word Samhain is derived from Old Irish ''Samain''. The earliest known usage is in ''Martyrology of Óengus,'' a ninth century text.<ref name="Morgan">Morgan, Bernard, "[https://www.academia.edu/30803038/The_semantic_shift_of_Samain_from_Summer_to_Winter The semantic shift of Samain from Summer to Winter]".<br/>“Lonán, Colmán, Cronán with their bright sunny following the hosts of Hilarius sure multitudinous ennoble stormy All‐Saints’ day [Samain].” (''Martyrology of Óengus'', ninth century)</ref> ''Samain'' is from Proto-Celtic ''*samani'', meaning "assembly."<ref name="etymol">Stokes, Whitley (1907). “Irish etyma.” ''Zeitschrift für vergleichende Sprachforschung.'' 40:245.<br/>Matasović, Ranko, ''Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic'', Brill, 2009. "GOID MIr. ''samain'' (assembly on the) 1st of November [i f]"</ref> In pagan times, the Feast of Tara (''feis Temrach'') met around the time of Samhain.<ref name="Cormac">"[https://sejh.pagesperso-orange.fr/keltia/version-en/echtraCormacB.html The Irish Ordeals, Cormac's Adventure in the Land of Promise, and the Decision as to Cormac's Sword.]," Trans. Whitley Stokes.</ref>

The medieval tale "The Sick-Bed of Cuchulain" claims that ''Samain'' means "summer's end" (''sam-fuin'').<ref name="Leahy"/><ref name="McBain"/> This derivation is not accepted by modern scholars. The month of May is ''Cétamain'' in Old Irish, cognate with Middle Welsh ''Kintevin''. Both words are derived from ''*kentu-samonyo'', proto-Celtic for beginning of summer. End of summer should be a parallel construction. In Middle Irish, summer reduced to ''sam''. The bards projected usage in their time on to an earlier period.<ref name="etymol"/>

The medieval tale "The Sick-Bed of Cuchulain" claims that ''Samain'' means "summer's end" (''sam-fuin'').<ref name="Leahy"/><ref name="McBain"/> This derivation is not accepted by modern scholars. The month of May is ''Cétamain'' in Old Irish, cognate with Middle Welsh ''Kintevin''. Both words are derived from ''*kentu-samonyo'', proto-Celtic for beginning of summer. End of summer should be a parallel construction. In Middle Irish, summer reduced to ''sam''. The bards may have projected the Middle Irish usage of their own time on to an earlier period.<ref name="etymol"/>

== History ==

== History ==

=== The Celtic calendar ===

=== The Celtic calendar ===

''Regula Coenobialis of St Columban'', written in AD 540‐615, is the oldest source to describe November 1 as the first day of winter.<ref>“Rule 7: … up to the beginning of winter, that is, the first of November.” ''Regula Coenobialis of St Columban''.<br/>“Lonán, Colmán, Cronán with their bright sunny following the hosts of Hilarius sure multitudinous ennoble stormy All‐Saints’ day [Samain].” ''Felire Oengusso.''</ref> November 1 was Christianized as All Saints Day in the eighth century.

November 1 was "the beginning of winter," according to ''Regula Coenobialis of St Columban'', written in AD 540‐615.<ref>“Rule 7: … up to the beginning of winter, that is, the first of November.” ''Regula Coenobialis of St Columban''.</ref> So the date was already linked to Celtic winter before All Saints Day was established in 731.

''Cormac's Glossary'' gives ''Imbol'' (February 1) as the first day of spring, ''Beltaine'' (May 1) the first day of summer, ''Lugnasad'' (August 1) the first day of fall, and ''Samhain'' (November 1) the first day of winter. This glossary was started by the king-bishop of Munster around AD 900. Some entries were added centuries later.<ref name="Cormac">Beltaine is identified with ''biltine'' (May Day). The entry on November notes that it is the winter month following Samhain: "'''Gamuin''', i.e. in the month of Gam, i.e., after Samuin; whence gamnach, i.e. winter‐engorged teats, i.e., milk milked in the month of winter, i.e. in the season of winter." (''[https://archive.org/details/sanaschormaicco00stokgoog/page/n40/mode/2up Sanas Chormaic. Cormac's glossary]''

''Cormac's Glossary'' gives ''Imbol'' (February 1) as the first day of spring, ''Beltaine'' (May 1) the first day of summer, ''Lugnasad'' (August 1) the first day of fall, and ''Samhain'' (November 1) the first day of winter. This glossary was started by the king-bishop of Munster around AD 900. Some entries were added centuries later.<ref name="Cormac">Beltaine is identified with ''biltine'' (May Day). The entry on November notes that it is the winter month following Samhain: "'''Gamuin''', i.e. in the month of Gam, i.e., after Samuin; whence gamnach, i.e. winter‐engorged teats, i.e., milk milked in the month of winter, i.e. in the season of winter." (''[https://archive.org/details/sanaschormaicco00stokgoog/page/n40/mode/2up Sanas Chormaic. Cormac's glossary]''

by Cormac, O'Donovan, John, ed. and tr; Stokes, Whitley, 1868)</ref>

by Cormac, O'Donovan, John, ed. and tr; Stokes, Whitley, 1868)</ref>

A Celtic lunisolar calendar has been reconstructed from fragments of a second AD calendar found in the French town of Coligny. The first month on the calendar is called ''Samonios''. As ''samo-'' is Gaulish for summer, this was presumably a summer month.<ref>Lambert, Pierre-Yves, ''La langue gauloise,'' Editions Errance, 2nd edition, Paris, 2003, p. 266. "'''Samo-''', `été'</ref> The Celts celebrated a three-day festival that began on the 17th of ''Samonios'', according to this calendar.<ref name="Olmsted">Olmsted, Garrett (2009). ''The Coligny Calendar: the Implications for Gaulish and Irish Festival Dates''.</ref> This festival may correspond to Beltaine, the principle Celtic holiday. If so, 17 Samonios corresponds to May 1, the Julian date for Beltaine. The calendar may have been designed to start on the summer solstice (June 21). Various factors could have caused it to move out of alignment, including the swing of the seasons from one year of the cycle to the next and calendar drift. Perhaps change of season dates were placed on the first of the month for convenience.

A Celtic lunisolar calendar has been reconstructed from fragments of a second AD calendar found in the French town of Coligny. The first month is ''Samonios''. ''Samo-'' is Gaulish for summer.<ref>Lambert, Pierre-Yves, ''La langue gauloise,'' Editions Errance, 2nd edition, Paris, 2003, p. 266. "'''Samo-''', `été'</ref> The Celts celebrated a three-day festival that began on the 17th of ''Samonios'', according to this calendar.<ref name="Olmsted">Olmsted, Garrett (2009). ''The Coligny Calendar: the Implications for Gaulish and Irish Festival Dates''.</ref> This festival may correspond to Beltaine, the principle holiday of the Irish pagan Celts.

=== Date of festival ===

=== Date of festival ===