Samhain is a Gaelic festival held on November 1. It marks the end of the harvest season in autumn and the start of winter, or the "darker half" of the year. It is also the Irish and Scottish Gaelic name for November. Celebrations begin on the evening of October 31 because the Celtic day started and ended at sunset. This date is about halfway between the autumnal equinox and the winter solstice. Samhain is one of four Gaelic seasonal festivals, along with Imbolc, Bealtaine, and Lughnasa. Historically, it originated in Ireland and was widely celebrated in Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. Its equivalent in Wales is called Calan Gaeaf.
Samhain is believed to have Celtic pagan origins. Some ancient tombs in Great Britain and Ireland are aligned with the sunrise on Samhain. It is mentioned in early Irish writings from the 9th century and is linked to important events in Irish mythology. Early records describe Samhain as a time of large gatherings and feasts. Burial mounds were open during this time, and people believed these mounds were portals to the Otherworld. Some medieval stories also mention bonfires and sacrifices during the festival.
The festival was not recorded in detail until the early modern era. At this time, cattle were brought down from summer pastures, and livestock were slaughtered. Special bonfires were lit, believed to have protective and cleansing powers. Like Bealtaine, Samhain was a liminal festival, a time when the boundary between this world and the Otherworld became unclear, making contact with the aos sí (spirits or fairies) more likely. People offered food and drink to these beings to ensure survival during winter. It was also believed that the souls of deceased family members returned home, and a place was set at the table for them during meals.
Mumming and guising were part of the festival, where people wore costumes and visited homes, reciting verses to receive food. These costumes may have been used to imitate or hide from the aos sí. Divination, often involving nuts and apples, was also a common practice. In the late 19th century, some scholars suggested Samhain was the "Celtic New Year," though this idea is debated.
In the 9th century, the Western Church set November 1 as All Saints' Day, possibly influenced by Irish missionaries. November 2 later became All Souls' Day. These Christian holidays are thought to have influenced each other and modern Halloween. Most American Halloween traditions come from Irish and Scottish immigrants. Folklorists used the term "Samhain" to describe Gaelic Halloween customs until the 19th century.
Since the late 20th century, Celtic neopagans and Wiccans have celebrated Samhain or similar traditions as religious holidays.
Name
In Modern Irish and Scottish Gaelic, the name is Samhain, while the traditional Manx Gaelic name is Sauin. It is usually written with the definite article An tSamhain (Irish), An t-Samhain (Scottish Gaelic), and Yn Tauin (Manx). Older forms of the word include the Scottish Gaelic spellings Samhainn and Samhuinn. The Gaelic names for the month of November are derived from Samhain. The Irish name for Samhain night is Oíche Shamhna, pronounced /ˈiːhə ˈhaʊnə/.
The name of the Galician festival of Samaín from the Cedeira comarca is not related in origin, as it comes from the Latin word sambucum, meaning "elderberry."
These names come from the Old and Middle Irish Samain or Samuin [ˈsaβ̃ɨnʲ], the name for the festival held on 1 November in medieval Ireland. Traditionally, it is thought to come from the proto-Indo-European semo, meaning "summer." However, John T. Koch notes that it is unclear why a festival marking the start of winter would include the word for "summer." Linguist Joseph Vendryes argues that the name is not related, stating that the Celtic summer ended in August. More recently, linguists Xavier Delamarre and Ranko Matasović suggest the name comes from proto-Celtic samoni, meaning "reunion, assembly," similar to Old Norse saman, Gothic samana, and Sanskrit samāna (all meaning "together"). Delamarre also suggests it might refer to an "assembly of the living and the dead."
The word Samain is believed to be connected to the month name SAMON on the Gaulish Coligny calendar from the 2nd century CE. The 17th day of SAMON is marked as TRINOX SAMONI ("the three nights of Samon"), which may indicate a festival. This festival could represent the early November festival of Samain or possibly the summer solstice. Six months later is the month GIAMON, which seems to include the word for "winter." An early Irish glossary, Sanas Cormaic, describes Gamain as "November, the winter month after the festival of Samain."
Origins
Samain, also called Samuin, was a festival in ancient Gaelic Ireland that marked the start of winter. It is mentioned in early Old Irish writings from the 9th century and later. Samhain was one of four important Gaelic festivals: Samhain (around November 1), Imbolc (around February 1), Bealtaine (around May 1), and Lughnasa (around August 1). Among these, Samhain and Bealtaine, which marked the start of winter and summer, were considered especially important. In his 1890 book, The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion, Sir James George Frazer suggested that festivals like those on May 1 and November 1 were meaningful for communities that moved their animals seasonally. Cattle were taken to summer pastures in May and brought back to lowlands in November, showing the festival’s connection to farming and herding.
Some ancient Neolithic passage tombs in Ireland are aligned with the sunrise near the times of Samhain and Imbolc. Examples include the Mound of the Hostages (Dumha na nGiall) on the Hill of Tara and Cairn L at Slieve na Calliagh.
In Irish mythology
Irish mythology was first passed down through stories, but many of these tales were later written by Christian monks during the Middle Ages. A story from the tenth century called Tochmarc Emire (The Wooing of Emer) mentions Samhain as the first of the four main festivals of the year. The texts describe that peace was declared during these times, and people gathered to meet, eat, drink, and compete in contests. These gatherings were common settings for early Irish stories. Another tale, Echtra Cormaic (Cormac's Adventure), says the Feast of Tara was held every seventh Samhain. The High King of Ireland hosted this event, where new laws were established. Anyone who broke these laws was sent away from the kingdom.
According to Irish mythology, Samhain, like Bealtaine, was a time when the "doorways" to the Otherworld opened, allowing spirits and magical beings to enter the human world. While Bealtaine was a summer festival for the living, Samhain was a festival for the dead. In The Boyhood Deeds of Fionn, it says the sídhe (fairy mounds or portals to the Otherworld) were always open during Samhain. Each year, a fire-breathing creature named Aillen emerged from the Otherworld and burned down the palace of Tara during the Samhain festival after lulling everyone to sleep with his music. One Samhain, the young hero Fionn mac Cumhaill stayed awake and killed Aillen with a magical spear, earning him the leadership of the fianna. In another story, a being named Cúldubh emerged from a burial mound on Slievenamon during Samhain and stole a roast pig. Fionn killed Cúldubh with a spear throw as he re-entered the mound. Fionn’s thumb got caught between the door and the post as it shut, and he put it in his mouth to ease the pain. Because his thumb had touched the Otherworld, Fionn was given great wisdom, which may symbolize learning from ancestors. In Acallam na Senórach (Colloquy of the Elders), three female werewolves emerged from a cave each Samhain and killed livestock. When a musician named Cas Corach played his harp, they changed into humans, and a warrior named Caílte killed them with a spear.
Some stories suggest that offerings or sacrifices were made during Samhain. In Lebor Gabála Érenn (Book of Invasions), the people of Nemed gave two-thirds of their children, grain, and milk to the Fomorians each Samhain. The Fomorians represented harmful forces of nature, such as chaos, darkness, and drought. This tribute may symbolize a sacrifice made at the start of winter, when these forces were strongest. Later writings by Christian monks, such as the Dindsenchas and the Annals of the Four Masters, mention that Samhain was linked to a god or idol called Crom Cruach. These texts say that a firstborn child was sacrificed at the stone idol of Crom Cruach in Magh Slécht. It is claimed that King Tigernmas and three-fourths of his people died while worshiping Crom Cruach on one Samhain.
In some tales, legendary kings died in a threefold way on Samhain, involving wounds, fire, and drowning, as they were warned beforehand. In Togail Bruidne Dá Derga (The Destruction of Dá Derga's Hostel), King Conaire Mór died on Samhain after breaking his geasa (taboos). He was warned of his fate by three undead horsemen who were messengers of Donn, the god of the dead. In The Boyhood Deeds of Fionn, it says that each Samhain, men from Ireland traveled to a fairy mound on Brí Éile (Croghan Hill) to woo a beautiful maiden. Each year, someone was killed "to mark the occasion" by unknown people. Some scholars believe these stories recall human sacrifices, and some ancient Irish bog bodies, like Old Croghan Man, may have been kings ritually killed around Samhain.
In Echtra Neraí (The Adventure of Nera), King Ailill of Connacht challenged his retinue on Samhain night to reach a gallows and tie a band around the ankle of a hanged man. Demons stopped each challenger, but Nera succeeded. The dead man asked for a drink, and Nera carried him to three houses. At the third house, the dead man drank and spat on the householders, killing them. Nera returned to see a fairy host burning the king’s hall and killing those inside. He followed the fairies through a portal to the Otherworld, where he learned that what he saw was a vision of what would happen the next Samhain unless action was taken. Nera returned to warn the king.
In Aided Chrimthainn maic Fidaig (The Killing of Crimthann mac Fidaig), Mongfind poisoned her brother, King Crimthann of Munster, so her son could become king. She drank the poison first, and died on Samhain eve. The text notes that Samhain was also called Féile Moingfhinne (the Festival of Mongfind) and that women and common people made petitions to her on this day.
Many events in Irish mythology began or happened on Samhain. The invasion of Ulster in Táin Bó Cúailnge (Cattle Raid of Cooley) started on Samhain, surprising the Ulstermen because cattle-raiding was usually a summer activity. The Second Battle of Magh Tuireadh also began on Samhain. The Morrígan
Historical customs
Samhain was one of the four main festivals in the Gaelic calendar. It marked the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter. Medieval texts mention Samhain customs. In a story called Serglige Con Culainn ('Cúchulainn's Sickbed'), it is said that the Ulaid people celebrated Samhain for a week: Samhain itself and the three days before and after. During this time, people gathered for meetings, feasts, drinking, and contests. Another text, Togail Bruidne Dá Derga, notes that bonfires were lit at Samhain, and stones were thrown into the fires. Geoffrey Keating's Foras Feasa ar Éirinn, written in the early 1600s, describes how the feis of Tara was held for a week every third Samhain. During this event, nobles and scholars from Ireland met to create and renew laws and to celebrate. Keating also wrote that druids lit a sacred bonfire at Tlachtga and made sacrifices to the gods, sometimes by burning offerings. All other fires were put out and then lit again from this bonfire.
Like Bealtaine, bonfires were lit on hilltops during Samhain, and rituals involved them. By the early modern era, this practice was common in parts of the Scottish Highlands, the Isle of Man, north and mid-Wales, and parts of Ulster. F. Marian McNeill wrote that these fires were once called need-fires, but this custom later disappeared. Traditionally, only certain types of wood were burned, but later records show that many flammable materials were used. Scholars suggest the fires were a type of magic meant to mimic the sun, help growth, and stop the decay of winter. They may also have been a way to symbolically destroy harmful influences. Accounts from the 18th and 19th centuries say that the smoke and ashes from the fires were believed to have protective and cleansing powers.
In 19th-century Moray, boys collected bonfire fuel from every house in the village. When the fire was lit, some youths lay on the ground near the flames, letting the smoke roll over them. Others ran through the smoke and jumped over them. After the fire burned, people competed to scatter the ashes. In some areas, two bonfires were built side by side, and people—sometimes with their animals—walked between them as a cleansing ritual. The bones of slaughtered cattle were sometimes thrown into bonfires.
People also took flames from the bonfire home. In parts of Scotland during the 19th century, burning torches made from fir or turf were carried around homes and fields to protect them. In some places, families put out their hearth fires on Samhain night and then re-lit them from the communal bonfire. This act connected families to the community. Geoffrey Keating wrote that this was an ancient tradition started by druids. Putting out old fires and lighting new ones may have been a way to drive away evil, a practice common in New Year festivals worldwide.
Bonfires were also used for divination. In 18th-century Ochtertyre, a ring of stones—each for a person—was placed around the fire, possibly on a layer of ash. Everyone ran around the ring with a torch, shouting and celebrating. The next morning, if any stones were out of place, it was said the person they represented would not live through the year. A similar custom was practiced in north Wales and Brittany. James Frazer suggested this might have come from an older tradition of burning people (human sacrifice) or it could have always been symbolic. Divination has likely been part of Samhain since ancient times and still exists in some rural areas.
At household celebrations in Gaelic regions and Wales, rituals were used to predict the future, especially about death and marriage. Apples and hazelnuts were often used in these games. In Celtic mythology, apples were linked to the Otherworld and immortality, while hazelnuts were connected to wisdom. One popular game was apple bobbing. Another involved hanging a wooden rod from the ceiling with a lit candle on one end and an apple on the other. The rod was spun, and people tried to catch the apple with their teeth. Apple peels were tossed over the shoulder, and their shapes were said to reveal the first letter of a future spouse’s name.
Two hazelnuts were roasted near a fire, one named for the person roasting them and the other for the person they admired. If the nuts jumped away from the heat, it was a bad sign. If they roasted quietly, it meant a good match. Items like rings or coins were hidden in food such as cakes or barmbrack, and people randomly received pieces. Finding a ring meant marriage, and finding a coin meant wealth. A salty oatmeal bannock was eaten in three bites, and the person went to bed without drinking. This was said to cause a dream where a future spouse offered a drink. Egg whites were dropped into water, and their shapes were believed to predict the number of future children. Young people also chased crows and used the number of birds or their flight direction to predict things.
Samhain was seen as a time when the boundary between this world and the Otherworld was thin. This allowed spirits called aos sí (fairies or spirits) to cross into the human world. Scholars believe the aos sí were once pagan gods or nature spirits. People left food and drink outside for the aos sí and sometimes left crops in the ground for them to eat.
One custom, described as a "pagan rite surviving into the Christian era," was recorded in the Outer Hebrides and Iona in the 17th century. On October 31, fishermen poured a cup of ale into the sea and asked "Seonaidh," the "god of the sea," for a good catch. This practice ended in the 1670s after religious leaders campaigned against it but was later moved to spring and continued until the early 19th century.
People also avoided offending the aos sí and used iron, salt, or turned clothing inside-out to keep them away. In southern Ireland, a small cross made of sticks and straw called a parshell was hung over doorways to ward off bad luck, sickness, and witchcraft. It was replaced each Samhain.
The dead were honored at Samhain. The start of winter may have been the best time to remember them, as it was a time of "dying" in nature. People believed the souls of the dead returned home, seeking food and shelter. Places were set at dinner tables and by fires to welcome them. The idea that the dead return home one night a year and must be appeased is found in many cultures worldwide. James Frazer wrote that it was natural to think the approach of winter would drive hungry ghosts to seek help.
Celtic Revival
During the late 19th and early 20th century Celtic Revival, there was increased interest in Samhain and other Celtic festivals. Sir John Rhys suggested that Samhain might have been the "Celtic New Year." He based this idea on stories and traditions from Ireland and Wales that included customs linked to new beginnings. He also noted that in the Isle of Man, people sometimes called October 31 "New Year's Night" or "Hog-unnaa." An old text called Tochmarc Emire, written during the Middle Ages, described the year as beginning with four festivals tied to the seasons, with Samhain marking the start of this cycle. Rhys’s idea became widely known through Sir James George Frazer, though Frazer sometimes said the evidence was not certain. Frazer also claimed that Samhain was originally a pagan festival honoring the dead, which later became the Christian holidays of All Saints and All Souls. Since then, Samhain has often been viewed as the Celtic New Year and an ancient festival of the dead. For example, the Celtic League’s calendar starts and ends with Samhain.
Ronald Hutton argued that there is little strong evidence to support the idea that Samhain was the Celtic or Gaelic New Year. He stated that medieval records do not show that November 1 was a major festival across all Celtic cultures.
Related holidays
In the Brittonic group of Celtic languages, Samhain is called the "calends of winter." In the Brittonic areas of Wales, Cornwall, and Brittany, people celebrated festivals on October 31 that were similar to the Gaelic Samhain. In Wales, the festival is called Calan Gaeaf. In Cornwall, it is known as Allantide or Kalan Gwav. In Brittany, it is called Kalan Goañv.
The Manx people celebrate a festival called Hop-tu-Naa on October 31. This festival marks the start of the original New Year's Eve. Traditionally, children carve turnips instead of pumpkins and carry them around their neighborhoods while singing songs about Hop-tu-Naa.
In 609, Pope Boniface IV approved May 13 as a holy day to honor all Christian martyrs. By 800, churches in Gaelic Ireland and Anglo-Saxon Northumbria held a feast on November 1 to honor all saints, which became known as All Saints' Day. Gaelic traditions had a strong influence on Northumbria and its church. Some scholars, like James Frazer, believe the date of All Saints' Day was chosen because it matched the Celtic festival of Samhain. Others, like Ronald Hutton, think the date was influenced by Germanic traditions, as some Irish records mention a saint’s day on April 20. Some ancient Irish writings, such as the Martyrology of Tallaght and the Martyrology of Óengus, note a celebration of all saints in Europe on April 20 and all saints worldwide on November 1. In 835, the Frankish Empire officially chose November 1 as the day for All Saints' Day. This decision may have been influenced by Alcuin of Northumbria, who was part of Charlemagne’s court, or by Irish clerics and scholars also in the Frankish court. Over time, the rest of the Western Church accepted this date. By the 11th century, November 2 became All Souls’ Day, creating a three-day celebration called Allhallowtide: All Hallows’ Eve (October 31), All Hallows’ Day (November 1), and All Souls’ Day (November 2).
Some people believe modern Halloween traditions were influenced by the Samhain festival. Others argue that Samhain’s influence has been overstated, and that All Hallows’ Day may have also affected Samhain.
Most Halloween traditions in North America were brought by Irish and Scottish immigrants in the 19th century. Later, American culture helped spread these traditions to many other countries by the late 20th century.
Modern paganism
Some modern pagans celebrate Samhain and festivals inspired by Samhain. Because there are many types of Neopaganism, their Samhain celebrations can vary widely. Some try to follow the traditions of the ancient festival closely. Others use ideas from many different sources, with Gaelic culture being one example. Folklorist Jenny Butler explains that Irish pagans often mix parts of old Samhain traditions with references to the past of the Celtic people, creating a new version of Samhain that is unique to neopagan culture.
Neopagans typically celebrate Samhain on October 31 to November 1 in the Northern Hemisphere and April 30 to May 1 in the Southern Hemisphere, starting and ending at sunset. Some Neopagans choose to celebrate it at the midpoint between the autumnal equinox and the winter solstice (or the full moon closest to this time), which is usually around November 6 or 7 in the Northern Hemisphere.
Like other Reconstructionist traditions, Celtic Reconstructionist Pagans (CRs) focus on being historically accurate. They base their celebrations and rituals on old traditions and research about the beliefs of the polytheistic Celts. CRs usually celebrate Samhain around November 1 but may change the date based on their local climate, such as when the first winter frost appears. Their traditions include cleansing the home and lighting bonfires. Some follow the old practice of building two bonfires, through which people and animals walk as part of a purification ritual. For CRs, Samhain is a time to honor the dead. While they make offerings throughout the year, they create more detailed offerings for specific ancestors during Samhain. This might include setting up a small altar or shrine. They often have a meal where a place is set at the table for the dead, and they are invited to join. An untouched portion of food and drink is left outside as an offering. Traditional stories, songs, poems, and dances may be shared. A door or window facing west might be opened, with a candle left burning on the windowsill to guide the dead home. Divination for the coming year is often done, whether seriously or as games. Those who are more spiritually focused may also use this time to deeply connect with their gods, especially those closely linked to this festival.
Wiccans celebrate a version of Samhain as one of their yearly Sabbats on the Wheel of the Year. Most Wiccans consider it the most important of the four "greater Sabbats." Some view Samhain as a time to honor the lives of people who have died, often paying respects to ancestors, family members, elders, friends, pets, and other loved ones who have passed away. In some rituals, the spirits of the dead are invited to join the celebrations. Samhain is seen as a festival of darkness, opposite to the spring festival of Bealtaine on the Wheel of the Year.
Wiccans believe that during Samhain, the boundary between this world and the afterlife is at its thinnest, making it easier to communicate with those who have left this world.