It was one of four Gaelic seasonal festivals: Samhain (~1 November), Imbolc (~1 February), Bealtaine (~1 May) and Lughnasa (~1 August). It is attested in the earliest Old Irish literature, which dates from the 10th century onward. Samain or Samuin was the name of the festival ( feis) marking the beginning of winter in Gaelic Ireland. The month name GIAMONI, six months later, likely includes the word for 'winter', but the starting point of the calendar is unclear. A festival of some kind may have been held during the 'three nights of Samoni' (Gaulish TRINOX SAMONI). On Gaulish Coligny calendar, dating from the 1st century BC, the month name SAMONI is likely related to the word Samain and includes the word for 'summer'. In 1907, Whitley Stokes suggested an etymology from Proto-Celtic *samani ('assembly'), and Joseph Vendryes suggested that it is unrelated to *semo- ('summer'), because the Celtic summer ended in August. One suggestion is that the name means 'summer's end', from sam ('summer') and fuin ('end'), but this may be a folk etymology. Koch notes, it is unclear why a festival marking the beginning of winter should include the word for 'summer'. This is believed to come from Proto-Indo-European *semo- ('summer'). These names all come from the Old Irish Samain or Samuin, the name for the festival held on 1 November in medieval Ireland. The Gaelic names for the month of November are derived from Samhain. Older forms of the word include the Scottish Gaelic spellings Samhainn and Samhuinn. In Modern Irish as well as Scottish Gaelic the name is Samhain, usually with the definite article An tSamhain (Irish), An t-Samhain (Scottish Gaelic) and Yn Tauin (Manx). Since the later 20th century, Celtic neopagans and Wiccans have observed Samhain, or something based on it, as a religious holiday. Folklorists have used the name 'Samhain' to refer to Gaelic 'Halloween' customs up until the 19th century. Over time, it is believed that Samhain and All Saints'/All Souls' influenced each other, and eventually syncretised into the modern Halloween. In the 9th century, the Church had shifted the date of All Saints' Day to 1 November, while 2 November later became All Souls' Day. In the late 19th century, John Rhys and James Frazer suggested it was the 'Celtic New Year', but this is disputed. Divination was also a big part of the festival and often involved nuts and apples. The costumes may have been a way of imitating, and disguising oneself from, the Aos SГ. Mumming and guising were part of the festival from at least the early modern era, whereby people went door-to-door in costume reciting verses in exchange for food. The souls of dead kin were also thought to revisit their homes seeking hospitality, and a place was set at the table for them during a Samhain meal. At Samhain, they were appeased with offerings of food and drink, to ensure the people and their livestock survived the winter. Most scholars see the Aos SГ as remnants of pagan gods. Like Beltane, Samhain was a liminal or threshold festival, when the boundary between this world and the Otherworld thinned, meaning the Aos SГ (the 'spirits' or ' fairies') could more easily come into our world. These were deemed to have protective and cleansing powers, and there were rituals involving them. As at Beltane, special bonfires were lit. It was when cattle were brought down from the summer pastures and when livestock were slaughtered. The festival did not begin to be recorded in detail until the early modern era. Some of the literature also associates Samhain with bonfires and sacrifices. The early literature says Samhain was marked by great gatherings and feasts, and was when the ancient burial mounds were open, which were seen as portals to the Otherworld. It is first mentioned in the earliest Irish literature, from the 9th century, and is associated with many important events in Irish mythology. Samhain is believed to have Celtic pagan origins, and some Neolithic passage tombs in Ireland are aligned with the sunrise at the time of Samhain. A similar festival was held by the Brittonic Celtic people, called Calan Gaeaf in Wales, Kalan Gwav in Cornwall, and Kalan GoaГ±v in Brittany. Historically, it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man (where it is called 'Sauin'). It is one of the four quarter days associated with Gaelic seasonal festivals, along with Imbolc, Beltane and Lughnasa. This is about halfway between the autumn equinox and winter solstice. In the northern hemisphere, it is held on 1 November, but with celebrations beginning on the evening of 31 October, as the Celtic day began and ended at sunset. Samhain ( / Л€ s Й‘Лђ w ЙЄ n, Л€ s aКЉ ЙЄ n/, Irish:, ScottishВ Gaelic: Manx: Sauin ) is a Gaelic festival marking the end of the harvest season and beginning of winter or ' darker-half' of the year.

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