Lammas
By Anna Franklin and Paul Mason
It was upon a Lammas night,
When corn rigs are bonnie,
Beneath the moon's unclouded light,
I held awa to Annie.
[Robert Burns]
Although Lughnasa has an ancient and fascinating history, it is nowadays a rather obscure festival. Unlike Halloween for example, the average person outside of the Pagan community has probably never heard of it- even in Ireland where the name of the festival survives in modern Gaelic as Lúnasa, the month of August.
The name is Irish Gaelic and means the násad (games or an assembly) of Lugh, a leading Celtic deity and hero. Lughnasa was one of the cross quarter festivals of the Celtic year, the others being Samhain on November 1st, Imbolc on February 1st, and Beltane on May 1st. The festival seems to have included tribal assemblies and activities extending over two to four weeks. It was celebrated only in Britain, Ireland, France (ancient Gaul), and possibly Northern Spain.
Pagans celebrate Lughnasa as one of the eight festivals in the witches' Wheel of the Year, but many know little about it beyond the fact that it marks the beginning of harvest. Unlike May Day, Yule or Midsummer relatively few of its customs survive either in folklore or historical record. Nevertheless, even in these times of all-year-round imported crops, its presence can still be felt. If we dig deep we can find its traces. Factory and school holidays were timed to coincide with the start of the harvest so that more people would be free to help with the harvesting. Even in today’s post-industrial age, early August remains the traditional time for summer holidays and fairs. There are some traditional Lughnasa customs that are still practiced today, but these tend to be confined to specific localities and cultures.
Lughnasa is also called Lammas, from the Anglo-Saxon hlaef-mass meaning 'loaf-mass'. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle of 921 CE mentions it as 'the feast of first fruits', as does the Red Book Of Derby. It was a popular ceremony during the Middle Ages but died out after the Reformation, though the custom is being revived in places. It marks the first harvest when the first grain is gathered in, ground in a mill and baked into a loaf. This first loaf was offered up as part of the Christian Eucharist ritual.
Lammas was a rent day and land tenure and pasture rights were often settled at Lammas. Some grazing lands were given over to common use from Lammas to Candlemas. Stock was put to pasture on the hay meadows, which then remained common until spring until the Enclosure Acts of the early nineteenth century. It was a time of sheep and cattle fairs accompanied by games.
Lammas looks at Celtic and Anglo Saxon celebrations of Lughnasa, and the folk customs that have derived from them, as well as harvest festivals from around the ancient world also celebrated at the beginning of August, coinciding with the rising of the Dog Star, Sirius. It examines the myths of Lugh, a pan-Celtic deity, and their relationship to the festival and its themes of first-fruits, sacrifice, warrior energy, pilgrimages, harvest mounds, and the end of the growing season, and the start of autumn and the harvest, as well as the traditional hunting season. The second part of the book looks at how to celebrate Lughnasa, with magic, Lammas games, ritual and seasonal food. Appendices look at the magical themes of the days and festivals that lead up to Lughnasa through July and afterwards throughout August, the various names of the festival in different cultures, gods and goddesses associated with the time, its symbols, songs and chants for Lughnasa etc.
