Calendar & Sacred Days

Historical Celtic Calendar. The Coligny Calendar is usually accepted by historians and archeologists as the true Celtic calendar. This is, however, a precise and complex calendar that incorporates solar, lunar, stellar, and other natural patterns of decades-long periods. Thus, for the game I rather propose a very simple calendar (loosely based on another theory), where the years is 364 days long, and 1 solar cycle equals 13 lunar cycles (13 months of 28 days).

Originally written by Dom of D20 / D&D 3e Netbooks and Downloads.

On this Link

One of the druids’ duties is to record the passage of days and seasons. This is important both for agricultural and religious reasons. One needs to know the proper time to seed and harvest, or to propitiate to the gods. The calendar they use is as follows:

There are 13 Celtic months of 28 days based on the moon cycles, where each month is associated with a tree. Then, the moon and the solar cycles are naturally synchronized, so the first day of the first month equals the first day of the year.

The Celts count by nights and not days, as their unit of reckoning is the night followed by the day. Then, each month is made up of two “fortnight,” meaning fourteen nights (or two weeks). The moon grows during the first fortnight, and recedes during the second. As such, the days of the month are counted taking into account the day of the fortnight associated to the growing or receding moon (such as for instance: the 9th day of the receding moon of Beith, of 268).

Unlike with other calendars, there is no specific attribution of the fortnight’s days to work, rest, or else.

The Celts do not use centuries (units of 100 years), but units of 30 years (that conveniently represent a generation) to record large periods of history.

The druids often use circles of standing stones to precisely determine the passage of time.

Celtic Month	Moon	Tree	Time of:	Seasons
1	Beith	Birch	Cold Moon	Staying home	SAMHAIN (1st of Beith) Winter (1st of Beith / 7th of Fearn)
2	Luis	Rowan	Moon of Ice	Thought and contemplation
3	Nuinn	Ash	Moon of Winds	Carving and craftsmanship
4	Fearn	Alder	Moon of Seeding	The first crops shoots	IMBOLC (8th of Fearn) Spring (8th of Fearn / 14th of Duir)
5	Saille	Willow	Bright Moon	Flowers and meadows
6	Huath	Hawthorn	Moon of Horses	Beginnings and journeys
7	Duir	Oak	Moon of Claims	Arbitration and challenges	BELTAINE (15th of Duir) Summer (15th of Duir / 21st of Muinn)
8	Teinn	Holly	Moon of Poets	Creativity and inspiration
9	Coll	Hazel	Singing Moon	Dancing, parties, and raids
10	Muinn	Vine	Moon of Harvest	Reaping and fruition	LUGHNASADH (22nd of Muinn) Autumn (22nd of Muinn / 28th of Ruis
11	Gort	Ivy	Silent Moon	Planting and sowing
12	Ngetal	Reed	Dark Moon	Mist, rain, and darkness
13	Ruis	Elder	Dying Moon	Endings and death

There are four holy days in a Celtic year, the most important of which is Samhain. Religious ceremonies are performed by the druids for the communities on those days. Nonetheless, festivities are not limited to these single dates, but usually begin three days before, and continue three days afterwards. So these feasts last for a full week, except for Samhain which lasts a full “fortnight”, beginning seven days before, and ending seven days thereafter. Of course, such festivities are an excuse for wild parties, drinking and over-eating. Even during Samhain, when much cattle is slain for there is usually not enough fodder to feed it all through winter.

Samhain (1st day of winter): Day of the dead and beginning of the new year, Samhain is when the frontier between the normal world and The Otherworld opens. During Samhain, the living may communicate with the dead, although they do it only when it is really necessary. Furthermore, during the night of Samhain undead and supernatural creatures roam the world, usually for the worst. As such, people stay at home during this time, and are wary of what may occur outside. Only the bravest of heroes dare to go out during the night of Samhain, for this is really the most dangerous period of the year.

The beginning of the month of Samhain (Old Irish samain), was one of the most important calendar festivals of the Celtic year. At “the three nights of Samhain”, held around the beginning of November, the world of the gods and spirits was believed to be made visible to humans. The deities and spirits may play tricks on their mortal worshipers, and it was a time filled with supernatural episodes. Samhain was traditionally a time of sacrifice, whether in offering to the deities or due to the need to slaughter any livestock that it would be impossible to feed for the entire winter. Samhain was an important it was a time for the Celts to honour the dead, the spirits and deities, and to face the realities and fears of the coming winter.

Imbolc (1st day of spring): Day of fertility and renewal, Imbolc celebrates the end of winter and the return of life. During the Imbolc feast many marriages are celebrated. Imbolc otherwise marks the beginning of the Time of Light’s rise.

Beltaine (1st day of summer): Day of light and fire dedicated to the god Beli-Mawr, Beltaine also celebrates the victory of light over darkness. During Beltaine people dance around great fires, and, when it is possible, wicker-men (e.g.: a large wooden statue of a giant in which are put sacrificial victims) are burnt to bring about the protection of Beli-Mawr for the year to come. Beltaine is also a feast of love and lust, and it is believed that children conceived during Beltaine are gifted with beauty and strength.

Beltane was a festival held on the first day of May in Ireland and Scotland, celebrating the beginning of summer and open pasturing. In early Irish lore a number of significant events took place on Beltane, which long remained the focus of folk traditions and tales in Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. Like Samhain, Beltane was seen as a time when the spirit realm is especially close at hand.

Lughnasadh (1st day of autumn): Day of abundance and prosperity dedicated to the god Lugh, Lughnasadh celebrates the end of harvest and summer, and the abundance it provided. During Lughnasadh kings and chieftains distribute their riches and are honored. During this feast people attend to shows and participate in various contests of music and poetry. Lughnasadh otherwise marks the beginning of the Time of Light’s decline.