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Bealtaine
Bealtaine (1 May), the first day of summer and one of the four traditional ‘quarter days’, important in the calendar customs of Goidelic‐speaking areas up to the twentieth century. The name's derivation is uncertain: ‐taine has been taken to mean ‘fire’, and to refer to the ancient custom of purifying cattle on the eve of Bealtaine by driving them between two bonfires. Many medieval tales open with a supernatural being's appearance on Bealtaine, just before sunrise; the day shares these otherworld associations with Samhain.
John Price Carey |
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"Bealtaine." The Oxford Companion to Irish History. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Bealtaine." The Oxford Companion to Irish History. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O245-Bealtaine.html "Bealtaine." The Oxford Companion to Irish History. 2007. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O245-Bealtaine.html |
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Bealtaine
Bealtaine, Bealteine. ModIr. for the month of May; for a description of the pre-Christian feast, see BELTAINE.
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Cite this article
JAMES MacKILLOP. "Bealtaine." A Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JAMES MacKILLOP. "Bealtaine." A Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O70-Bealtaine.html JAMES MacKILLOP. "Bealtaine." A Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. 2004. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O70-Bealtaine.html |
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