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Post by Jinsei on Oct 24, 2009 21:36:27 GMT -5
I know, it's a week away, but I thought that in the spirit of the holiday I'd decorate the site and release a few spirits to keep an eye on things.
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Post by setanaoko on Oct 25, 2009 5:05:22 GMT -5
I love it Myrrden! ;D For all you who are Pagan: Merry Samhain!  *anyone else think it's funny Samhain is pronounced "Sow-En"?  |
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Post by Adona Mara on Oct 25, 2009 9:29:07 GMT -5
Oddly enough, I knew that. That's what I get for hanging around all you wicket pagan types LOL. So, Merry Samhain and Happy Halloween!  |
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Post by Jinsei on Oct 25, 2009 12:49:33 GMT -5
I've always thought it was funny that it was pronounced Sowen... just doesn't sound right when you're looking directly at the word. It's one of the words that my daughter constantly complains about, because last year they taught her to "sound out the words" and this year they're teaching her that not all words make sense when you sound them out. So, she looks at Samhain and tries to say it exactly as it should sound. When I correct her and tell her how to say it, she complains that the letters for those sounds aren't in the word. I tend to tell everyone Happy Halloween, because the majority of people I know wouldn't have a clue what Samhain is... and, well "Halloween" just sounds pretty cool on its own. |
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Post by setanaoko on Oct 25, 2009 20:44:38 GMT -5
lol. That must be a funny conversation to have with a kid- well, dear, it's not pronounced "Sam-Hain" it's "Sow-En". :lol:
As to being pagan, just a quick note here- I use to be, but I'm Christian. I have a lot of pagan friends though, and attend a local circle here so I don't get into Biblical debates with chaplains :lol:
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Post by Adona Mara on Oct 26, 2009 21:02:53 GMT -5
It's not as odd when you consider it's actually a foreign word ... that's why it's not pronounced like an english word  . Having studied a bit of Irish Gaelic, it's obvious the word is Celtic in origin .. and you should see how these guys spell the word they pronounce "chooky" |
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gazooayam
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Post by gazooayam on Oct 27, 2009 17:22:16 GMT -5
I thought it was Welsh...nothing in Welsh looks like it is spelled...could be Irish...or Scot...I'm sure I don't know. My ancestry on my mother's side goes all the way back to the Picts...nobody even knows what they spoke.....anyway, Halloween was for years and years my favorite holiday. Now, we're so isolated that there's no point to dressing up...boo. as in boo hoo.  |
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Post by Jinsei on Oct 27, 2009 20:47:23 GMT -5
I know that it means "Summer's end" or roughly something like it. In Old Irish, it was spelled "samain, samuin, or samfuinand" and in Gaelic it was "samhainn". Gaz... obviously they spoke Pictish.  |
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Icarus
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Post by Icarus on Oct 30, 2009 8:10:11 GMT -5
Well, Blessed Be and Happy Samhain and Happy Halloween and Good-on-ya for the Night of the Dead and ummm.... whatever else. It's a great day. Hope everyone has fun and remembers that the veil is very thin right now. |
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Post by Adona Mara on Oct 30, 2009 11:20:26 GMT -5
I thought it was Welsh...nothing in Welsh looks like it is spelled...could be Irish...or Scot...I'm sure I don't know. My ancestry on my mother's side goes all the way back to the Picts...nobody even knows what they spoke.....anyway, Halloween was for years and years my favorite holiday. Now, we're so isolated that there's no point to dressing up...boo. as in boo hoo. The Welsh are Celtic, too |
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Post by Jinsei on Nov 1, 2009 17:42:31 GMT -5
Thought I should change the title of this thread, because I just changed the theme to be more Winter Celebration related... hope y'all like it. ;D
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gazooayam
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Post by gazooayam on Nov 3, 2009 22:23:46 GMT -5
'S funny.......I've been thinking about holidays..the word, Holy Days. How many of them are truly "Holy?" Certainly not Halloween, nor even "all Saint's Day," as I'm not going to count anything established by the Catholic church, so that lets out Christmas also. As with so much else, the Catholics had a habit of co-opting the "native celebration" and a mid-winter festival was well established. Jesus was probably actually born in the early Spring, when the shepherds "keep their flocks by night" during lambing season. Easter? Nope. Rites of Spring, fertility celebration, the name comes from Ishtar...rabbits, eggs, how much more blatant could it be? What's left? Valentine's Day? Mostly made up by Hallmark. July 4th? Sorry...nice, but not Holy. Labor Day? Ditto. Veteran's Day, Memorial Day...military related, and though an attitude of reverence for those fallen in service is the original reason for Memorial Day, it is not considered Holy, and for most people it's nothing more than a day off. So, what's left? Thanksgiving Day..which, if properly celebrated, may actually be the only true "Holy Day" on the American calendar.
~GaZoo
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Post by Jinsei on Nov 4, 2009 22:47:58 GMT -5
Most people don't think about Thanksgiving the same as it was first celebrated in the US... not the natives, pilgrims and turkey, but the small group that devoted the day to prayer after they landed on our shores.
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. Having studied a bit of Irish Gaelic, it's obvious the word is Celtic in origin .. and you should see how these guys spell the word they pronounce "chooky" 
