In the modern Pagan movement of Heathenry there are a number of

holidays A holiday is a day set aside by Norm (social), custom or by law on which normal activities, especially business or work including school, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow individuals to celebrate or commemorate ...

celebrated by different groups and individuals. The most widely observed are based on ancient Germanic practices described in historical accounts or folk practices however some adherents also incorporate innovations from the 20th and 21st centuries.

Pre-Christian Germanic holidays and their modern observance

Prior to Christianisation and the introduction of the Julian calendar, the Germanic peoples used a lunisolar calendar, that was used to coordinate heathen seasonal festivals and holy periods. These included the , , and at the beginning of winter, Yule and around

Midwinter Midwinter is the middle of the winter. The term is attested in the early Germanic calendars. Attestations Midwinter is attested in the early Germanic calendars, where it appears to have been a specific day or a number of days during the winter ha ...

, and and in the summer half of the year. Beyond these, Adam of Bremen's account of the Temple at Uppsala describes a great festival that was held every nine years, however it has been argued that this would have been using inclusive counting and would thus have occurred every eight years by modern counting conventions.Orchard (1997:169). Modern Heathens can celebrate a number of these festivals, with

Winter Nights Winter Nights or Old Norse ''vetrnætr'' was a specific time of year in medieval Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its const ...

, Yule and Sigrblót being among the most widely observed, however the date is typically adjusted so that it falls on a weekend.

Modern development

The modern Icelandic festival of

Þorrablót Þorrablót (; transliterated as thorrablot) is an Icelandic midwinter festival, named for the month of ''Þorri'' of the historical Icelandic calendar (corresponding to mid January to mid February), and ''blót'', literally meaning ''sacrifice''. ...

is sometimes considered a "pagan holiday" due to folk etymology with the name of the god

Thor Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding æsir, god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred trees and groves in Germanic paganism and mythology, sacred groves ...

. The name, while historically attested, is derived from

Þorri Þorri () is the Icelandic name of the personification of frost or winter in Norse mythology, and also the name of the fourth winter month (mid January to mid February) in the Icelandic calendar. In the '' Orkneyinga saga'' (written in the 13th ce ...

which is not explicitly linked to Thor, instead being the name of a month in the historic

Icelandic calendar The early Germanic calendars were the regional calendars used among the early Germanic peoples before they adopted the Julian calendar in the Early Middle Ages. The calendars were an element of early Germanic culture. The Germanic peoples had nam ...

and a legendary Finnish king. Despite this, toasts to Thor are commonly included in the modern celebration. Beyond the information about historical practice given in Early Medieval sources, some Heathens use modern festival calendars that incorporate material from other

new religious movements A new religious movement (NRM), also known as alternative spirituality or a new religion, is a religious or spiritual group that has modern origins and is peripheral to its society's dominant religious culture. NRMs can be novel in origin or th ...

such as the "

Wheel of the Year The Wheel of the Year is an annual cycle of seasonal festivals, observed by many modern pagans, consisting of the year's chief solar events (solstices and equinoxes) and the midpoints between them. While names for each festival vary among dive ...

" popular in

Wicca Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and was ...

. This practice is criticised by other Heathens, however, due to its origin in the 20th century and its lack of connection to historical celebrations. In addition to this, several groups in the USA have designated holidays through ''ad hoc'' innovation, such as the various "Days of Remembrance" introduced by ''

The Troth The Troth, formerly the Ring of Troth, is an United States, American-based international Germanic Neopaganism, heathen organization.Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and, throu ...

by a folk etymology connection with the deity Váli. Suggestions for rituals suited for these various holidays were published by

Edred Thorsson Eadred (c. 923 – 23 November 955) was King of the English from 26 May 946 until his death. He was the younger son of Edward the Elder and his third wife Eadgifu, and a grandson of Alfred the Great. His elder brother, Edmund, was killed try ...

, ''A Book of Troth'' (1989) and by Kveldulf Gundarsson, ''Teutonic Religion'' (1993). James Chisholm (1989) published a suggestion for Ostara. Chisholm argued for the reconstruction of the "sacred dramas" which he saw reflected in some Eddaic poems, although shorn of their sexual content by the Christian redactors. The revived ritual was again to be modified to suit "contemporary American sensibilities".

Specific modern calendars

Samfundet Forn Sed Sverige (Sweden)

Samfundet Forn Sed Sverige The Community of Forn Sed Sweden ( sv, Samfundet Forn Sed Sverige), formerly the Swedish Asatro Community (''Sveriges Asatrosamfund'') is a heathen (Germanic neopagan) organization founded in 1994. History The Swedish Asatro Community ( sv, Sve ...

( sv, Samfundet Forn Sed Sverige), has a list of annual holidays held during specific periods of the year.

The Troth (USA)

The handbook ''Our Troth'' in its second edition, published by American-based inclusionary heathen organization

The Troth The Troth, formerly the Ring of Troth, is an United States, American-based international Germanic Neopaganism, heathen organization.Yule,

, Idis-Þing, Ostara (Sigrblót), Waluburg's Night, Midsummer, Loaf-Fest (Freyfaxi) and Winter-Nights ( Alf-Blessing, Idis-Blessing, Frey-Blessing). These eight festivals are not, however, evenly distributed throughout the year as the Wiccan "Wheel of the Year". The handbook takes as its starting-point the statement in the '' Heimskringla'' on the three major holidays, Winter Nights, Yule, and Sigrblót (identified with Ostara), set in October, December and April, respectively. Midsummer is added as a fourth festival in the absence of Eddaic evidence because its popularity in modern Scandinavian folklore. The remaining four holidays are listed as the "lesser blessings". In addition, ''Our Troth'' cites a number of "Days of Remembrance" dedicated to various historical and legendary figures such as Unnr the Deep-Minded,

Radbod, King of the Frisians Redbad or Radbod (died 719) was the king (or duke) of Frisia from c. 680 until his death. He is often considered the last independent ruler of Frisia before Frankish domination. He defeated Charles Martel at Cologne. Eventually, Charles prevaile ...

and

Egill Skallagrímsson Egil Skallagrímsson (Old Norse: ; Modern Icelandic: ; 904 995) was a Viking Age war poet, sorcerer, berserker, and farmer.Thorsson, 3 He is known mainly as the anti-hero of ''Egils saga, Egil's Saga''. ''Egil's Saga'' historically narrates a p ...

Ingwine Heathenship (USA/UK)

The movement Ingwina Hæðenscipe, which seeks to reconstruct West Germanic Heathen beliefs, also has a list of annual holidays held during specific periods of the year. The group provides both reconstructed, and entirely modern dates for these festivals for the benefit of modern practitioners.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heathan holidays Modern pagan holidays Germanic neopaganism Lists of observances