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Where did Halloween (Samhain) traditions first begin? How do we know?
Where did Halloween (Samhain) traditions first begin? How do we know?
A few places in Ireland can say they were part of how Samhain (later known as Halloween) traditions started and continued through special rituals or ceremonies. A ceremony is a special action or event done the same way each time, often for religious or spiritual reasons. All of these places were cultural hearths, which means they were spots where traditions began, changed, survived, mixed with other traditions, and then spread to other places. People held rites (special religious or spiritual acts) at these sites every year as part of a ritual calendar.
These locations might have started their traditions on their own but later became connected and shared ideas, or Samhain and Irish Celtic mythology may have blended together into a coherent whole cosmology through annual ritual use. The way many of their buildings or monuments are lined up with the Samhain sun—meaning how the sun rises or sets during this time of year—shows that Samhain was an important time at each place. This is called archaeoastronomy, which is the study of how ancient people aligned buildings with the sun, moon, or stars.
Archaeologists (scientists who study old things people left behind) have found signs that people held special rituals at these places every year for thousands of years. They found remains of bonfires (large outdoor fires) and ritual deposits, which are places where people left offerings like crops, food, animals, jewelry, or coins for spiritual reasons. They also studied excavation spoil, which means dirt and materials that were dug out when people in the past made tunnels or passages into older burial mounds (large earth graves, cairn burials if the mound is made up of smaller stones). By looking at what was in this removed material, they could tell what people were doing there long ago. Animal bones found in burned areas (called char) and other offerings show that people were doing more than just using the calendar to know when to plant or harvest. The way these places were used over and over again for rituals shows they had deep spiritual meaning, going far back into prehistory (the time before written records).
Ancient Irish Samhain cultural hearths related to annual ritual behavior (listed chronologically by archaeological interpretation and dating) are summed up in the following table:
The Cultural Hearths of Celtic Samhain Tradition
The Cultural Hearths of Celtic Samhain Tradition
The map above shows the location of the cultural hearths for Samhain rites identified currently by archaeologists and historians: the Tomb 51/Listoghil Passage Burial Tumulus & Dolmen, the Killycluggin Megalithic Stone Circle, Tlachtga (Ward) Hill Ring Fort Tumulus, Tara Hill Tumulus, Oweynagat "Hell Cave," Keshcorran "Hell Caves," and Teltown Tumuli (Burial Mounds).
Note: Newgrange has no Samhain associations unlike Boyne Valley's Tlachtga ring hillfort and Tara Hill royal complex and Mound of the Hostages mass burial mound sites. It's included for reference as it is one of the most well known mound burials.
How we know Celtic Samhain traditions likely started with Crom's cult at the Killycluggin Stone Circle
How we know Celtic Samhain traditions likely started with Crom's cult at the Killycluggin Stone Circle
The oldest site associated with Samhain (say it SOW-win or SAH-win) is the Listoghil cairn mound burial surrounding a dolmen cremation burial. It could be that Mesolithic hunter-gatherers constructed the dolmen cremation burial (an open burial with cremation remains made up of short upright menhirs stones with a flattened slab placed atop like an altar) there and the original platform where there is evidence of ritual re-use of fires.
It might have been the Neolithic Early European Farmers (see Native Irish👈) who constructed both the dolmen cremation burial and the cairn mound burial surrounding it constructed later.
It's possible these sites show the importance of the sunrise Samhain sun (predicting winter) in hunter-gatherers to time the onset of winter and need for winter-shelter, and these beliefs evolved over the millennia as ways to explain summer life and winter death.
Two of the great Celtic fire festivals took place at the borders between the light half and the dark half of the year:
Samhain (October 31st, say it SOW-win or SAH-win), the Celtic New Year and its arrival when Crom subdued Lugh (the sun) for the winter months) and if pleased by Samhain offerings, Crom would bless the summer with bountiful crops and ample livestock offspring and release Lugh in the spring for plenty
Beltaine (May 1st, say it BYAL-tin-eh), the Celtic arrival of spring when Crom released Lugh
The Samhain sun alignment at Listoghil is indisputably a calendrical marker with the open passage into the cairn burial mound aligning on October 31st allowing sunlight to penetrate the back wall of the dolmen burial.
The kerbstone known as the 'footprint stone' marks the entrance to Listoghil. Credit: Carrowkeel.com: The Fr. Michael O'Flannigan History and Heritage Centre
The massive ten ton capstone is tilted to six degrees above horizontal and oriented to the south-east towards the lake high up in the Ballygawley Mountains; Samhain Sunrise from dolmen facing the sun.
Credit: Carrowkeel.com: The Fr. Michael O'Flannigan History and Heritage Centre
The shadow spear that alights on the head base dolmen at the far (head) end of the dolmen
Credit: Carrowkeel.com: The Fr. Michael O'Flannigan History and Heritage Centre
Listghohill (Tomb 51) tumulus ancient burial mound in the Carrowmore Megalithic Cemetery,
Aerial view of the Listghohill (Tomb 51) tumulus ancient burial mound and dolmen in the Carrowmore Megalithic Cemetery,
The dolmen passage tomb (Tomb 51) at Listgohill with archaeoastronomical alignment with the rising sun of Samhain on October 31st. It's slab is deliberately placed at an angle to allow morning Samhain sunlight to alight the back wall of the dolmen tomb. Credit: The Standing Stone
Sunlight strikes the Listoghil Dolmen on Samhain at sunrise (dolmen exterior)
Credit: Carrowkeel.com: The Fr. Michael O'Flannigan History and Heritage Centre
Samhain sunrise as it appears from inside the dolmen under its slanted capstone slab and between the two end base megaliths at the dolmen's feet
Credit: Carrowkeel.com: The Fr. Michael O'Flannigan History and Heritage Centre
An illustration of the passage renovated by Celts inside the Newgrange burial mound showing Celtic modification of older Neolithic Early European Farmer cairn burial mounds or possibly Mesolithic hunter-gatherer dolmen burials.
Why Killycluggin is Samhain's Birthplace
Why Killycluggin is Samhain's Birthplace
Aside from the indisputably oldest Samhain alignment, there are three candidates by oldest age associated with ritual use. The Mound of Hostages at the Tara Hill Boyne Valley of High Kings ringfort, Rothcroghan and the Owenagat 'Cave of the Cats,' and the Killycluggin Stone Circle (say it: KIL-ee-kluh-gin or COIL-uh-cloh-GAIN) and Crom cult icon on the Plains of Slaughter or Prostration together boast the next oldest dates to Listoghil and early construction at all three cites predate the arrival of Celts. The oldest construction at each site is dated to be 3500-3000 BCE (the first Celtic arrival was around 3000 BCE, and they likely would not have been well enough established to be the builders of the oldest constructions at these sites) typologically, which means their construction styles can be compared to other sites with similar construction and radiocarbon dates comparatively.
In Ireland, the soil is very wet and acidic. This means things like bones and wood often rot away and disappear over time. Because of this, it is hard for scientists to find old materials they can test to figure out exact dates. Sometimes, they can find burned bones or pieces of charcoal, but these are rare and not always in the right place to tell when a mound or building was first made. To test these things, scientists sometimes have to take apart parts of old mounds, which can hurt or destroy them. Because of this, they often use a method called typology. This means they look at the style and shape of objects and compare them to other sites to guess the age. When they can, they still try to use special tests to get exact dates and make their guesses better
The earliest constructions at these sites all predate Celtic arrival. Thus, it seems certain that the two waves of Celtic arrivals (see The Invaders👈) may have adopted and adapted earlier dolmen burials, mound burial, and a solar cult centered on the Samhain sunrise as the beginning of a new annual cycle that may have been part of the belief system of the first inhabitants of Ireland in the Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age) hunter-gatherers, which in turn was adopted and adapted by the Neolithic Early European Farmers (see The Invaders👈). Or, perhaps it was just as likely Irish calendrics were developed alone by the Neolithic Early European Farmers, and then adopted by the Celts. In any case, it's clear that the Celts would adopt the sites aligned with Samhain and continue their ritual re-use.
Among these three sites with the next oldest dates, there is one site that stands out for the most likely actual birthplace of our Samhain traditions: the Killycluggin Megalithic (large stone) Circle and Crom “hero head" cult icon (object representing this deity) in County Cavan, Ireland near Ballyconnel and Ballymagauran (where the crom icon is located in a museum). If not the birthplace, it's clearly the most important cornerstone of Samhain traditions, and that explains its centrality in our logo, with Crom himself as the axis of the sacred turning of the ancient Celtic Wheel of the Year.
All three sites are typologically dated meaning due to the difficulty of finding materials in archaeological spoil (datable material from digs) in their oldest dates, showing they were all constructed from about 3500-3000 BCE by Neolithic early European farmers, so they are all strong contenders.
The reasons we believe this site more correctly represents the birthplace of our Hallowfolk traditions on Samhain follow:
It’s one of the oldest places with real offerings. It's one of the oldest places with archaeological evidence for real offerings as burnt offerings of animals in bone fragments were discovered over many centuries in the char.
There’s a special carved stone for a god. It's the only place associated with Samhain where there is an icon (a special carved stone representing a deity; its La Tène spiral artwork dates it to 1200 BCE and the first Celtic wave of migration: see Native Irish👈) associated with a deity of Samhain. No other site had any stone image or object associated with a god or goddess.
Crom's hero head cult icon dates its La Tène style carving and designs and original placement to around 1,200 BCE, meaning it was definitely constructed by the first wave of Celtic migration to Ireland associated with the Tuatha in mythology, see The Invaders👈. Continue on for explanation of the hero head. SOURCE: MegalithicIreland.com
It's the only place with a placename associates it with offerings and reverence to a god. It's the only site of the contenders whose Old Celtic placename references ritual activity to a deity (versus testing of warriors or coronations of kings which are first human- not deity- focused), Magh Slécht (say it MAW-shlaykh — the “kh” is like the rough “ch” in Scottish “loch”) which translates in English to The Plains of Slaughter or Prostration (kneeling), meaning flat land where people knelt down (to worship, pray, or give offerings), but local folklore also associated it with slaughter, a reference to the annual ritual harvesting of cattle and feasting there with burnt offerings.
There’s a burned spot with fire pits. Archaeologists found places where fires were lit again and again. This suggests people came back every year—ostensibly at Samhain for a special ritual.
It has a long history of being feared or remembered. The earliest written accounts of Samhain traditions from non-Celts in Catholic Christian monks most associate Samhain with Killycluggin. Christian monks later wrote scary stories about Crom and this site—maybe because it was so important in the old religion. That shows it stood out even after people stopped worshiping there.
Other places were used later, had dual/other purposes than Samhain ceremonials, and were not abandoned due to persecution. Thus while our Samhain traditions likely originated at the Killycluggin Stone Circle, they survived elsewhere after Crom's cult was forbidden by Patrick's cult in 440-460 CE/AD, and his icon and encircling stones destroyed by them there.
Tara was more about kingship and government.
Tlachtga had bonfires but is linked more to druid training.
Rathcroghan and Oweynagat are big myth sites, but their oldest ritual signs came long, long after Celtic ritual use at Killycluggin.
Listoghil has sunrise alignments and fires, but there’s no proof of ritual offerings there.
Killycluggin is on Magh Slécht, and its central location is where ancient roads crossed suggest Celtic Samhain traditions originated here. That made it easy for people from many tribes to meet here—like a festival.
Crom's oldest archaeological association there matches his Samhain association as the deity with power over the sidhe (say it SHEE) portals to the Otherworld. Irish Celts believed the veil between the land of the living and the Celtic Otherworld (fairy fae and spirits) was thinnest on the liminal turns of the year between its dark half and its light half: Samhain & Beltaine, and thus 'guising (costume and mask wearing to camoflauge or otherwise frighten the supernatural creatures and spirits that could come into our world this night), bonfires, torches, and feasting and offering ritual offerings to Crom in the fall.
It was the only site historically recorded and for which there is archaeological evidence for the Christians persecuting the Druidic Old Religion.
Crom Cruach, bent one of the broken hills, wizened one of the mist, is the central figure that should be associated with Samhain (say it SOW-win or SAH-win)
On Samhain, at the Killycluggin Stone Circle, offerings were made and cattle were slaughtered while Druid priests and common Celts alike wore masks to ward off the spirits and supernatural creatures that lurked about at this thinnest point of the year between the land of the living and the Otherworld.
The Size and placement of the Iron Age Killycluggin Stone's Twelve Bronze Age Encircling Stones: Birthplace of Samhain Rites
The Size and placement of the Iron Age Killycluggin Stone's Twelve Bronze Age Encircling Stones: Birthplace of Samhain Rites
In size, the Killycluggin stone is 11.8 feet in circumference. Its petroglyph (prehistoric rock carving) panels feature Celtic artwork, covered in Iron Age La Tène curvilinear designs (dated relatively to 400 BCE-100 CE). Some archaeologists argue there is evidence of erection of its encircling stones in the Early Bronze Age (2500 BCE) from carbon dating of similar stone circles around Ireland. They believe the surrounding circles were erected first by Ireland's original inhabitants, the dark-skinned, blue-eyed Mesolithic hunter-gatherers, with the central Killycluggin Stone erected by the Iron Age. If the Killycluggin Stone was circular in circumference (it's more like a slightly lop-sided egg-shape), its diameter would have been 3.75'.
Two of the original twelve surrounding stones remain in situ (their original location), with a third broken stone resting against one of the two stones left standing as originally erected, as pictured below (see the archaeological illustrations above and below to visualize the twelve surrounding stones in the center Killycluggin Stone serving as the cult's icon encircled by the outer surrounding stone circle).
The actual Killycluggin stone (in its two broken pieces: the first [left] is the base discovered in 1921 and the second [right] is the top discovered in 1954) which had been removed from the original site in time immemorial for unknown and fabled reasons.
It would have been buried to where the discoloration stops on the base piece, but represented Cromm Cruach's head peering out of the ground. It's now located in the Cavan County Museum, Ballyjamesduff, Ireland; Photo credit: Jim Dempsey,
While the burnt area shows evidence of nearby ancient bonfires, the two pits and modern disturbances depicted in these images from the following archaeological journal article were apparently the result of local treasure hunters and grave robbers looking for the fabled treasure and cist burial.
The burnt area is the location of the first bone-fires which is where we get our term: bonfire.
This somewhat misleading and poor stone replica of the actual Killycluggin Stone (circa 100 BC) was officially unveiled by Andrew Boylan T.D. Chairman Cavan County Council on 7th March 1992. Photo Credit: Jim Dempsey
The replica sits at coordinates N 54° 05′ 33″, W 007° 38′ 10″, or about 300 meters or 984.25 feet from where the original Killycluggin stone originally sat in SITU at its original coordinates N 54° 05' 41.6" W 007° 38' 24.3". See the following photos to see the IN SITU location of the original (now broken and in the Cavan County Museum) Killycluggin stone. Photo Credit: Kenneth Allen.
Above, a photograph of theDrombeg stone circle for reference to provide a mental model for what the twelve surrounding stones likely looked like before being destroyed.
The two remaining stones in situ.
The two remaining stones in situ.
The two remaining stones in situ.
The Mšecké Žehrovice Head (150-50 BCE) Head in the Czech Republic is similar in type to the carved Killycluggin Crom Cruach cult icon stone before it was damaged.
In this photo of the poor replica, you can “see" Crom's La Tienne “face."
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