The year is divided into four seasons; Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. The divisions are made at the Equinoxes and Solstices; Vernal or Spring Equinox, Summer Solstice, Autumnal or Fall Equinox and Winter Solstice. The Equinoxes are the days in the year when the day and night are most nearly the same length and when the sun crosses the equator. Summer Solstice is the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and when the sun is midway between the North Pole and the Equator. The Winter Solstice is the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and when the sun is midway between the South Pole and the Equator. In the Southern Hemisphere this is reversed, the longest day comes in December and the shortest in June. (There is a table below that shows the dates of the Solstices and Equinoxes for the years 2000-2005.)

Historically these days have been celebrated by pagans and wiccans. In addition, other days of the year are celebrated as holidays; which ones, and the names given to the festivals; vary by the wiccan tradition one belongs to. I have collected a number of these variations in the table below. Generally speaking, there are eight holidays, or sabbats in the Wiccan year. The exact interpretation of the significance of the holiday and the practices involved in celebrating it vary considerably and will not be detailed here. It will suffice to state that these days were and are celebrated in a large number of cultures and religions all over the world. They have been celebrated for milenia and the power of these days is significant. Rituals that are appropriate to the season are generally conducted to align oneself with the power associated with them but magic is not generally done at these celebrations. For further, more specific, informtion regarding the celebration of the sabbats see the links at the bottom of the page.

Most of these holidays were passed on to the mundane world in altered form. In general the February 2 celebration, which has passed into the mundane world as Groundhogs Day, is an acknowledgement of the approach of spring and winters loosening grip. The Spring Equinox, celebrated as Easter, is the celebration of the return of life and growth to the earth. May 1 is the celebration of planting crops, the fertility of the earth and the union of the Goddess and God. It has been represented as May Day, a thinly veiled fertility festival, in many countries. Summer Solstice is the celebration of the peak of the solar powers which generally represent the God. August 1 is basically a harvest festival, celebrating the earths bounty and has been transformed by various cultures into other harvest celebrations such as Thanksgiving and Octoberfest. Fall Equinox is usually understood as a festival of rest after labor and has been translated into Labor Day by the mundane world. October 31 of course is celebrated as Halloween by non-pagans and as the passing of fall into winter and the death of the God/Sun by pagans. The Winter Solstice marks the rebirth of the God/Sun, which has been transformed into Christmas.

Pagan/Wiccan Festival Days

Festival Days of the Goddesses

Graves Version of the Celtic Lunar Calendar - 13 Months, 28 days each

For additional information on the Celtic Calendar, try these links:
Pax Consultings Celtic Calendar

Celt.nets Celtic History site The Coligny Calendar

Dates of Solstices and Equinoxes

Further Information

Inclusion in this list of sites does not mean that I endorse the practices advocated by the authors of the site, it simply means that it is a source of additional information on the Sabbats.

Holidays of Witchcraft information is located Here

The Agnostic Pagan - Sabbats

The American Witch - Sabbats

Holiday information is Here


The section on the seasons is Here

Epona's Celtic Cauldron Wheel Page

Silver Rains and Moondust Showers - Sabbats