Red Ajah Autumn Fair: Autumn Holidays and Traditions

[Guest]

Welcome to the Red Ajah Autumn Fair's discussion on Autumn holidays and traditions!

 

-Sig by Pankhuri-

 

Many cultures around the world have celebrations or ritualistic behaviour associated with the harvest and the coming of winter. Though the significance of such celebrations have vastly diminished in modern societies, where food is available with ease year around and winter holds little terror even to the vulnerable because of modern medicine, there are still remnants of harvest festivals in most societies and, indeed, there are still epochs within modern society that still give celebrations associated with fall all of their old revelry.

 

Even if fall festivals are no longer too relevant, most people still have traditions they do at this time of year that they will not or cannot do at any other season.

 

So my questions to you are Do you celebrate any holidays in autumn where you live? What cultural significance, if any, do they hold?

 

And if you live in the Southern hemisphere, feel free to share what holidays you have in Spring .

[Mashiara Sedai]

Do you celebrate any holidays in autumn where you live? What cultural significance, if any, do they hold?

 

I think in America, the holidays we celebrate don't really have a cultural significance. It's more of a marketing significance.

 

That being said, Halloween is the best autumn holiday! Though it doesn't have a special meaning to me, it's fun to make costumes, interact with neighbors, and enter my pets in costume contests. Since I'm in Arizona, October is usually when it starts to cool down, so that makes it extra nice to get out in the evening. Plus, all the candy is awesome!

 

There's also Thanksgiving, but my husband and I don't typically celebrate it. Rather than see our family, we make it a day to stay home and be together. We make a small turkey for ourselves, and all the other traditional foods, but don't turn it into a "we're so thankful for this" kind of holiday.

[Moon Sedai]

Autumn is my favorite season.

I was an autumn baby (November).

Autumn is the beginning of school. (I love school.)

Autumn has Halloween.

[Guest]

Do you celebrate any holidays in autumn where you live? What cultural significance, if any, do they hold?

 

I think in America, the holidays we celebrate don't really have a cultural significance. It's more of a marketing significance.

 

That being said, Halloween is the best autumn holiday! Though it doesn't have a special meaning to me, it's fun to make costumes, interact with neighbors, and enter my pets in costume contests. Since I'm in Arizona, October is usually when it starts to cool down, so that makes it extra nice to get out in the evening. Plus, all the candy is awesome!

 

Do you go to costume parties? Or am I reading it wrong?

 

Autumn is my favorite season.

I was an autumn baby (November).

Autumn is the beginning of school. (I love school.)

Autumn has Halloween.

 

Do you do anything particular for Halloween?

 

Answeing my own question, in my community we celebrate three holidays in the fall - Lughnasadh, which is August 1st (and yes we consider that Autumn ), the fall equinox, which was September 22nd, and Samhain is coming up, October 31. They are harvest festivals, but they have a religious/cultural significance besides - Lughnasadh is the mourning feast of Lugh's foster mother, and so we take that day to honour and give thanks to our mothers. The equinox is a day devoted to the primal powers so we burn a wickerman for them besides that is the start of the war season, so there are competitions in the spirit of that. Samhain is a time we honour the dead by telling their stories, and since it is supposed to be the time when passages to other worlds are most open, we cast a lot of spells or curses on this day since non-gods and gods from other worlds can assist you best at this time.

[nicana]

We have two holidays here in the States in the Autumn. There is Halloween at the end of October. Which we really don't celebrate anymore. My children are both too old to go trick or treating and they find their own rides to the parties. We live out in the country so we don't get any trick or treaters. So it ends up being a night that my husband and I can have together in peace and quiet. Then there is Thanksgiving in November. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. We stay at home, make turkey and all the trimmings. Watch Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the Dog Show on TV. We basically eat ourselves sick and spend the day enjoying each other's company.

[Guest]

Does anyone have any traditions their family holds in Autumn besides holidays?

[Moon Sedai]

I don't trick-or-treat anymore

No kids.

But i still love the holiday .

Mr M and I do carve a pumpkin.

[Tiren Sormia]

Does anyone have any traditions their family holds in Autumn besides holidays?

 

My family goes hunting on my sister-in-laws farm for Dove season, and then once it gets cold enough we'll hunt the Jack Rabbits. And of course we go fishing all year long, but it's not typically a fall event, just the hunting. :)

 

My family is too grown for most Halloween stuff, but I hand out candy to neighborhood kids. And as for Thanksgiving - hubby and I go to my folks house and I help my mom with all the traditional meals, we have my uncles (her brother's) come up and usually friends come and go during the day to say high and visit.. Thanksgiving is my 2nd favorite holiday!! :)

[Guest]

HUNTING! I loev hunting - I do bow hnting for deer and pheasants nwo and then. I prefer snaring thuogh, because all you have to do is set the trap and check thm later for the reward - hunting requires time i usually dont have. Um...lets not talk about hunting seasons _{its a concept not in my vocabulary hehe.} >_>

 

Normally Im raking leaves this time of year arund my property - haev to, as I live in the woods and elsewise I would be buried in two metres of leaves come Autumn. One of my siblngs might come around to help me, or I go help thm, so that when we burn all the leaves at nihgt, we have ourselves a little sort of bonfire which we can cook thngs over, usually just potatoes and turnips. Then scattering and dodging the embers is always great fun once the fire dies off.