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{{Short description|Gaelic May Day festival}}
{{other uses}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2015}}
{{Infobox holiday
| holiday_name  = Beltane<!--this should match the article name-->
| type          = Pagan
| longtype      = Cultural,<br />Pagan ([[Celtic neopaganism]], [[Wicca]])
| nickname      = {{native name|ga|'''Bealtaine'''}}<br />{{native name|gd|Bealltainn}}<br />{{native name|gv|Boaltinn/Boaldyn}}<ref>Celtic myths and legends by Charles Squire {{ISBN|1-84204-015-4}}</ref><br />Beltain; Beltine; Beltany<ref name="firefestival">{{Cite web |url=https://www.newgrange.com/beltane.htm |title=Beltane – The Fire Festival |website=[[Newgrange]] |access-date=30 April 2019 |archive-date=30 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190430142824/https://www.newgrange.com/beltane.htm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Chadwick">Chadwick, Nora (1970) ''The Celts'' London, Penguin. {{ISBN|0-14-021211-6}} p. 181</ref>
| observedby    = Historically: [[Gaels]]<br />Today: [[Irish people]], [[Scottish people]], [[Manx people]], [[Modern Paganism|Modern Pagans]]
| significance  = Beginning of summer
| date          = 1 May<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.independent.ie/regionals/kerryman/lifestyle/origins-of-bealtaine-festival-29218522.html |title=Origins of Bealtaine festival |date=24 April 2013 |work=Irish Independent |access-date=30 April 2019 |archive-date=30 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190430142513/https://www.independent.ie/regionals/kerryman/lifestyle/origins-of-bealtaine-festival-29218522.html |url-status=live }}</ref><br /><small>(or 1 November for Neopagans in the [[Southern Hemisphere]])</small>
| celebrations  = lighting bonfires, decorating homes with May flowers, making May bushes, visiting holy wells, feasting
| relatedto     = [[May Day]], {{lang|cy|[[Calan Mai]]}}, [[Walpurgis Night]]
| frequency     = annual
| duration      = 1 day
| alt           = A burning bonfire of a towering 30 foot wickerman holding a sword. A crowd watches from below.
| official_name = 
| litcolor      = 
| begins        = 
| ends          = 
| weekday       = 
| month         = 
| scheduling    = 
| firsttime     = 
| startedby     = 
| image         = 2022 Festival of Fires on Hill of Uisneach.jpg
| caption       = ''Bealtaine'' bonfire at [[Uisneach]], near [[Mullingar]] in [[County Westmeath]], Ireland, in 2022
}}

'''Beltane''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|ɛ|l|.|t|ei|n}} {{respell|BEL|tayn}}) or '''''Bealtaine''''' ({{IPA|ga|ˈbʲal̪ˠt̪ˠənʲə}})<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Beltane?s=t |title=Beltane |publisher=[[Dictionary.com]] |access-date=1 May 2014 |archive-date=2 May 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502001117/http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Beltane?s=t |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla (Ó Dónaill): Bealtaine |url=https://www.teanglann.ie/en/fgb/Bealtaine |access-date=2024-08-15 |website=www.teanglann.ie |language=en}}</ref> is the [[Gaels|Gaelic]] [[May Day]] festival, marking the beginning of [[summer]]. It is traditionally held on 1 May, or about midway between the [[March equinox|spring equinox]] and [[summer solstice]]. 

Historically, it was widely observed in [[Ireland]], [[Scotland]], and the [[Isle of Man]]. In Ireland, the name for the festival in both [[Irish language|Irish]] and English is {{lang|ga|Lá Bealtaine}} ({{IPA|ga|l̪ˠaː ˈbʲal̪ˠt̪ˠənʲə|}}). In [[Scottish Gaelic]] it is called {{lang|gd|Là Bealltainn}} ({{IPA|gd|l̪ˠaː ˈpjaul̪ˠt̪ɪɲ|}}), and in [[Manx language|Manx Gaelic]] {{lang|gv|Boaltinn}} or {{lang|gv|Boaldyn}}. It is one of [[Quarter days|the four main]] Gaelic seasonal festivals—along with [[Samhain]], [[Imbolc]], and [[Lughnasadh]]—and is similar to the Welsh {{lang|cy|[[Calan Mai]]}}.

Beltane is mentioned in the [[Early Irish literature|earliest Irish literature]] and is associated with important events in [[Irish mythology]]. Also known as {{lang|ga|Cétshamhain}} ('first of summer'), it marked the beginning of summer and was when cattle were [[Transhumance|driven out]] to the summer pastures. Rituals were performed to protect cattle, people and crops, and to encourage growth. Special bonfires were kindled, whose flames, smoke and ashes were believed to have protective powers. The people and their cattle would walk around or between bonfires and sometimes leap over the flames or embers. All household fires would be doused and then relit from the Beltane bonfire. 

These gatherings were accompanied by a feast, and some of the food and drink would be offered to the {{lang|ga|[[aos sí]]}}. Doors, windows, byres and livestock would be decorated with yellow May flowers, perhaps because they evoked fire. In parts of Ireland, people made a May Bush: typically a thorn bush or branch decorated with flowers, ribbons, bright shells and rushlights. [[Holy well]]s were also visited, while Beltane dew was thought to bring beauty and maintain youthfulness. Many of these customs were part of May Day or Midsummer festivals in parts of Great Britain and Europe.

Public celebrations of Beltane fell out of popularity by the 20th century, though some customs continue to be revived as local cultural events. Since the late 20th century, [[Celtic neopaganism|Celtic neopagans]] and [[Wicca]]ns have observed a festival based on Beltane as a religious holiday. Neopagans in the [[Southern Hemisphere]] may mark the festival on 1 November.

==Name==
In [[Old Irish]], the name was usually {{lang|sga|Beltaine}} or {{lang|sga|Belltaine}}. In modern Irish, the festival is usually called {{lang|ga|Lá Bealtaine}} ("day of Beltane"), while the month of May is {{lang|ga|Mí Bhealtaine}} ("month of Beltane"). In [[Scottish Gaelic]], the festival is {{lang|gd|Latha Bealltainn}}. Sometimes the older Scottish Gaelic spelling {{lang|gd|Bealltuinn}} is used. The term {{lang|gd|Latha Buidhe Bealltainn}} (Scottish) or {{lang|ga|Lá Buidhe Bealtaine}} (Irish), "the bright or yellow day of Beltane", means the first of May. In Ireland it is referred to in a common folk tale as {{lang|ga|Luan Lae Bealtaine}}; the first day of the week (Monday/{{lang|ga|Luan}}) is added to highlight the first day of summer.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ó Crualaoich |first=Gearóid |date=1 January 1994 |title=Non-Sovereignty Queen Aspects of the Otherworld Female in Irish Hag Legends: The Case of Cailleach Bhéarra |journal=Béaloideas |volume=62/63 |pages=147–162 |doi=10.2307/20522445 |jstor=20522445}}</ref>

The name is anglicised as Beltane, Beltain, Beltaine, Beltine and Beltany.<ref name="firefestival" />

Another Old Irish name for the festival was {{lang|sga|Cétshamain}} or {{lang|sga|Cétamain}}, probably meaning 'first of summer'.<ref>{{cite book|title=Proceedings of the Harvard Celtic Colloquium|volume=23|publisher=[[Harvard University Press]]|location=Cambridge, Massachusetts|date=2003|page=258}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=Miranda|last=Green|title=The Celtic World|publisher=[[Routledge]]|location=London, England|date=2012|page=437|isbn=978-0415057646}}</ref> [[Patrick S. Dinneen|Ó Duinnín]]'s Irish dictionary (1904) gives this as {{lang|ga|Céadamhain}} or {{lang|ga|Céadamh}} in modern Irish. It survives in the Scottish Gaelic name for the month of May, {{lang|gd|An Cèitean}}, and matches the Welsh {{lang|cy|Cyntefin}}.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Koch |first1=John |author1-link=John T. Koch |title=Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia |date=2006 |publisher=[[ABC-CLIO]] |location=Goleta, California |isbn=978-1851094400 |page=331}}</ref> These have all been derived from [[proto-Celtic]] {{lang|cel-x-proto|*kentu-samonyos}} (first + summer).<ref>{{Cite book|last=Matasović|first=Ranko|title=Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic|publisher=Brill|year=2009|isbn=9789004173361|author-link=Ranko Matasović |page=201 |url=https://archive.org/details/EtymologicalDictionaryOfProtoCeltic/page/n205/mode/2up?view=theater}}</ref>

===Etymology===
''Beltane'' is proposed to derive from a proto-Celtic {{lang|cel-x-proto|*belo-te(p)niâ}}, meaning 'bright fire'. The element {{lang|cel-x-proto|*belo-}} might be cognate with the English word ''bale'' (as in {{wikt-lang|en|balefire|bale-fire}}) meaning 'white', 'bright' or 'shining'. The absence of [[Syncope (phonology)|syncope]] (Irish [[sound laws]] rather predict a **''Beltne'' form) can be explained by the popular belief that ''Beltaine'' was a [[Compound (linguistics)|compound]] of the word for 'fire', ''tene''.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Schrijver|first=Peter|author-link=Peter Schrijver|year=1999|title=On Henbane and Early European Narcotics|journal=Zeitschrift für celtische Philologie|volume=51|issue=1|pages=34–35|doi=10.1515/zcph.1999.51.1.17|s2cid=162678252|issn=1865-889X|language=German}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Delamarre|first=Xavier|title=Dictionnaire de la langue gauloise: Une approche linguistique du vieux-celtique continental|publisher=Errance|year=2003|isbn=9782877723695|author-link=Xavier Delamarre|pages=70–71|language=French}}</ref>

===Toponymy===
[[File:Beltany stone circle.jpg|thumb|[[Beltany stone circle]] in Ireland]]
There are [[place names in Ireland]] containing the word {{lang|ga|Bealtaine}}, indicating places where Beltane festivities were once held. It is often anglicised as ''Beltany''. There are three Beltanys in [[County Donegal]], including the [[Beltany stone circle]], and two in [[County Tyrone]]. In [[County Armagh]] there is a place called [[Laurelvale|Tamnaghvelton]]/{{lang|ga|Tamhnach Bhealtaine}} ('the Beltane field'). Lisbalting/{{lang|ga|Lios Bealtaine}} ('the Beltane [[ringfort]]') is in [[County Tipperary]], while Glasheennabaultina/{{lang|ga|Glaisín na Bealtaine}} ('the Beltane stream') is the name of a stream joining the River Galey in [[County Limerick]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://archive.org/stream/irishnamesofplac01joycuoft/irishnamesofplac01joycuoft_djvu.txt |title=The Origin And History of Irish Names of Places|first=Patrick Weston |last=Joyce |orig-date=1875 |date=2020 |asin=B087SMDNVQ |access-date=8 October 2017}}</ref>

==Historical customs==
Beltane was one of four Gaelic seasonal festivals: [[Samhain]] (1 November), [[Imbolc]] (1 February), Beltane (1 May), and [[Lughnasadh]] (1 August). Beltane marked the beginning of the pastoral summer season, when livestock were [[Transhumance|driven out to the summer pastures]].<ref name="hutton">Hutton, Ronald. ''The Stations of the Sun: A History of the Ritual Year in Britain''. Oxford University Press, 1996. pp.&nbsp;218–225</ref><ref name="koch">Koch, John T. ''Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia''. 2006. p.&nbsp;202</ref> Rituals were held at that time to protect them from harm, both natural and supernatural, and this mainly involved the "symbolic use of fire".<ref name=hutton/> There were also rituals to protect crops, dairy products and people, and to encourage growth. The {{lang|ga|[[aos sí]]}} (often referred to as spirits or fairies) were thought to be especially active at Beltane (as at Samhain),<ref name=hutton/> and the goal of many Beltane rituals was to appease them. Most scholars see the {{lang|ga|aos sí}} as remnants of the pagan gods and nature spirits.<ref>Santino, Jack. ''The Hallowed Eve: Dimensions of Culture in a Calendar Festival of Northern Ireland''. University Press of Kentucky, 1998. p.&nbsp;105</ref> Beltane was a "spring time festival of optimism" during which "fertility ritual again was important, perhaps connecting with the waxing power of the sun".<ref name="Chadwick" />

===Ancient and medieval===
Beltane (the beginning of summer) and Samhain (the beginning of winter) are thought to have been the most important of the four Celtic festivals. [[Sir James George Frazer]] wrote in ''[[The Golden Bough|The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion]]'' that the times of Beltane and Samhain are of little importance to European crop-growers, but of great importance to herdsmen practising seasonal [[transhumance]]. Thus, he suggests that the festival has [[Pastoralism|pastoral]] origins.<ref>[[James George Frazer|Frazer, Sir James George]]. ''[[The Golden Bough|The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion]]''. Forgotten Books, 2008. p.&nbsp;644</ref>

The earliest mention of Beltane is in [[Old Irish literature]] from [[Gaelic Ireland]]. The early-[[10th century]] text {{lang|mga|[[Sanas Cormaic]]}} (Cormac's Glossary) has an entry for "Belltaine" and derives it from ''bil-tene'', "lucky fire". It says that to protect cattle from disease, the [[druid]]s used to light two fires "with great incantations" and drive the cattle between them.<ref>Stokes, Whitley (ed.) and John O'Donovan (tr.). ''Sanas Cormaic: Cormac's Glossary''. Irish Archaeological and Celtic Society. Calcutta: O.T. Cutter, 1868.</ref> In another entry, ''Sanas Cormaic'' says that Belltaine means "fire of Bel", explaining that Bel, Bil or Bial was a god and that "a fire was kindled in his name at the beginning of summer".<ref>{{cite web | url=https://archive.org/details/sanaschormaicco00stokgoog/page/n40/mode/2up?ref=ol&view=theater&q=belltaine | title=Sanas Chormaic. Cormac's glossary | date=1868 | publisher=Calcutta, Printed by O. T. Cutter for the Irish Archeological and Celtic Society }}</ref> Some scholars suggest that this might have been the Celtic healing god [[Belenos]], although there is no other mention of Bel in Old Irish writings.<ref name=hutton/> Other scholars suggest that the writer was attempting to link the druidic fires with the Biblical god [[Baal]].<ref name=hutton/>

The medieval tale {{lang|mga|[[Tochmarc Emire]]}} (The Wooing of Emer) gives the same description of Beltaine. It says that it marks the beginning of summer, and calls Beltaine and Samhain (the beginning of winter) the two main divisions of the year.<ref>[http://www.ucc.ie/celt/published/T301021/index.html ''The Wooing of Emer by Cú Chulainn'' – Translated by Kuno Meyer] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130214050615/http://www.ucc.ie/celt/published/T301021/index.html |date=14 February 2013 }}. CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Beltane {{!}} ancient Celtic festival|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Beltane|access-date=8 March 2021|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en|archive-date=14 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210214060935/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Beltane|url-status=live}}</ref>

According to 17th-century historian [[Geoffrey Keating]], there was a great gathering at the hill of [[Uisneach]] each Beltane in medieval Ireland, where a sacrifice was made to a god named [[Belenus|Beil]]. Keating wrote that two bonfires would be lit in every district of Ireland, and cattle would be driven between them to protect them from disease.<ref>Keating, Geoffrey. [http://www.ucc.ie/celt/published/T100054/index.html ''The History of Ireland'' – Translated by David Comyn and Patrick S. Dinneen] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130222033517/http://www.ucc.ie/celt/published/T100054/index.html |date=22 February 2013 }}. CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts.</ref> There is no reference to such a gathering in [[Irish annals|the annals]], but the medieval ''[[Dindsenchas]]'' (lore of places) includes a tale of a hero lighting a holy fire on Uisneach that blazed for seven years. Ronald Hutton writes that this may "preserve a tradition of Beltane ceremonies there", but adds "Keating or his source may simply have conflated this legend with the information in ''Sanas Chormaic'' to produce a piece of pseudo-history".<ref name=hutton/> Nevertheless, excavations at Uisneach in the 20th century found evidence of large fires and charred bones, and showed it to have been a place of ritual since ancient times.<ref name=hutton/><ref name="patterson2">Patterson, Nerys. ''Cattle Lords and Clansmen: The Social Structure of Early Ireland''. University of Notre Dame Press, 1994. p.&nbsp;139</ref><ref name="mackillop">MacKillop, James. ''A Dictionary of Celtic Mythology''. Oxford University Press, 1998. pp.&nbsp;39, 400–402, 421</ref> Evidence suggests it was "a sanctuary-site, in which fire was kept burning perpetually, or kindled at frequent intervals", where [[animal sacrifice]]s were offered.<ref>Schot, Roseanne (2006). "[https://www.academia.edu/12163521/Uisneach_Midi_a_med%C3%B3n_%C3%89renn_a_prehistoric_cult_centre_and_royal_site_in_Co._Westmeath Uisneach Midi a medón Érenn: a prehistoric cult centre and royal site in Co. Westmeath]". ''Journal of Irish Archaeology'', issue 15. pp.47–66</ref>

Beltane is also mentioned in medieval Scottish literature.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/beltane |title=Dictionary of the Scots Language :: DOST :: Beltane n. |website=www.dsl.ac.uk |access-date=1 May 2019 |archive-date=1 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190501184654/https://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/beltane |url-status=live }}</ref> An early reference is found in the poem 'Peblis to the Play', contained in the [[Maitland Manuscripts]] of 15th- and 16th-century Scots poetry, which describes the celebration in the town of [[Peebles]].<ref name="tracscotland.org">{{Cite web |url=http://www.tracscotland.org/sites/default/files/May%20Songs%20and%20Rhymes_0.pdf |title=The Songs and Rhymes of May |website=Traditional Arts & Culture Scotland |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180215143738/http://www.tracscotland.org/sites/default/files/May%20Songs%20and%20Rhymes_0.pdf |archive-date=15 February 2018 |access-date=15 February 2018}}</ref>

===Modern era===<!--in Western Europe, the Medieval era ended and the Modern era began in the 16th century-->
From the late 18th century to the mid 20th century, many accounts of Beltane customs were recorded by [[folkloristics|folklorists]] and other writers. For example [[John Jamieson]], in his ''Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language'' (1808), describes some of the Beltane customs which persisted in the 18th and early 19th centuries in parts of Scotland, which he noted were beginning to die out.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.scotsdictionary.com/ |title=Jamieson's Dictionary Online |website=www.scotsdictionary.com |access-date=1 May 2019 |archive-date=5 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190405045905/http://www.scotsdictionary.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Bonfires====
[[File:Beltane Festival 2019 ending ceremony, May Queen and Green Man at Bonfire.jpg|thumb|Beltane Fire Festival, Edinburgh, 2019]]
Bonfires continued to be a key part of the festival in the modern era. All hearth fires would be doused before the bonfire was lit, generally on a hill.<ref name="Chadwick" /><ref name="Danaher">Danaher, Kevin (1972). ''The Year in Ireland: Irish Calendar Customs''. Mercier. {{ISBN|1-85635-093-2}} pp. 86–127</ref>  [[Ronald Hutton]] writes that "To increase the potency of the holy flames, in Britain at least they were often kindled by the most primitive of all means, of friction between wood."<ref name=hutton/> This is known as a [[need-fire]], or ''tein' èiginn'' in Gaelic. It was a sacred fire that could be kindled only with a [[Fire drill (tool)|wooden drill]], by a group of certain people (usually nine men), after they had removed all metal and after all other fires in the area had been doused. Nineteenth-century writers record such fires being kindled at Beltane in the Scottish Highlands, and also in Wales.<ref name=hutton/> Its flames were believed to guard against sickness, supernatural harm and [[witchcraft]].<ref name=hutton/>

In the 19th century, cattle were still driven over flames or between two fires—as described in ''Sanas Cormaic'' almost 1000 years before—in parts of Ireland and Scotland.<ref name=hutton/> Sometimes the cattle would be driven around a bonfire or be made to leap over flames or embers. The people themselves did likewise for good luck and protection.<ref name=hutton/> On the Isle of Man, people ensured that the smoke blew over them and their cattle.<ref name=koch/>

[[File:Beltane Festival 2019 running the cattle through the fire ritual.jpg|thumb|Beltane Fire Festival, Edinburgh, 2019 - participants dressed as cattle]]

When the bonfire died down, people would daub themselves with its ashes and sprinkle it over their crops and livestock.<ref name=hutton/> Burning torches from the bonfire would be taken home, carried around the house or boundary of the farmstead,<ref>Evans, ''Irish Folk Ways'', pp. 274–275</ref> and used to re-light the hearth.<ref name=hutton/> From these rituals, it is clear that the fire was seen as having [[Apotropaic magic|protective powers]].<ref name=hutton/> Similar rituals were part of May Day or Midsummer customs in some other parts of the British Isles and mainland Europe.<ref>[[James George Frazer|Frazer, James George]] (1922). ''[[The Golden Bough|The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion]]''. [https://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/frazer/gb06208.htm Chapter 62, Section 8: The Need-fire]. [[Internet Sacred Text Archive]].</ref> Frazer believed the fire rituals are a kind of [[sympathetic magic|imitative or sympathetic magic]]. He suggests they were meant to mimic the Sun and "ensure a needful supply of sunshine for men, animals, and plants", as well as to symbolically "burn up and destroy all harmful influences".<ref>Frazer, James George (1922). ''[[The Golden Bough|The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion]]''. [http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/frazer/gb06301.htm Chapter 63, Part 1: On the Fire-festivals in general] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131012203326/http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/frazer/gb06301.htm |date=12 October 2013 }}.</ref>

Food was also cooked at the bonfire and there were rituals involving it. In the Scottish Highlands, [[Alexander Carmichael]] recorded that there was a feast featuring lamb, and that formerly this lamb was [[Animal sacrifice|sacrificed]].<ref>Carmichael, ''[[Carmina Gadelica]] Volume 1'', p.&nbsp;191</ref> In 1769, [[Thomas Pennant]] wrote of Beltane bonfires in [[Perthshire]], where a [[caudle]] made from eggs, butter, oatmeal and milk was cooked. Some of the mixture was poured on the ground as a [[libation]]. Everyone would then take an oatmeal cake, called a {{lang|ga|bannoch Bealltainn}} or "Beltane [[Bannock (British food)|bannock]]", which had nine knobs on it. Each person would face the fire, break off a knob one-by-one and throw it over their shoulder, offering them to the spirits to protect their livestock (one to protect the horses, one to protect the sheep, and so forth) and to the predators that might harm their livestock (one to the fox, one to the eagle, and so forth). Afterwards, they would drink the caudle.<ref name=hutton/>

According to 18th-century writers, in parts of Scotland there was another ritual involving the Beltane bannock. The cake would be cut and one of the slices marked with charcoal. The slices would then be put in a [[bonnet (headgear)|bonnet]] and everyone would take one out while blindfolded. According to one writer, whoever got the marked piece had to leap through the fire three times. According to another, those present pretended to throw the person into the fire and, for some time afterwards, would speak of them as if they were dead. This "may embody a memory of actual [[human sacrifice]]", or it may have always been symbolic.<ref name=hutton/> There was an almost identical May Day (''[[Calan Mai]]'') tradition in parts of Wales, and mock-burnings were part of spring and summer bonfire festivals in other parts of Europe.<ref>Frazer, James George (1922). ''[[The Golden Bough|The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion]]''. [http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/frazer/gb06402.htm Chapter 64, Part 2: The Burning of Men and Animals in the Fires] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130509185559/http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/frazer/gb06402.htm |date=9 May 2013 }}.</ref>

====Flowers and May Bushes====
[[File:Crataegus monogyna in flower on Smeardon Down.jpg|thumb|left|A flowering hawthorn]]
Yellow and white flowers such as [[Primula vulgaris|primrose]], [[rowan]], [[Crataegus monogyna|hawthorn]], [[gorse]], [[hazel]], and [[Caltha palustris|marsh marigold]] were traditionally placed at doorways and windows; this is documented in 19th century Ireland, Scotland and Mann. Sometimes loose flowers were strewn at doors and windows and sometimes they were made into [[flower bouquet|bouquets]], [[garland]]s or crosses and fastened to them. Cows would also be decorated with them,<ref>{{Cite web|title=May Day and May Eve|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4427955/4361147/4465007|access-date=12 February 2022|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref> and they would be fastened to equipment for milking and butter making. It is likely that such flowers were used because they evoked fire.<ref name=hutton/> Similar May Day customs are found across Europe.

The May Bush or May Bough was popular in parts of Ireland until the late 19th century.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=Uachtar Árd {{!}} The Schools' Collection|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4613696/4609620|access-date=12 February 2022|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref> This was a small tree or branch—typically hawthorn, rowan, holly or sycamore—decorated with bright flowers, ribbons, painted shells or eggshells from Easter Sunday, and so forth. The tree would either be decorated where it stood, or branches would be decorated and placed inside or outside the house (particularly above windows and doors, on the roof, and on barns).<ref name=":1" /> It was generally the responsibility of the oldest person of the house to decorate the May Bush, and the tree would remain up until 31 May.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Uachtar Árd {{!}} The Schools' Collection|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4613696/4609616|access-date=12 February 2022|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web|title=Uachtar Árd {{!}} The Schools' Collection|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4613696/4609619|access-date=12 February 2022|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref> The tree would also be decorated with candles or [[rushlight]]s.<ref name="Danaher" /> Sometimes a May Bush would be paraded through the town. In parts of southern Ireland, gold and silver [[Sliotar|hurling balls]] known as May Balls would be hung on these May Bushes and handed out to children or given to the winners of a [[hurling]] match.<ref name="Danaher" /> In [[Dublin]] and [[Belfast]], May Bushes were brought into town from the countryside and decorated by the whole neighbourhood.<ref name="Danaher" /> Each neighbourhood vied for the most handsome tree and, sometimes, residents of one would try to steal the May Bush of another. This led to the May Bush being outlawed in [[Victorian era|Victorian times]].<ref name="Danaher" /> In some places, it was customary to sing and dance around the May Bush, and at the end of the festivities it may be burnt in the bonfire.<ref name=":7" /> In some areas the May Bush or Bough has also been called the "May Pole", but it is the bush or tree described above, and not the more commonly-known European [[maypole]].<ref name=":1"/>

Thorn trees are traditionally seen as special trees, associated with the {{lang|ga|[[aos sí]]}}. Frazer believed the customs of decorating trees or poles in springtime are a relic of [[tree worship]] and wrote: "The intention of these customs is to bring home to the village, and to each house, the blessings which the [[List of tree deities|tree-spirit]] has in its power to bestow."<ref>Frazer, James George (1922). ''[[The Golden Bough|The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion]]''. [http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/frazer/gb01000.htm Chapter 10: Relics of Tree Worship in Modern Europe] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130509182027/http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/frazer/gb01000.htm |date=9 May 2013 }}.</ref> [[Emyr Estyn Evans]] suggests that the May Bush custom may have come to Ireland from England, because it seemed to be found in areas with strong English influence and because the Irish saw it as unlucky to damage certain thorn trees.<ref name="folkways">{{cite book|author-link =Emyr Estyn Evans|last =Evans|first = Emyr Estyn|title =Irish Folk Ways|publisher = Routledge|date= 1957|pages =272–274|isbn = 9780415002257}}</ref> However, "lucky" and "unlucky" trees varied by region, and it has been suggested that Beltane was the only time when cutting thorn trees was allowed.<ref name="watts">Watts, D C. ''Dictionary of Plant Lore''. Academic Press, 2007. p.&nbsp;246</ref> The practice of bedecking a May Bush with flowers, ribbons, garlands and bright shells is found among the Gaelic diaspora, most notably in [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]], and in some Easter traditions on the [[East Coast of the United States]].<ref name="Danaher" />

==== Warding-off harmful spirits ====
Many Beltane practices were designed to ward off harmful spirits or appease the [[Aos Sí|''aos sí'']] (often referred to as the fairies) and prevent them from stealing dairy products, which were thought to be especially at risk.<ref name="Danaher" /><ref name="McNeill2">McNeill (1959) Vol.  2. p.&nbsp;63</ref><ref name="Campbell">[[John Gregorson Campbell|Campbell, John Gregorson]] (1900, 1902, 2005) ''The Gaelic Otherworld''. Edited by Ronald Black. Edinburgh, Birlinn Ltd. {{ISBN|1-84158-207-7}} pp.&nbsp;552–554</ref> For example, May flowers were tied to milk pails or the tails of cattle to ensure the cattle's milk was not stolen, or three black coals might be placed under a butter churn to ensure the fairies did not steal the butter.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Uachtar Árd {{!}} The Schools' Collection|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4613696/4609617|access-date=12 February 2022|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":2" />

On the Isle of Man, small crosses made of [[rowan]] were worn, fastened over doorways, and tied to cattle, as protection against [[witchcraft]] and evil spirits. It was called a {{lang|gv|crosh cuirn}}.<ref>{{cite web |title=Crosh cuirn: A Manx tradition for Oie Voaldyn |url=https://culturevannin.im/media//media%20-%20Customs%20and%20traditions/Laa%20Boaldyn/Crosh%20Cuirn%20-%20Notes%20on%20Manx%20history%20and%20customs%20%5B1%5D.pdf |publisher=[[Culture Vannin]] |access-date=1 May 2025}}</ref>

Food was left or milk poured at the doorstep or places associated with the {{lang|ga|aos sí}}, such as 'fairy trees', as an offering.<ref name="Evans, p. 272">Evans, ''Irish Folk Ways'', p.&nbsp;272</ref><ref>Danaher, ''The Year in Ireland'', p.&nbsp;121</ref> However, milk was never given to a neighbour on May Day because it was feared that the milk would be transferred to the neighbour's cow.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Druim an t-Seagail {{!}} The Schools' Collection|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4602710/4597558|access-date=12 February 2022|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref> 

In Ireland, cattle would be brought to '[[fairy fort]]s', where a small amount of their blood would be collected. The owners would then pour it into the earth with prayers for the herd's safety. Sometimes the blood would be left to dry and then be burnt.<ref name="Evans, p. 272" />  

To protect farm produce and encourage fertility, farmers would lead a procession around the boundaries of their farm. They would "carry with them seeds of grain, implements of husbandry, the first well water, and the herb [[Verbena|vervain]] (or rowan as a substitute). The procession generally stopped at the four cardinal points of the compass, beginning in the east, and rituals were performed in each of the four directions".<ref>Danaher, ''The Year in Ireland'', pp. 116–117</ref> People made the sign of the cross with milk for good luck on Beltane, and the sign of the cross was also made on the backsides of cattle.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web|title=Baile an Daingin (C.) {{!}} The Schools' Collection|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4427840/4349345|access-date=12 February 2022|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Baile an Daingin (C.) {{!}} The Schools' Collection|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4427840/4349346|access-date=12 February 2022|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref>

====Beltane blessings====
In the 19th century, folklorist [[Alexander Carmichael]] (1832–1912), collected the [[Scottish Gaelic]] song {{lang|gd|Am Beannachadh Bealltain}} ("The Beltane Blessing") in his ''[[Carmina Gadelica]]'', which he heard from a [[Crofting|crofter]] in [[South Uist]].<ref name="tracscotland.org" /> The first two verses were sung as follows:

<blockquote><poem>{{lang|gd|Beannaich, a Thrianailt fhioir nach gann,}} (Bless, O Threefold true and bountiful,)
{{lang|gd|Mi fein, mo cheile agus mo chlann,}} (Myself, my spouse and my children,)
{{lang|gd|Mo chlann mhaoth's am mathair chaomh 'n an ceann,}} (My tender children and their beloved mother at their head,)
{{lang|gd|Air chlar chubhr nan raon, air airidh chaon nam beann,}} (On the fragrant plain, at the gay mountain [[shieling]],)
{{lang|gd|Air chlar chubhr nan raon, air airidh chaon nam beann.}} (On the fragrant plain, at the gay mountain shieling.)

{{lang|gd|Gach ni na m' fhardaich, no ta 'na m' shealbh,}} (Everything within my dwelling or in my possession,)
{{lang|gd|Gach buar is barr, gach tan is tealbh,}} (All [[wikt:kine|kine]] and crops, all flocks and corn,)
{{lang|gd|Bho Oidhche Shamhna chon Oidhche Bheallt,}} (From Hallow Eve to Beltane Eve,)
{{lang|gd|Piseach maith, agus beannachd mallt,}} (With goodly progress and gentle blessing,)
{{lang|gd|Bho mhuir, gu muir, agus bun gach allt,}} (From sea to sea, and every river mouth,)
{{lang|gd|Bho thonn gu tonn, agus bonn gach steallt.}} (From wave to wave, and base of waterfall.)<ref name="tracscotland.org" /></poem></blockquote>

====Other customs====
[[File:Holy Well, Slieve League, Co. Donegal (31636807885).jpg|thumb|Men visiting a holy well in County Donegal in the 1890s]]
[[Holy well]]s were often visited at Beltane, and at the other Gaelic festivals of Imbolc and Lughnasadh. Visitors to holy wells would pray for health while walking [[sunwise]] (moving from east to west) around the well. They would then leave offerings; typically coins or [[wikt:clootie|clootie]]s (see [[clootie well]]).<ref name="Danaher" /> The first water drawn from a well on Beltane was thought to be especially potent, and would bring good luck to the person who drew it. Beltane morning [[dew]] was also thought to bring good luck and health. At dawn or before sunrise on Beltane, maidens would roll in the dew or wash their faces with it.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Baile an Churraigh {{!}} The Schools' Collection|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4591100/4591003|access-date=25 December 2021|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref> The dew was collected in a jar, left in sunlight, then filtered. The dew was thought to increase sexual attractiveness, maintain youthfulness, protect from sun damage (particularly freckles and sunburn) and help with skin ailments for the ensuing year.<ref name=koch/><ref name="Danaher" /><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite web|title=Baile an Daingin (C.) {{!}} The Schools' Collection|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4427840/4349344|access-date=12 February 2022|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref> It was also thought that a man who washed his face with soap and water on Beltane will grow long whiskers on his face.<ref name=":1" />

It was widely believed that no one should light a fire on May Day morning until they saw smoke rising from a neighbour's house.<ref name=":2" /> It was also believed to be bad luck to put out ashes or clothes on May Day, and to give away coal or ashes would cause the giver difficulty in lighting fires for the next year.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|title=Druim an t-Seagail {{!}} The Schools' Collection|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4602710/4597559|access-date=12 February 2022|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":5" /> Also, if the family owned a white horse, it should remain in the barn all day, and if any other horse was owned, a red rag should be tied to its tail.<ref name=":1" /> Any foal born on May Day was fated to kill a man, and any cow that calved on May Day would die.<ref name=":3" /> Any birth or marriage on May Day was generally believed to be ill-fated.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web|title=Baile an Daingin (C.) {{!}} The Schools' Collection|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4427840/4349343|access-date=12 February 2022|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":7">{{Cite web|title=Festivals of the Year – May Day|url=https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/5044699/5032924/5146080|access-date=12 February 2022|website=dúchas.ie|language=en}}</ref> On May Night a cake and a jug were left on the table, because it was believed that the Irish who had died abroad would return on May Day to their ancestral homes, and it was also believed that the dead returned on May Day to visit their friends.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":6" /> A [[European robin|robin]] that flew into the house on Beltane was believed to portend the death of a household member.<ref name=":7" />

The festival persisted widely up until the 1950s, and in some places the celebration of Beltane continues today.<ref name=mackillop/><ref name="McNeill2" /><ref name="Campbell" />

==Revival==
[[File:Beltane Festival 2019 Procession of the May Queen 02.jpg|thumb|Beltane Fire Festival, Edinburgh, 2019]]
As a festival, Beltane had largely died out by the mid-20th century, although some of its customs continued and in some places it has been revived as a cultural event. In Ireland, Beltane fires were common until the mid-20th century,<ref name="Danaher" /> and has been revived as an annual festival in [[County Westmeath]] on the [[Hill of Uisneach]] since 2009.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rte.ie/news/2021/0506/1214049-bealtaine-fire/|title=Bealtaine Fire in Co Westmeath signals 'unity and hope'|date=6 May 2021 |publisher=rte.ie|access-date=13 May 2024 |last1=Bromwell |first1=Philip }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2022/0428/1046589-bealtaine-summer-ireland/|title=How Bealtaine marks the start of summer in Ireland|date=28 April 2022 |publisher=rte.ie|access-date=13 May 2024 |last1=Ward |first1=Dr Karen }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rte.ie/news/leinster/2024/0511/1448610-bealtaine-fire-festival/|title=Return of summer to be celebrated at Bealtaine Fire Festival|date=11 May 2024 |publisher=rte.ie|access-date=13 May 2024 |last1=Conway |first1=Gail }}</ref> It culminates in a torchlit procession by participants in costume, some on horseback, and the lighting of a large bonfire at dusk.<ref>{{cite web|title=Bealtaine|url=https://uisneach.ie/bealtaine/|website=uisneach.ie|date=12 May 2021|access-date=1 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Festival of fire reignites pagan passions|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/people/festival-of-fire-reignites-pagan-passions-1.660641 |newspaper=[[The Irish Times]]|date=4 May 2010}}</ref> In 2017, the ceremonial fire was lit by the [[President of Ireland]], [[Michael D. Higgins]].<ref>{{cite news |title=President lights Hill of Uisneach fire |url=https://www.meathchronicle.ie/2017/05/08/president-lights-hill-of-uisneach-fire/ |work=[[Meath Chronicle]] |date=8 May 2017}}</ref>

The lighting of a community Beltane fire from which each hearth fire is then relit is observed today in some parts of the [[Gaelic diaspora]], though in most of these cases it is a cultural revival rather than an unbroken survival of the ancient tradition.<ref name="Danaher" /><ref name="Dames">Dames, Michael (1992) ''Mythic Ireland''. London, Thames & Hudson {{ISBN|0-500-27872-5}}. pp. 206–210</ref><ref name="McNeill">McNeill, F. Marian (1959) ''The Silver Bough'', Vol. 2. William MacLellan, Glasgow {{ISBN|0-85335-162-7}} p. 56</ref> In parts of Newfoundland, the custom of decorating the May Bush also survives.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.heritage.nf.ca/society/custom_may_bush.html |title=The May Bush in Newfoundland: Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage |publisher=Heritage.nf.ca |access-date=1 May 2014 |archive-date=27 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140227082523/http://www.heritage.nf.ca/society/custom_may_bush.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The town of [[Peebles]] in the [[Scottish Borders]] holds a traditional week-long Beltane Fair every year in June, when a local girl is crowned Beltane Queen on the steps of the parish church. Like other Borders festivals, it incorporates a [[Common Riding]].<ref name="tracscotland.org" /><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.peeblesbeltanefestival.co.uk |title=Home |publisher=Peeblesbeltanefestival.co.uk |access-date=1 May 2014 |archive-date=2 May 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502013450/http://www.peeblesbeltanefestival.co.uk/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Edinburgh Beltane Fire Festival 2012 - Red Beastie Drummers.JPG|thumb|[[Beltane Fire Festival]] dancers, 2012]]
Since 1988, a [[Beltane Fire Festival]] has been held every year on the night of 30 April on [[Calton Hill, Edinburgh|Calton Hill]] in Edinburgh, Scotland. While inspired by traditional Beltane, it is a modern celebration of summer's beginning which draws on many influences.<ref>{{cite web |title=About Beltane Fire Festival |date=11 February 2013 |url=https://beltane.org/about-beltane/ |publisher=[[Beltane Fire Society]] |access-date=1 May 2022}}</ref> The [[performance art]] event involves [[fire dance]]s and a procession by costumed performers, led by the May Queen and the [[Green Man]], culminating in the lighting of a bonfire.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Melis |first1=Claudia |title=City on fire: Deterritorialisation and becoming at Edinburgh's Beltane Fire Festival |encyclopedia=Tourism, Cultural Heritage and Urban Regeneration |editor=Nicholas Wise |date=2020 |publisher=Springer |pages=113–114}}</ref>

Butser Ancient Farm, an open-air archaeology museum in Hampshire, England, has also held a Beltane festival since the 1980s. The festival mixes historical reenactment with folk influences, and features a May Queen and [[Green Man]], living history displays, reenactor battles, demonstrations of traditional crafts, performances of folk music, and Celtic storytelling. The festival ends with the burning of a 30–40&nbsp;ft wickerman, with a new historical or folk-inspired design each year. Butser Ancient Farm acknowledges that their Beltane celebrations are not an attempt to reconstruct authentic historical pagan practices.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Beltain Celtic Fire Festival |url=https://www.butserancientfarm.co.uk/beltain-celtic-fire-festival |access-date=25 November 2022 |website=Butser Ancient Farm |language=en-US}}</ref>

The 1970 recording '[[Ride a White Swan]]', written and performed by [[Marc Bolan]] and his band [[T. Rex (band)|T.Rex]], contains the line "Ride a white Swan like the people of the Beltane".<ref>Dicks, Ted & Platz, Paul; 'Marc Bolan: A Tribute'. Wise Publications,1992. ISBN 0711929955, 9780711929951, et al.</ref>

===Neopaganism===
{{See also|Wheel of the Year}}

Beltane and Beltane-based festivals are held by some [[Neopaganism|Neopagans]]. As there are many kinds of Neopaganism, their Beltane celebrations can be very different despite the shared name. Some try to emulate the historic festival as much as possible.<ref name="Gallagher">{{Cite book |last1=Gallagher |first1=Eugene V. |title=Introduction to new and alternative religions in America |last2=Ashcraft |first2=W. Michael |publisher=Greenwood Press |year=2006 |isbn=0-275-98713-2 |location=Westport, Conn. |page=178}}</ref> Other Neopagans base their celebrations on many sources, the Gaelic festival being only one of them.<ref name="Adler1">Adler, Margot (1979) ''Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America Today''. Boston, Beacon Press {{ISBN|0-8070-3237-9}}. p.&nbsp;397 – Excerpts from Manhattan Pagan Way Beltane ritual script, 1978</ref><ref name="McColman1">McColman, Carl (2003) ''Complete Idiot's Guide to Celtic Wisdom''. Alpha Press {{ISBN|0-02-864417-4}}. p. 51</ref>

Neopagans usually celebrate Beltane on 30 April – 1 May in the Northern Hemisphere and 31 October – 1 November in the Southern Hemisphere, beginning and ending at sunset.<ref name="SpiralDance" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Nevill Drury |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rwzttsI9-NwC |title=Handbook of Contemporary Paganism |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |year=2009 |isbn=9789004163737 |editor-last=Pizza |editor-first=Murphy |location=[[Leiden]], Netherlands |pages=63–67 |chapter=The Modern Magical Revival: Esbats and Sabbats |editor-last2=Lewis |editor-first2=James R |access-date=7 November 2016 |archive-date=26 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126083911/https://books.google.com/books?id=rwzttsI9-NwC |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Hume |first=Lynne |title=Witchcraft and Paganism in Australia |publisher=Melbourne University Press |year=1997 |isbn=978-0522847826 |location=Melbourne}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Vos |first=Donna |title=Dancing Under an African Moon: Paganism and Wicca in South Africa |publisher=Zebra Press |year=2002 |isbn=978-1868726530 |location=Cape Town |pages=79–86}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Bodsworth |first=Roxanne T |title=Sunwyse: Celebrating the Sacred Wheel of the Year in Australia |publisher=Hihorse Publishing |year=2003 |isbn=978-0909223038 |location=Victoria, Australia}}</ref> Some Neopagans celebrate it at the astronomical midpoint between the spring [[equinox]] and [[summer solstice]] (or the full moon nearest this point). In the Northern Hemisphere, this midpoint is when the ecliptic longitude of the Sun reaches 45 degrees.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.archaeoastronomy.com/seasons.html |title=Equinoxes, Solstice, Cross Quarters shown as seasonal cusps, worshipped by pagans and later religious holidays |publisher=Archaeoastronomy.com |access-date=5 March 2013 |archive-date=23 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130123062729/http://www.archaeoastronomy.com/seasons.html |url-status=usurped }}</ref>

====Celtic Reconstructionist====
[[Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism|Celtic Reconstructionists]] strive to reconstruct [[ancient Celtic religion]]. Their religious practices are based on research and historical accounts,<ref name="Gallagher" /><ref name="McColman2">McColman (2003) pp.&nbsp;12, 51</ref> but modified to suit modern life. They avoid [[syncretism]] and eclecticism (i.e. combining practises from unrelated cultures).<ref name="CRFAQ1">NicDhàna, Kathryn et al. (2007) ''The CR FAQ: An Introduction to Celtic Reconstructionist Paganism''. River House Publishing. {{ISBN|978-0-615-15800-6}} pp. 53–56, 64, 130–131</ref>

Celtic Reconstructionists usually celebrate Beltane when the local [[Common Hawthorn|hawthorn]] trees are in bloom. Many observe the traditional bonfire rites, to whatever extent this is feasible where they live. This may involve passing themselves and their pets or livestock between two bonfires, and bringing home a candle lit from the bonfire. If they are unable to make a bonfire or attend a bonfire ceremony, candles may be used instead. They may decorate their homes with a May Bush, branches from blooming thorn trees, or equal-armed rowan crosses. Holy wells may be visited and offerings made to the spirits or deities of the wells. Traditional festival foods may also be prepared.<ref name="CRFAQ2">NicDhàna (2007) pp. 100–103</ref><ref name="Healy">Healy, Elizabeth (2001) ''In Search of Ireland's Holy Wells''. Dublin, Wolfhound Press {{ISBN|0-86327-865-5}} p.&nbsp;27</ref>

====Wicca====
[[Wicca]]ns use the name ''Beltane'' or ''Beltain'' for their May Day celebrations. It is one of the yearly Sabbats of their [[Wheel of the Year]], following [[Ostara]] and preceding [[Midsummer]]. Unlike Celtic Reconstructionism, Wicca is syncretic and melds practices from many different cultures. In general, the Wiccan Beltane is more akin to the Germanic/English May Day festival, both in its significance (focusing on fertility) and its rituals (such as [[maypole]] dancing). Some Wiccans enact a ritual union of the [[Horned God|May Lord]] and [[Triple Goddess (Neopaganism)|May Lady]].<ref name="SpiralDance">[[Starhawk]] (1979, 1989) ''[[The Spiral Dance|The Spiral Dance: A Rebirth of the Ancient Religion of the Great Goddess]]''. New York, Harper and Row {{ISBN|0-06-250814-8}} pp. 181 196 (revised edition)</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Holidays|Ireland|Scotland}}

* [[Walpurgis Night]]
* [[Parilia]]
* [[lixia|Lìxià]] (立夏)

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book | first=Frederic | last=Armao | year=2022 | title=Uisneach or the Center of Ireland | publisher=Routledge | location=New York City | isbn=978-0367697709 }}
* Carmichael, Alexander (1992). ''[[Carmina Gadelica]]''. Lindisfarne Press. {{ISBN|0-940262-50-9}}
* Chadwick, Nora (1970) ''The Celts''. London, Penguin {{ISBN|0-14-021211-6}}
* [[Kevin Danaher|Danaher, Kevin]] (1972) ''The Year in Ireland''. Dublin, Mercier {{ISBN|1-85635-093-2}}
* [[W. Y. Evans-Wentz|Evans-Wentz, W. Y.]] (1966, 1990) ''The Fairy-Faith in Celtic Countries''. New York, Citadel {{ISBN|0-8065-1160-5}}
* MacKillop, James (1998).  ''Dictionary of Celtic Mythology''. Oxford University Press {{ISBN|0-19-280120-1}}
* [[F. Marian McNeill|McNeill, F. Marian]] (1959) ''The Silver Bough'', Vol. 1–4. William MacLellan, Glasgow
* [[Eve Blantyre Simpson|Simpson, Eve Blantyre]] (1908), ''Folk Lore in Lowland Scotland'', London: [[J.M. Dent]].

==External links==
* [http://www.beltane.org/ Edinburgh's Beltane Fire Society]
* [http://www.bartleby.com/196/155.html Extract on The Beltane Fires from Sir James George Frazer's book The Golden Bough – 1922]; from ''bartleby.com''

{{Celts|state=collapsed}}
{{Celtic mythology topics}}
{{Wheel of the Year}}
{{Contemporary_witchcraft}}
{{Ireland topics}}
{{Authority control}}

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[[Category:Irish words and phrases]]
[[Category:Culture of Galicia (Spain)]]
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[[Category:Modern pagan holidays]]
[[Category:November observances]]<!--in the southern hemisphere-->
[[Category:Culture of Scotland]]
[[Category:Scottish folklore]]
[[Category:Scottish mythology]]
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