That New Year’s Day is the first day of the recurring year goes without saying. Previous to 1752, when the year commenced on the 25th of March, its four recognized quarters were Whitsuntide, Lammastide, Martinmastide, and Candlemastide; at the present time they are Lady Day, Midsummer, Michaelmas, and Christmas. Let us at once consider the meaning of these terms.
Whitsuntide is the season ushered in by Whit Sunday, a corruption of White Sunday, because, during the primitive ages of the Church, all newly-baptized persons were required to attend Mass in white garments on this day. As every one knows, Whit Sunday commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles in the form of fiery tongues. It is highly probable, therefore, that the true meaning of Whit, or White, Sunday remains to be sought in connection with the wisdom symbolized by these fiery tongues. After all, the original spelling of this festival-name may have been Witan Sunday, the Anglo-Saxon for Wisdom Sunday; just as the earliest English parliaments were styled Witanagemotes, or “meetings of the wise men.” But to proceed. Lammastide literally signified the season of First Fruits; since on Lammas Day, a term compounded out of the Anglo-Saxon hlaf, a loaf, and mœsse, a feast, (Aug. 1st), it was formerly the custom to offer bread made of new wheat in the churches. Martinmas Day (Nov. 4th), latterly corrupted into Martlemas Day, denotes the Feast of St. Martin, Bishop of Tours in the fourth century. Candlemas Day, or the Feast of the Purification (Feb. 2nd), which commemorates the presentation of the Infant in the Temple in accordance with the Jewish Law instituted 1490 B.C., because the early Christians walked in procession to Mass with lighted candles in their hands on this day. This religious observance was introduced by Pope Gelasius in the fifth century, as a literal bearing out of the words spoken by Holy Simeon when he took the child Jesus in his arms: “Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, according to Thy word; For mine eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou hast prepared before the face of all people: A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel” (Luke ii. 29-32). It is still the practice in the Roman Catholic Church to make offerings of candles for the use of the altar on this day. Lady Day (Mar. 25th) is but another name for the Feast of the Annunciation, or the day upon which “the angel of the Lord appeared unto Mary,” and announced that she was to become the Mother of the Son of God. Midsummer Day (June 24th) expresses the midday of the year; while Michaelmas Day (Sept. 29th) is the Feast of St. Michael, the patron saint of the Roman Catholic Church. As the latter feast falls upon the first day of autumn, the hiring of labourers and domestics in the rural districts takes place at this time. Christmas Day is, to put it literally, the Feast Day of Christ, being the anniversary of the Nativity of the Blessed Redeemer.
Innocents’ Day, formerly known as Childermas Day (Dec. 28th), commemorates the Massacre of the Innocents by Herod. Twelfth Day (Jan. 6th), signifying the twelfth day after Christmas Day, bears the ecclesiastical name of the Epiphany, from the Greek Epiphaneia, a showing or appearance, because on this day the Infant manifested Himself to the Three Wise Men from the East who came to adore Him. In olden times the Feast of the Epiphany was kept with great solemnity in the churches during the day, followed by a festival of a more social character in the evening, thus accounting for the old-fashioned appellation of Twelfth Night. The 7th of January was formerly called Distaff’s Day, because the Christmas festivities having come to an end with Twelfth Night, the women were expected to return to their distaffs and other regular occupations on this day. Another name for the same occasion was Rock Day, rock being the Anglo-Saxon term for a distaff. Similarly, the first Monday after the Epiphany bore the designation of Plough Monday, on account of the men returning to the plough and the ordinary labours of the field on this day. Handsel Monday, the first Monday in the New Year, was so called by the Anglo-Saxons because then it was that handsels, or presents, were bestowed upon domestics and children. To the best of our knowledge the custom no longer exists in any portion of this country; or perhaps it may be more correct to say that its observance has been universally transferred to Boxing Day (Dec. 26th), originally so styled from the opening of the various alms-boxes in the churches, and the distribution of their contents, which bore the name of a Christmas Dole, to the poor by the clergy on this day. Moreover, since heads of families usually gave their children and domestics small sums of money to drop into the boxes for the latter purpose on Christmas morning, we here trace the origin of the term Christmas Box, which nowadays applies to a present received by servants and others during the Christmas season.
The word Lent is a contraction of the Old English lenten, and the Anglo-Saxon lencten, the spring, both derived from lencgan, to lengthen, because the long fast of the Christian Church occurs when the days begin to lengthen. Shrove Tuesday, also known as Pancake Tuesday, derived its name from the shriving or confessing imposed upon the faithful on this day. The custom of eating pancakes originated from the fact that this species of food afforded a stay to the appetite during the long hours of waiting in church to be shrived. The distribution of ashes on Ash Wednesday commemorates the passage in the third chapter of Genesis, where the Lord curses Adam in these words: “In the sweat of thy face thou shalt eat bread till thou return to the ground; for dust thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return.” Passion Sunday, which precedes Palm Sunday, is devoted to a general commemoration of the subject of Christ’s Passion. Palm Sunday owes its name to the distribution of palms in the Roman Catholic Church, in allusion to the palms borne by the populace who accompanied the Redeemer into Jerusalem shortly before His betrayal by Judas. The week following Palm Sunday is called Passion Week, and also Holy Week, because it contains the days upon which the incidents of Christ’s Passion are particularly commemorated. Maunday Thursday is the first, not at all on account of the maund, the Saxon term for an alms-basket, formerly presented to the poor by the Lord (or rather by the Lady, “the loaf-giver”) of the Manor, but from the ancient ceremony of washing the feet of poor persons, in imitation of Christ at the Last Supper, when He said, “Mandatum novum do vobis,” &c., the French for Mandatum being Maundé. The ecclesiastical designation of this day is Holy Thursday, in commemoration of the Agony and Bloody Sweat of the Saviour in the Garden of Gethsemane. Good Friday, the anniversary of the Crucifixion, was originally known as “God’s Friday.” The Anglo-Saxons usually called this day Long Friday, in consequence of the length of the Church service. Holy Saturday is the day upon which the Church commemorates the Burial of Christ.
The word Easter bears in itself no Christian significance whatever, having been derived from Eoster, the goddess of light, or spring, in whose honour a festival was anciently held in the month of April. The Jewish festival corresponding to our Easter is called the Passover, in commemoration of the Destroying Angel having passed over the houses of the Israelites whose door-posts were marked with the blood of a lamb killed the previous night in accordance with the Divine command, when He smote the firstborn of the Egyptians in the year 1491 B.C. Returning to the Christian Church, the Sunday after Easter is called Low Sunday, because it stands at the bottom of the Lenten Calendar; being the last day upon which Roman Catholics may fulfil their Easter obligation of receiving the Holy Communion. Sexagesima Sunday, Quinquagesima Sunday, and Quadragesima Sunday are situated in the Calendar respectively sixty, fifty, and forty days before Easter; the terms expressing the Latin for those round numbers.
The Feast of Whitsuntide, which we have already discussed, also bears the name of Pentecost, from the Greek pentekoste, the fiftieth day, in commemoration of the gift of the Law to the Israelites fifty days after their deliverance out of Egypt. Trinity Sunday, so called from the Latin trinitas, three, is the Festival of the Holy Trinity, i.e., the unity of the three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, under one Godhead. Corpus Christi expresses the Latin for the Body of Christ, especially alluding to the Last Supper. As the Church considered it out of keeping with the solemnity peculiar to Holy Week, the celebration of this High Festival has been transferred to the Thursday after Trinity Sunday. The Sunday preceding Ascension Day is called Rogation Sunday because it ushers in the three Rogation Days, or days of preparation, conformably to the Latin rogare, to beseech, for the Feast of the Ascension. We may conveniently add here that Ember Days are those days of especial fasting and prayers that occur in each of the four seasons of the year, viz., the Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday after the first Sunday in Lent, and the corresponding three days after the Feast of Whitsuntide, the 14th of September, and the 13th of December. The weeks in which these days occur are styled Ember Weeks; the allusion to embers (Anglo-Saxon, ämyrie, hot ashes) being commemorative of the ancient custom of doing penance by the wearing of sackcloth and ashes.
On Ascension Day the Church celebrates the Ascension of our Saviour; while the Feast of the Assumption similarly reminds Roman Catholics of the consummation of the Virgin’s mission upon earth by being assumed into Heaven. Holy Cross Day, Holy Rood Day, and the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross are one and the same, the term Rood being Old English, derived from the Anglo-Saxon rôd, for cross. This festival, which occurs on the 14th of September, celebrates the restoration of the Holy Cross of Calvary to Jerusalem in the year 628. All Saints’ Day (Nov. 1st), is the day dedicated to those whose sanctification during life merited their canonization by the Church after death; while All Souls’ Day (Nov. 2nd) is the day set apart for special prayers, having for their object the liberation of the suffering souls in Purgatory. The older designation of the first-named was Allhallowes Day, in accordance with the Anglo-Saxon word haligan, holy. Allhallowe’en denoted the evening before, generally attended with sundry amusements in the social circle; conspicuous among which was the cracking of nuts in large quantities in the fire, whence it received the name of Cracknut Night.
St. Valentine’s Day (Feb. 14th) is sacred to the memory of Bishop Valentine, a Christian martyr beheaded at Rome on this day in the year 278. The custom among young people of sending poetical souvenirs to their sweethearts on the birthday of St. Valentine originated from the old notion that birds commenced to couple on this day: hence, a sweetheart chosen on the 14th of February anciently bore the name of a Valentine. Nowadays, alas! the paper Valentines are all that remain to remind us of the fact. St. Swithin’s Day (July 15th) perpetuates the memory of St. Swithin, the preceptor of King Ethelwulf and Bishop of Winchester, who died July 2, 862. The vulgar belief that if it rains on this day it will continue to rain for forty successive days is attributed to the tradition that when, despite the saint’s dying request to be buried in the churchyard, the clergy took steps to disinter his body in order to remove it within the cathedral, a heavy downpour of rain necessitated a postponement of their efforts on thirty-nine successive days, whereupon, after the fortieth attempt, they determined to allow the saint to remain where he lay. St. David’s Day (Mar. 1st) commemorates the victory won by the Welsh over the Saxons on the birthday of their Archbishop (born 490, died 554), in the year 540. It was in consequence of the Archbishop having ordered them on this occasion to place a leek in their caps, so as to distinguish one another from the invaders, that the Welsh afterwards adopted the leek as their national emblem in his honour. Comb’s Mass, which in the north of Scotland, and Caithness more particularly, takes the place of our Whitsuntide, is the colloquial term for the Feast of St. Columba, Abbot of Iona (born 521, died 597).
Primrose Day (April 19th) is the anniversary of the death of Lord Beaconsfield (born 1804, died 1881). The abundant display of primroses on this day, particularly on the part of the members of the Primrose League, established in 1884 in his honour, originated in the Queen’s primrose wreath sent to the funeral of the great statesman, thus inscribed—“His favourite flower.” The custom of displaying a sprig of oak on Royal Oak Day (May 29th) perpetuates the manner in which the Royalists welcomed the return to England of Charles II. on his birthday, May 29, 1651, in allusion to his concealment in the oak at Boscobel, after the Battle of Worcester, on the 3rd of September previous. Guy Fawkes’ Day keeps alive the incident of the Gunpowder Plot, by the timely discovery of which, November 5, 1605, the wholesale destruction of King James’s Parliament was averted. The name of the chief conspirator was not Guy, but Guido Fawkes; his execution took place January 13, 1606.
Arbor Day is an expression scarcely understood in this country, except, perhaps, at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, where the Transatlantic ceremony of planting trees, shrubs, and flowers within the school precincts, was publicly performed for the first time by the Mayor, June 11, 1888. This annual observance prevails not only throughout the United States and Canada, but also in certain portions of British Columbia, where the trees have to be coaxed into growing. Forefathers’ Day (Dec. 20th) is kept as a high holiday in New England, commemorative of the landing of the Pilgrim Fathers at New Plymouth in the year 1620. Independence Day (July 4th), perpetuates the memory of the American Declaration of Independence, 1776; and Evacuation Day (Nov. 25th), the date of the evacuation of New York City by the British army, at the conclusion of the American War of Independence, 1783.