LL-L "Traditions" 2009.10.10 (01) [EN]

[Lowlands-L List]

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L O W L A N D S - L - 10 October 2009 - Volume 01
lowlands at lowlands-l.net - http://lowlands-l.net/
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From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Traditions

Dear Lowlanders,

This post (to break the silence) straddles the topics "Traditions",
"Etymology" and "Projects". If there are any responses to it we will see in
which direction they will take us.

You in the temperate zones of the Northern Hemisphere have no doubt noticed
that days have grown shorter and the air is decidedly cooler even when there
is sunshine. This is a reminder that we are fast approaching
Halloween, the popularized
spin-off of Christian All Hallows Eve (All Saints Day) and various versions
of Pre-Christian traditions such as Celtic Samhain (Irish), Samhainn
(Scottish) and Samain (Old Irish).

These Celtic, specifically Goidelic (Gaelic), names tend to be popularly
translated as "Summer's End." While this may be appropriate considering the
seasonal aspect, there appears to be a more literal meaning that points
toward traditions of gatherings. These names do apparently not contain the
oft-alleged relatives of **semo*- 'summer' but those of Proto-Celtic **samani
*'assembly', 'gathering', related to Gothic *samana* and Sanskrit सामन (*
sámana*) with the same meanings, apparently related to Indo-European **somo-
* 'same', 'equal', from which we inherited words like "same", Low Saxon *to
samen* 'together', and German *sammeln* 'to gather', also Russian *самый *(*
samyj*) 'same' and its various Slavic cognates.

These festivals, originally associated with gatherings, have aspects of
harvest festival traditions (of which there are many in the Lowlands alone,
apart from Jewish *Sukot* (*Sukkōth *סֻכּוֹת)) as well as festival of the
dead traditions that exist the world over. They mark the transition from
harvest plenty to hibernal decay, the time of year when the misty curtain
between the world of the living and the world of the departed souls is
thinnest. In popular Western cultures this has been (partly commercially)
developed into a "scary fun".

And here is a friendly reminder to you that our newest Web presentation
still awaits "scary" stories, poems, songs, sound files, pictures, and
videos:

http://lowlands-l.net/crypt/

Please send them to me.

If you submit articles *about* such traditions we will be able to post them
there as well as at our Traditions site (http://lowlands-l.net/traditions/)
and/or History site (http://lowlands-l.net/history/), or, if appropriate,
perhaps at our Travels site (http://lowlands-l.net/travels/). If you already
have your own "room" in our Gallery (http://lowlands-l.net/gallery/) we can
double-post it there. If you want me to give you a room in the Gallery, just
ask, and this Halloween contribution will be your first work exhibited
there.

Please bear in mind that you can use any language you wish. Help can be
arranged in case you wish to have an English companion version but need
someone to edit your English draft.

Best wishes and regards,
Reinhard/Ron
Seattle, USA

•

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