Gŵyl Fair y Canhwyllau

Gŵyl Fair y Canhwyllau (Welsh, "Mary's Festival of the Candles") is a Welsh name of Candlemas, celebrated on 2 February. It is the Welsh equivalent of the Goidelic holiday of Imbolc. It was derived from the pre-Reformation ceremony of blessing the candles and distributing them to be carried in a procession. However, just as this Christian ceremony drew on pagan festivals connected with the coming of the Spring, some of the old practices that carried on in parts of Wales until the 20th Century suggest older rituals. The festival of early Spring is not connected with Saint Brigid of Kildare, as it is in Scotland and Ireland, however.

Customs

References

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