''Calan Mai'' ( " Calan (first day) of May") or ''Calan Haf'' ( "first day of Summer") is a

May Day May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. Festivities may also be held the night before, known as May Eve. Tr ...

holiday A holiday is a day set aside by custom or by law on which normal activities, especially business or work including school, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow individuals to celebrate or commemorate an event or t ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

held on 1 May. Celebrations start on the evening before, known as May Eve, with

bonfire A bonfire is a large and controlled outdoor fire, used either for informal disposal of burnable waste material or as part of a celebration. Etymology The earliest recorded uses of the word date back to the late 15th century, with the Catho ...

s; as with Calan Gaeaf or 1 November, the night before ( cy, Nos Galan Haf) is considered an ''Ysbrydnos'' or "spirit night" when spirits are out and about and

divination Divination (from Latin ''divinare'', 'to foresee, to foretell, to predict, to prophesy') is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic, standardized process or ritual. Used in various forms throughout history ...

is possible. The tradition of lighting bonfires celebrating this occasion happened annually in South Wales until the middle of the 19th century. Calan Haf parallels

Beltane Beltane () is the Gaelic May Day festival. Commonly observed on the first of May, the festival falls midway between the spring equinox and summer solstice in the northern hemisphere. The festival name is synonymous with the month marking the ...

and other May Day traditions in Europe.

Customs

*On Nos Galan Mai or May Eve, villagers gather

hawthorn Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to: Plants * '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae * ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...

( cy, draenen wen, "white-thorn") branches and flowers which they would then use to decorate the outside of their houses, celebrating new growth and fertility. *In Anglesey and Caernarfonshire it would be common on May Eve to have "playing straw man" or "hanging a straw man". A man who had lost his sweetheart to another man would make a man out of straw and put it somewhere in the vicinity of where the girl lived. The straw man represented her new sweetheart and had a note pinned to it. Often the situation led to a fight between the two men at the May Fair. *Being the time between Summer and Winter, Calan Haf would be the time to stage a mock fight between the two seasons. The man representing Winter carried a stick of

blackthorn ''Prunus spinosa'', called blackthorn or sloe, is a species of flowering plant in the rose family Rosaceae. The species is native to Europe, western Asia, and regionally in northwest Africa. It is locally naturalized in New Zealand, Tasmania, ...

( cy, draenen ddu "black-thorn") and a shield that had pieces of wool stuck on it to represent snow. The man representing Summer was decorated with garlands of flowers and ribbons and carried a willow-wand which had spring flowers tied on it with ribbons. A mock battle took place in which the forces of Winter threw straw and dry underbrush at the forces of Summer who retaliated with birch branches, willow ( cy, helygen) rods, and young ferns ( cy, rhedyn). Eventually the forces of Summer would win and a May King and Queen were chosen and crowned, after which there was feasting, dancing, games and drinking until the next morning. *May Day was the time that the ''twmpath chwarae'' or "tump for playing" (a kind of village green) was officially opened. Through the summer months in some villages the people would gather on the ''twmpath chwarae'' in the evenings to dance and play various sports. The green was usually situated on the top of a hill and a mound was made where the fiddler or harpist sat. Sometimes branches of oak decorated the mound and the people would dance in a circle around it. *''Dawnsio haf'' "summer dancing" was a feature of the May Day celebration, as was ''carolau Mai'' "May carols" also known as ''carolau haf'' "summer carols" or ''canu dan y pared'' "singing under the wall", these songs being often of a bawdy or sexual nature. The singers would visit families on May morning accompanied by a harpist or fiddler, to wish them the greetings of the season and give thanks to "the bountiful giver of all good gifts." If their singing was thought worthy, they would be rewarded with food, drink, and possibly money. *Common drinks during Calan Mai festivities were metheglin or

mead Mead () is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting honey mixed with water, and sometimes with added ingredients such as fruits, spices, grains, or hops. The alcoholic content ranges from about 3.5% ABV to more than 20%. The defining characte ...

. Sometimes it was made of herbs, including woodruff, a sweet-smelling herb which was often put in wine in times past to make a man merry and act as a tonic for the heart and liver. Elderberry and rhubarb wines were popular and the men also liked various beers.

References

*Trefor M. Owen. Welsh Folk Customs. Gomer Press, Llandysul 1987 *Marie Trevelyan. Folklore and Folk Stories of Wales. EP Publishing Ltd, Wakefield 1973 *{{Cite web , url=http://www.applewarrior.com/celticwell/ejournal/beltane/wales.htm , title=Welsh Customs for Calan Haf , last=Hilaire Wood , url-status=usurped , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131025072238/http://www.applewarrior.com/celticwell/ejournal/beltane/wales.htm , archive-date=October 25, 2013 Holidays in Wales May observances