Lughnasadh for the year 2023 is celebrated/observed on Tuesday, August 1st. There are until the next observance.
Lughnasadh is a Gaelic festival celebrated yearly on August 1 by the Irish, Scottish, Manx, Celtic neopagans, and Wiccans to mark the beginning of the harvest season. Lughnasadh is claimed to have been founded by “Lugh,” a mythological Irish god, to commemorate his foster mother “Tailtiu.” This celebration, like the ancient Olympic Games, included sports contests, music, storytelling, law proclamations, horse riding, commerce, and trial marriages. Lughnasadh is now a harvest festival that has been Christianized; in certain localities, a pilgrimage to the peak of “Croagh Patrick” takes place on Reek Sunday.
📆 When is Lughnasadh?
This year, Lughnasadh is on August 1st. It is the 1st Tuesday in August; in 2024, it is on Thursday.
→ Did you know: Lugh is frequently represented as a powerful and attractive young warrior.
You can also explore all fun things you didn’t know about and facts about August 1, 2023.
📜 History of Lughnasadh
Máire MacNeill’s 1962 book “The Festival of Lughnasa” provides a detailed overview of Lughnasadh tradition in ancient times. Its topic is a harvest battle between Lugh and Crom Dubh, a legendary god who keeps the grain that Lugh seizes for humanity. This is sometimes presented as a fight for “Eithne,” a lady who represents the grain. In addition, Lugh battles and defeats another figure representing blight. “Enach Tailten” or “Aonach Tailteann” was a Lughnasadh celebration commemorating Tailtiu. This celebration featured old-style Olympic sporting activities, music, storytelling, legal proclamations, horse riding, trading, and trial marriages.
Lughnasadh festivities, which include dance, music, storytelling, and arts and crafts, are still held in towns around Ireland. Although many Lughnasadh customs lasted until the contemporary period, some were converted to Christianity. Reek Sunday, a famous pilgrimage in late July in which pilgrims trek to the summit of Croagh Patrick mountain, and the Puck Fair in August, which takes place in Killorglin, County Kerry, are both associated with ancient Lughnasadh customs. In modern Irish, Lughnasadh is spelled “Lnasa,” which also stands for August.
☑️ Lughnasadh facts
✅ Lamfada’ means ‘long hand’
Lugh’s principal epithet is “Lamfada,” which translates as “long hand.”
✅ Lughnasadh is also Lammas
Lughnasadh is also known as “Lammas,” which translates as “loaf mass.”
✅ Multi-talented
He is linked to people who are talented and skilled in many areas, especially the arts.
✨ Things to do on Lughnasadh
⚡ Participate
If you are unable to attend in person, you can participate virtually by joining an online platform and watching a live video feed of the Lughnasadh event. There’s nothing like celebrating from the comfort of your own bed.
⚡ Learn more
There’s a lot to discover about this lovely Gaelic holiday and the people who celebrate it. Increase your understanding of Lughnasadh by acquiring as much information as possible.
⚡ Go hiking
Many people nowadays celebrate Lughnasadh by trekking to mountain summits, which is also terrific exercise. Don’t be forgotten! Hike to the top of a nearby hill or mountain.
📅 Lughnasadh Observances
| YEAR | DATE | DAY |
| 2022 | August 1 | Monday |
| 2023 | August 1 | Tuesday |
| 2024 | August 1 | Thursday |
| 2025 | August 1 | Friday |
| 2026 | August 1 | Saturday |
You can view all August holidays, including Cultural and other Cultural holidays.
We will continue to update this page with new information and interesting facts about Lughnasadh. So be sure to check back soon.