Editing Imbolc (section)

{{Short description|Gaelic festival marking the start of spring}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=August 2022}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2022}}
{{Infobox holiday
| holiday_name  = Imbolc / Brigid's Day
| type          = default
| longtype      = Cultural,<br/>Christian ([[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]], [[Anglican Communion|Anglican]]),<br/>Pagan ([[Celtic neopaganism]], [[Wicca]])
| image         = Saint Brigid's cross.jpg
| caption       = [[Brigid's cross]]
| nickname      = {{native name|ga|Lá Fhéile Bríde}}<br/>{{native name|gd|Là Fhèill Brìghde}}<br/>{{native name|gv|Laa'l Breeshey}}
| observedby    = Historically: [[Gaels]]<br/>Today: [[Irish people]], [[Scottish people]], [[Manx people]], [[Modern Paganism|Modern Pagans]]
| significance  = beginning of spring, feast day of [[Brigid of Kildare|Saint Brigid]]
| date          = 1 February<br/><small>(or 1 August for some Neopagans in the [[Southern Hemisphere|S. Hemisphere]])</small>
| celebrations  = feasting, making [[Brigid's cross]]es and {{lang|ga|Brídeóg}}s, visiting [[holy well]]s, [[spring cleaning]], [[church service]]s
| relatedto     = {{lang|cy|[[Gŵyl Fair y Canhwyllau]]}}, [[Candlemas]], [[Groundhog Day]]
}}

'''Imbolc''' or '''Imbolg''' ({{IPA|ga|ə ˈmˠɔlˠəɡ}}), also called '''Saint Brigid's Day''' ({{langx|ga|Lá Fhéile Bríde}}; {{langx|gd|Là Fhèill Brìghde}}; {{langx|gv|Laa'l Breeshey}}), is a [[Gaels|Gaelic]] traditional festival on 1 February.<ref name="Danaher1">{{harvnb|Danaher|1972|p=38}}</ref> It marks the beginning of [[Spring (season)|spring]], and in Christianity, it is the [[calendar of saints|feast day]] of [[Brigid of Kildare|Saint Brigid]], Ireland's patroness saint. Historically, its many [[Folk Catholicism|folk traditions]] were widely observed throughout [[Ireland]], [[Scotland]] and the [[Isle of Man]]. Imbolc falls about halfway<!--this doesn't imply that 1 February *is* the halfway point--> between the [[winter solstice]] and the [[spring equinox (Northern Hemisphere)|spring equinox]]<ref name="McNeill-1">McNeill, F. Marian (1959, 1961) ''The Silver Bough'', Vol.&nbsp;1–4. William MacLellan, Glasgow; Vol. 2, pp.&nbsp;11–42</ref> and is one of [[Quarter days|the four]] Gaelic seasonal festivals, along with [[Bealtaine]], [[Lughnasadh]] and [[Samhain]].<ref>[[Barry Cunliffe|Cunliffe, Barry]] (1997). ''The Ancient Celts''. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Page 188-190.</ref>

Imbolc is mentioned in [[early Irish literature]], although less often than the other seasonal festivals. Historians suggest that Imbolc was originally a pre-Christian (or [[Ancient Celtic religion|pagan]]) festival associated with the [[lambing]] season, the coming of spring, and possibly the goddess [[Brigid]], proposing that the saint and her feast day might be [[Christianization]]s.<ref name="berger">{{Cite book |last=Berger |first=Pamela |url=https://archive.org/details/goddessobscuredt00berg |title=The Goddess Obscured: Transformation of the Grain Protectress from Goddess to Saint |publisher=Beacon Press |year=1985 |isbn=978-0-8070-6723-9 |location=Boston |pages=[https://archive.org/details/goddessobscuredt00berg/page/70 70–73] |url-access=registration}}</ref> A feast of Saint Brigid was first mentioned in the Middle Ages, but its customs were not recorded in detail until the early modern era. In recent centuries, [[Brigid's cross]]es have been woven on St Brigid's Day and hung over doors and windows to protect against fire, illness, and evil. People also made a [[doll]] of Brigid (a {{lang|ga|Brídeóg}}), which was paraded around the community by girls, sometimes accompanied by '[[Wren Day|strawboys]]'. Brigid was said to visit one's home on St Brigid's Eve. To receive her blessings, people would make a bed for Brigid, leave her food and drink, and set items of clothing outside for her to bless. [[Holy well]]s would be visited, a special meal would be had, and the day was traditionally linked with [[weather lore]].

Although many of its traditions died out in the 20th century, it is still observed by some Christians as a religious holiday and by some non-Christians as a cultural one, and its customs have been revived in some places. Since the later 20th century, [[Celtic neopaganism|Celtic neopagans]] and [[Wicca]]ns have observed Imbolc as a religious holiday.<ref name="Danaher1" /><ref name="McNeill-1" /> Since 2023, "Imbolc/St Brigid's Day" has been an annual [[public holiday in the Republic of Ireland|public holiday in Ireland]].<ref name="public holiday">{{cite web |title=Government agrees Covid Recognition Payment and New Public Holiday |url=https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/b926b-government-agrees-covid-recognition-payment-and-new-public-holiday/ |website=[[Government of Ireland]] |date=19 January 2022 |publisher=[[Department of the Taoiseach]] |access-date=20 January 2022}}</ref>
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