Lammas facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lammas Loaf Mass Day
Lammas loaf owl with salt eyes
Observed by	Christians (Catholics, Lutherans, Anglicans)
Type	Christian
Celebrations	Mass, church processions, First Fruits
Observances	Bringing a loaf of bread made from the new wheat crop to the church for a blessing, making loaves from the grain collected at harvest
Date	1 August
Related to	Plough Sunday, Rogation days, Lughnasadh

Lammas (which means "loaf-mass" from Old English) is a Christian holiday celebrated on August 1st. It's also called Loaf Mass Day. This special day marks the blessing of the very first crops of the harvest season.

On Lammas, people traditionally bring a loaf of bread, made from the new wheat, to church to be blessed. It's a way to thank God for the food. Lammas happens about halfway between the summer solstice (the longest day of summer) and the autumn equinox (when day and night are equal). Some Christians also have parades to bakeries, where priests bless the bakers and their work.

While Lammas is mainly a Christian holiday, some modern pagans also celebrate a harvest festival on this date. It's also the same day as an old Gaelic harvest festival called Lughnasadh.

What Does "Lammas" Mean?

The name 'Lammas' comes from an old English word, hlafmæsse. This word means "loaf mass". It refers to the special bread that is blessed during a church service.

In the past, some people thought the name 'Lammas' came from "lamb mass." This idea suggested that people might have brought a live lamb to church. However, the "loaf mass" meaning is the most widely accepted.

Another old name for this day was the 'Gule of August'. Some historians think this name came from the Welsh phrase Gŵyl Awst, which means "feast of August."

History of Lammas

On Loaf Mass Day, bread is brought into the parish church to be blessed by a Christian cleric.

In Anglo-Saxon England, Lammas was the first day of August. Old writings often called it "the feast of first fruits". It was likely the day when loaves baked from the first wheat harvest were blessed in church. These blessed loaves might have even been used in special ways to protect the grain. For example, some old charms suggest breaking a Lammas loaf into four pieces and placing them at the corners of a barn to keep the grain safe.

For many farmers long ago, their wheat supplies would get very low just before Lammas. So, the new harvest brought a time of plenty and hard work in the fields. Lammas also marked the end of the hay harvest, which usually started after Midsummer.

Historians believe that a pre-Christian festival probably existed around this date among the Anglo-Saxons. This makes sense because the first harvest would have been a natural time for celebration in farming communities. Some experts have also linked Lammas to the Celtic Britons' harvest festival, Lughnasadh, which is held on the same day. They suggest the Anglo-Saxons might have adopted some traditions from the Celts.

Lammas Day was one of the traditional "quarter days" in Scotland for many years. These were important dates for paying rent or starting new jobs. Lammas also used to be the same day as the feast of Saint Peter in Chains, which remembers Saint Peter's escape from prison.

Ann Lewin, a writer, explains how important Lammas is in the Christian year:

August begins with Lammas Day, Loaf Mass Day, the day in the Book of Common Prayer calendar when a loaf baked with flour from newly harvested corn would be brought into church and blessed. It's one of the oldest points of contact between the agricultural world and the Church. The others were Plough Sunday in early January, the Sunday after Epiphany and the day before work would begin again in the fields after Christmas festivities, when ploughs would be brought to church to be blessed; and Rogation days in May, the days before Ascension Day, when God's blessing would be sought on the growing crops.

Today, in the Church of England, the Lammas loaf can be used as the bread for Holy Communion, or it can be kept separate. The church suggests that people in the congregation bake the Lammas loaf themselves, using local ingredients if possible. Other small loaves might also be given out to the people.

Christians also have church processions to bakeries. During these parades, Christian priests bless the people who work there.

Lammas is mentioned in famous old stories. In Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet, it's said that Juliet will turn fourteen on "Lammas Eve at night." It's also in the opening of the old song The Battle of Otterburn: "It fell about the Lammas tide when the muir-men win their hay."

Other Uses of the Name

Neopaganism

Some modern pagans have adopted the name and date of Lammas for one of their harvest festivals. This festival is part of their Wheel of the Year. Other pagans use the Gaelic name Lughnasa. It is the first of three autumn festivals, followed by the autumn equinox and Samhain. In the Northern Hemisphere, it's around August 1st, and in the Southern Hemisphere, it's around February 1st.

Horticulture

The term Lammas leaves or Lammas growth refers to a second set of leaves that some trees grow in the middle of summer. These new leaves replace any that were lost due to insects. They might look a little different from the leaves that grew earlier in the spring.

The city of Exeter in Devon, England, still celebrates its Lammas Fair. This fair has a special parade that is over 900 years old, led by the Lord Mayor. During the fair, a white glove on a pole, decorated with flowers, is raised above the Guildhall. This fair now takes place on the first Thursday in July.

See also

In Spanish: Lammas para niños

• Leyton Marshes
• Ould Lammas Fair