A feast of games, ceremonial rituals were carried out to celebrate in the lead-up to winter as young and old congregated to face the cold season together. Much of the focus after the sun went down was on foretelling the future husbands and wives.
Gregorson wrote that the rituals practised across the Scottish Highlands and Islands were likely Pagan in origin with the date a cause of great excitement as he documented this in his book ‘Gaelic Otherworld’ published by Birlinn BooksNow.
Now that we have passed the Winter Solstice and are approaching Christmas in Scotland, here are 5 ways that Highlanders in Scottish history would celebrate the first day of winter
5. Apples and sixpence
A fruit and a coin were put in a basin of water, with the challenge to pull out both items without using hands or teeth. The person with the apple took the fruit into a room and divided it into nine pieces. Eight pieces were eaten with their back to looking glass and the face looking over the left shoulder. On throwing the ninth piece across the same shoulder, the image of the future spouse was seen in the looking glass, it was believed. Photo: via Canva Pro