Wheel of the Year

The Wheel of the Year is an annual cycle of seasonal festivals, observed by a range of modern pagans, marking the year's chief solar events (solstices and equinoxes) and the midpoints between them. British neopagans Gerald Gardner and Ross Nichols crafted the Wheel of the Year in the mid-20th century,^[1] combining the four solar events ("quarter days") marked by many European peoples, with the four seasonal festivals ("cross-quarter days") celebrated by Insular Celtic peoples.^[2] Different paths of modern Paganism may vary regarding the precise timing of each celebration, based on such distinctions as the lunar phase and geographic hemisphere.

Observing the cycle of the seasons has been important to many people, both ancient and modern. Modern pagan festivals that rely on the Wheel are based to varying degrees on folk traditions, regardless of actual historical pagan practices.^[3] Some Wiccans use the term sabbat (/ˈsæbət/) to refer to each festival.^[4]

^ "Druidcast Episode 1". druidcast.libsyn.com (Podcast). 1 June 2007. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
^ Williams, Liz (29 July 2013). "Paganism, part 3: the Wheel of the Year". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
^ Harvey, Graham (1994). "The Roots of Pagan Ecology". Journal of Contemporary Religion. 9 (3): 38–41. doi:10.1080/13537909408580720.
^ Gardner, Gerald (1954). Witchcraft Today. p. 147.

[1] "Druidcast Episode 1". druidcast.libsyn.com (Podcast). 1 June 2007. Retrieved 22 June 2024.

[Williams_2013-2] Williams, Liz (29 July 2013). "Paganism, part 3: the Wheel of the Year". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 October 2021.

[harvey_rpe-3] Harvey, Graham (1994). "The Roots of Pagan Ecology". Journal of Contemporary Religion. 9 (3): 38–41. doi:10.1080/13537909408580720.

[witchcraft_today-4] Gardner, Gerald (1954). Witchcraft Today. p. 147.

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