Lammas Day is an ancient festival that occurs on 1 August. This date was chosen as the exact mid-way point between the summer solstice in June and the autumn equinox in September.
The name ‘Lammas’ comes from an Old English name with two roots: the ‘lam’ part originates from the word ‘loaf’ and refers to bread while ‘mass’ refers to the Eucharist.
As a festival, Lammas signifies the start of the harvest season, which is also called ‘first fruits’, itself signifying the very first portion of the harvest that was mature enough to be collected. The first fruits were collected and given to God. That’s why, in some places, the flour from the first corn or wheat to be harvested was used to make communion wafers. In some communities, one highpoint of the Lammas celebration involved bringing to church and blessing a loaf of bread made using the first fruits of the harvest.
In some parts of the country, the Lammas Day celebration also involved a procession to local bakeries, where those working there were blessed by the priest.
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