The InstigatorSamhain Celtic New Year Festival returns in person for 2022
Learn to sing a shanty, try your feet at set dancing, listen to stories of the wee folk and faeries, and more at the Ceili of the Valley’s annual Samhain Celtic New Year Festival.
Samhain, pronounced “sow-in” (“ow” like in cow), is a Gaelic festival that marks the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter or the “darker half” of the year. It is traditionally recognized on November 1 and considered the Celtic New Year.
Ceili of the Valley, a Salem-based nonprofit, celebrates the occasion with an immersive day of entertainment honoring the seven Celtic nations (Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall, Brittany, Galicia and Isle of Man). Activities includes live music, speakers, workshops and educational, hands-on activities for the whole community, such as mini highland games where kids can test their skills at the caber toss, sheaf toss, and welly throw.
This year’s headlining band is Biddy on the Bench, a four-piece Portland-based band playing Irish music from ballads and pub classics to rebel songs, harmonized shanties, traditional tunes and more. In addition to performing, the band will be teaching workshops exploring Uilleann pipes, Irish fiddle and shanty singing.
The festival aims to offer a variety of opportunities to explore culture, including through food, so come hungry and ready for lunch. Celtic culinary delights, such as potato soup, cock-a-leekie soup, and bubble and squeak soup (prepared by local eatery Sassy Onion), as well as other sweet and savory treats, will be available for purchase while supplies last.
Ceili dancing at the 2019 Samhain Celtic New Year Festival. Photo by Carlee Wright.
The Ceili of the Valley Society is dedicated to promoting and perpetuating Celtic heritage and culture in the Willamette Valley primarily through social events that incorporate music and dance. An all-volunteer organization, the society teaches weekly classes and holds dances with live music on the second Friday of the month.
Samhain Celtic New Year Festival
When: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, October 22
Where: Spinning Room at Willamette Heritage Center, 1313 Mill St. SE
Cost: $10 adults, $5 students and free for children younger than 12.
Info: www.celticfestival.info
