Nine Schools of Thought
When is Samhain?
As one would expect, authorities disagree.
Stuffy (also: Traditionalist) School
Samhain begins at sundown on October 31, the First of the Three Nights of Samhain.
Hey: if the Gregorian calendar was good enough for the ancestors, it's good enough for me.
Old School
Old Samhain comes on 11-12 November.
Hey, if the Julian calendar was good enough for the ancestors, it's good enough for me.
I suppose you're one of those neo-pagans?
Old Craft
Do you maybe mean All Hallows? Or, better, All Saints?
Protective coloration, dude. It's all about protective coloration.
Slapdash School
It's Samhain whenever the coven has time to get together.
Usually this means the Saturday closest to Halloween, but if it's December 3 instead, tough.
What the f*ck is the “Three Nights of Samhain”?
Purist (also: Astronomical) School
Samhain falls at the precise midpoint between astronomical Autumn Equinox and astronomical Winter Solstice.
Hey: if astronomical precision was good enough for the ancestors, it's good enough for me.
“Three Nights of Samhain”? Did you perhaps by any chance mean the Trinox Samoni?
American Trendy School
Samhain = Halloween (or, as true Trendies would insist, Hallowe'en). Samhain begins at midnight on October 30, and ends at midnight on October 31.
That means that the Eve of Samhain is actually October 30.
Well, that's what they say.
American Commercial School
Samhain begins when they put out the first Samhain candy in the grocery stores, and ends when the Thanksgiving stuff goes up instead.
Basically, Samhain (pr. Sam Hane) = the month of October.
Ecumenical (also: More Eco-Conscious than Thou) School
Samhain is not a date on a calendar, but a tide of change at the beginning of November lasting approximately a thirtnight. (That's “two weeks” in Cowan.)
Consult your local landscape.
Down Under School
Samhain? Mate, we're talking May.