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Ever wondered why we carve pumpkins or dance around maypoles? Many of the world’s most beloved festivals have roots that stretch far back into ancient pagan traditions, hidden in plain sight. Here’s a deep dive into 10 celebrations that started as pagan rituals, even if most people don’t realize it today.
Halloween (USA, UK)
What we now call Halloween began as Samhain, an ancient Celtic festival marking the end of harvest season. The Celts believed that on this night, the boundary between the living and the dead blurred, allowing spirits to walk the earth. To ward off ghosts, people wore masks and lit bonfires—traditions that evolved into today’s costumes and jack-o’-lanterns. Even trick-or-treating has pagan ties, resembling the medieval practice of “souling,” where the poor begged for food in exchange for prayers. It’s wild to think that spooky Halloween fun once had such serious spiritual meaning.
May Day / Beltane (UK, parts of the USA)
May Day’s cheerful maypole dances and flower crowns aren’t just about welcoming spring—they’re leftovers from Beltane, a fiery Celtic fertility festival. Pagans celebrated by lighting massive bonfires to honor the sun’s growing strength. Couples would even leap over flames for luck in love and fertility. The maypole itself symbolizes the sacred union of earth and sky. While modern May Day parades feel tame, the original Beltane was anything but—full of passion, dance, and rituals to ensure a bountiful year.
Christmas (Global)
Christmas might celebrate the birth of Jesus, but its coziest traditions come from pagan Yule festivals. Norse and Germanic peoples brought evergreen trees indoors to symbolize life during the darkest days of winter. Mistletoe? A sacred plant to Druids, believed to heal and protect. Even Santa’s reindeer might trace back to the god Odin’s eight-legged horse, Sleipnir. The date itself, December 25, aligns with the Roman festival of Sol Invictus—proof that Christmas is a patchwork of ancient midwinter magic.
Easter (USA, UK)
Egg hunts and bunnies have nothing to do with Christianity—they’re tied to Ēostre, an Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring and fertility. Her symbols (eggs for rebirth, rabbits for abundance) were absorbed into Easter as the holiday spread. Even the name “Easter” likely comes from her. Early pagans held feasts at the spring equinox, celebrating renewal—a theme that neatly fit the resurrection story. Next time you bite into a chocolate egg, remember it’s a tiny relic of goddess worship.
Burning Man (USA)
This desert arts festival might seem ultra-modern, but its spirit is deeply pagan. The ritual burning of the giant “Man” statue echoes ancient fire ceremonies meant to purify and renew. Participants create temporary communities, much like tribal gatherings, sharing gifts and art as offerings. The event’s emphasis on radical self-expression and connection to nature mirrors pagan values. It’s basically a high-tech, neon-dusted revival of what our ancestors did around bonfires.
Midsummer / Summer Solstice (UK, Scandinavia)
Long before Shakespeare wrote “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” pagans celebrated the year’s longest day with roaring bonfires. They believed the sun’s power peaked at the solstice, and fires helped harness its energy for protection and crops. In Sweden, people still dance around maypoles, while in England, crowds flock to Stonehenge to watch the sunrise align with the stones. It’s one of the few pagan holidays that never really faded—just swapped gods for sunshine and flower crowns.
Carnival / Mardi Gras (USA, Brazil, Europe)
The wild parties of Carnival and Mardi Gras owe their chaos to Rome’s Saturnalia and Bacchanalia—ancient festivals where social rules flipped upside down. Saturnalia let slaves boss their masters, while Bacchanalia involved wine-sohed revelry for Dionysus. When Christianity took over, these were rebranded as pre-Lenten blowouts. The masks, parades, and indulgence? All pagan roots showing through. Even King Cake’s hidden baby is a nod to fertility rites.
Valentine’s Day (USA, UK)
Roses and chocolates aside, Valentine’s Day has a spicy pagan past. It overlaps with Lupercalia, a Roman festival where men sacrificed goats, slapped women with strips of hide (for fertility—yikes), and drew random love matches. The church later swapped the whips for saints, but the love magic stuck. Chaucer even linked February 14 to bird mating season, sealing its romantic fate. Funny how the weirdest rituals become Hallmark holidays.
Harvest Festivals (USA, UK)
Thanksgiving feasts and Lammas bread festivals are modern echoes of pagan gratitude to earth deities. Pagans held “first fruit” ceremonies, offering the season’s best crops to gods like Demeter or Lugh. Lammas (from “loaf-mass”) was a Christian rebranding of Celtic grain celebrations. Even pumpkin spice lattes tap into that deep, cozy instinct to celebrate abundance before winter. Harvest festivals prove that gratitude—and pie—are timeless.
Glastonbury Festival (UK)
Today’s mega-concert sits on land steeped in pagan mysticism. Glastonbury Tor is linked to Avalon, King Arthur’s mythical resting place, and was once a Druid pilgrimage site. The festival’s emphasis on community, nature, and all-night drum circles channels ancient gathering energy. Some say the ley lines (earth energy paths) beneath the grounds amplify the vibe. Whether you believe in magic or just great music, Glastonbury’s roots run deeper than its mud pits.
Besides founding Festivaltopia, Luca is the co founder of trib, an art and fashion collectiv you find on several regional events and online. Also he is part of the management board at HORiZONTE, a group travel provider in Germany.
