According to the Merriam- Webster dictionary;
Definition of HOLIDAY
1
: holy day
2
: a day on which one is exempt from work; specifically : a day marked by a general suspension of work in commemoration of an event
3
chiefly British : vacation —often used in the phrase on holiday —often used in plural
4
: a period of exemption or relief <corporations enjoying a tax holiday>
If you look up SABBAT you won't find it. It is a wholly Pagan word from what I can tell. It was a derivative of SABBATH, which is a Herbrew word;
Middle English sabat, from Anglo-French & Old English, from Latin sabbatum, from Greek sabbaton, from Hebrew shabbāth, literally, rest
First Known Use: before 12th century
The first use of the word SABBAT can be found in writings from the 1650's in France, which were descriptions of what witch hunters recorded as "the witches held their sabbats". It is thought that the word sabbat was a French spelling, at the time, of sabbath, but that some rather trendy folks in the early 1900's, or there-abouts, decided to use the word as a purely English/American term for any witches or Pagan's holidays.
As a Strega I adopted the holiday names used by most Wiccans or general "Pagans" many years ago. Some Strega's use another term, TREGUNDA. I use this word as well, but truth be told, it is a made up word. I've searched and searched to find some origin of the word, and can find none. The first mentions of it come in the writings of Raven Grimassi. In Italian there is a word TEGENDA - it means "stormy night". I wonder if Mr. Grimassi used the base of that word to create a new word for Italian/American Witches to use as their own. It wouldn't be the first time, nor will it be the last, that a word has been created just for us!
While I work through this journey I wanted to personally, if not publicly be as authentic as I could. I know my grandmother never used the words we use today. She simply called special days just that, giorno speciale or giorno festivo. So would I be wrong in adopting some of Mr. Grimassi's verbage? Would I be doing the memory of my grandmother and great-grandmother any dis-service if i adopted a different terminology? I don't think so.
My great-grandparents came here in 1897. As soon as they were able to figure it out, English became the household language. My grandfather was told that to speak English was to have opportunity, and so at the risk of losing their native tongue, they insisted their children spoke only English. That determination to learn, to grow, to find new ways of doing the same things and expressing the same things as before in a new way shows me a spirit that helps to answer many questions I run into.
And so, in the next post, I will begin to take you through a year in the life of a Strega. The Girono Festivi. The Tregundas. The holidays. We'll start at the beginning of the year with October and Festa dei Morti.
Addio!
Definition of HOLIDAY
1
: holy day
2
: a day on which one is exempt from work; specifically : a day marked by a general suspension of work in commemoration of an event
3
chiefly British : vacation —often used in the phrase on holiday —often used in plural
4
: a period of exemption or relief <corporations enjoying a tax holiday>
If you look up SABBAT you won't find it. It is a wholly Pagan word from what I can tell. It was a derivative of SABBATH, which is a Herbrew word;
Middle English sabat, from Anglo-French & Old English, from Latin sabbatum, from Greek sabbaton, from Hebrew shabbāth, literally, rest
First Known Use: before 12th century
The first use of the word SABBAT can be found in writings from the 1650's in France, which were descriptions of what witch hunters recorded as "the witches held their sabbats". It is thought that the word sabbat was a French spelling, at the time, of sabbath, but that some rather trendy folks in the early 1900's, or there-abouts, decided to use the word as a purely English/American term for any witches or Pagan's holidays.
As a Strega I adopted the holiday names used by most Wiccans or general "Pagans" many years ago. Some Strega's use another term, TREGUNDA. I use this word as well, but truth be told, it is a made up word. I've searched and searched to find some origin of the word, and can find none. The first mentions of it come in the writings of Raven Grimassi. In Italian there is a word TEGENDA - it means "stormy night". I wonder if Mr. Grimassi used the base of that word to create a new word for Italian/American Witches to use as their own. It wouldn't be the first time, nor will it be the last, that a word has been created just for us!
While I work through this journey I wanted to personally, if not publicly be as authentic as I could. I know my grandmother never used the words we use today. She simply called special days just that, giorno speciale or giorno festivo. So would I be wrong in adopting some of Mr. Grimassi's verbage? Would I be doing the memory of my grandmother and great-grandmother any dis-service if i adopted a different terminology? I don't think so.
My great-grandparents came here in 1897. As soon as they were able to figure it out, English became the household language. My grandfather was told that to speak English was to have opportunity, and so at the risk of losing their native tongue, they insisted their children spoke only English. That determination to learn, to grow, to find new ways of doing the same things and expressing the same things as before in a new way shows me a spirit that helps to answer many questions I run into.
And so, in the next post, I will begin to take you through a year in the life of a Strega. The Girono Festivi. The Tregundas. The holidays. We'll start at the beginning of the year with October and Festa dei Morti.
Addio!