There are lots of interesting quotes from Dwelly’s about this time of year so I thought I would do a separate post on them to supplement the lunar calendar I usually post. This lunar cycle is also notable as the first day begins on the first day of the month of February also known as Imbolc and I will come back to that.
Firstly here is what Dwelly’s has to say about An Gearran:
Gearran
-ain, -an, sm Period as to the duration of which authorities vary considerably. ‡‡, ††, McL&D and * all say it is from 15 Mar. to 11 Apr. inclusive. (OS). Dr. Norman MacLeod, in Teachdaire Ùr Gàidhealach, applies it to the month of February. 2 The nine days after “faoileach.” Mìos Faoilich, naoi latha Gearrain — Old saying. 3(TS) Last half of February. [Preceded by the art. an].
There is quite a lot to unpick there. One of the more popular definitions gives it as a very specific period of time i.e. the 15th of March to 11th of April inclusive. Although not our current part of the year, this is exactly 28 days long and the Spring Equinox occurs during this time about a week after it starts. This would fulfill its definition of being the end of winter and the beginning of spring. Also it seems to be shorter than the usual month which echoes its name that implies a “cutting” short. Its association with February is understandable as February is the shortest month. The next definition is even shorter.
Dwelly’s point 2 under Gearran gives the old saying (seanfhacal): Mìos Faoilich, naoi latha Gearrain. He explains this as the nine days after “faoileach” which is the previous month (mìos). Nine is a special number in Gaelic lore often associated with inspiration and in other numerological systems it can be associated with the moon or lunar cycles, for instance, because of its connection to gestation periods for humans and some other creatures. To get a clearer idea of this definition from Dwelly here are his entries for Faoilleach and Faoilteach:
Faoilleach
see Faoilteach. Faoilleach in Lewis begins on the Friday nearest three weeks before the end of January and ends on the Tuesday nearest the end of the third week of February — DihAoine a thig ‘s DiMàirt a dh’fhalbhas, comes on Friday and goes on Tuesday — three weeks of Winter and three weeks of Spring — (DMy).
Faoilteach
-tich, sm The last fortnight of winter and first fortnight of spring (Old Style), proverbial for variableness — McL&D. Season of the wolf-ravage‡‡. It corresponded roughly to the present month of February. Sometimes the first half was called “Am Faoilteach Geamhraidh” and the second half “Am Faoilteach Earraich.” Is còir san Fhaoilteach na trì claisean taobh-ri-taobh a bhith làn uisge is làn sneachda is làn tugha nan taighean, or trì làin anns na claisean; uisge, sneachd is tugha nan taighean, in February the three furrows side by side should be full of water, full of snow, and full of house-thatch; chan eil port a sheinneas an smeòrach san Fhaoilteach nach guil i seachd uairean mun ruith an t-Earrach, for every song the mavis sings in February, she’ll lament seven times ere spring be over. The Gael of old regarded stormy weather toward the end of January as prognostic of a fruitful season to follow and vice versa, as shown in the above proverbs. Smeuran dubha san Fhaoilteach, black bramble-berries in February — applied to anything very improbable or out of season. Na faoiltich, the equinoxes; see am Féillire.
DihAoine a thig ‘s DiMàirt a dh’fhalbhas: this is explained as being the Friday nearest three weeks before the end of January, which this year was the 10th of January, going through to the Tuesday nearest the end of the third week of February, which this year is most likely to be the 25th. If that is followed by the nine days of An Gearran, they will be from the 26th of February to the 6th of March inclusive. We will certainly by then be into the next lunar cycle but not by much.
The last definition of Gearran simply calls it the last half of February which would naturally only last 14 days or 15 in a leap year.
Regardless of which definition you use it seems that Gearran is always considered to be a shorter period of time than the usual monthly cycle. This unusual circumstance at this time and its closeness to the Spring Equinox may hint at a more ancient calendrical reckoning that revolved around reconciling the lunar and solar cycles. Something that struck me a while ago is the fact that the 1st of February is 7 weeks before the Spring Equinox. Seven times seven days, forty-nine to be exact. The Spring Equinox is also central to the calculation of the movable feast of Easter and the mismatch between the old Celtic Church and the Roman Church in their timings for Easter was a point of compromise in the Synod of Whitby during the reign of Nechtan Mòr of the Picts. The Celtic Church authorities ended up deferring to the Romans in this matter which was another step towards eventual assimilation.
The first of February was also known by the ancient peoples of Alba and Éireann as Imbolc and is now celebrated in the Christian calendar as Candlemas. It was also probably both before and after the coming of Christianity associated with Brighde, the Goddess of inspiration and in her later form, that of St. Bride, the patron saint of scholars, poets and silver- and gold-smiths.