Germanic Austrian In Austria, St Martin's Day is celebrated similar to Germany. The nights before and on the night of 11 November, children walk in processions carrying lanterns, which they made in school, and sing Martin songs.
Martiniloben is celebrated as a collective festival. It marks the end of the wine-growers’ year. Events include art exhibitions, wine tastings, and live music.
Martinigansl (roasted goose) is the traditional dish of the season. In the past, poor people would visit farms on 11 November to get food for the winter. In the 1600s, the city of Amsterdam held boat races on
the IJ, where 400 to 500 light craft, both rowing boats and sailboats, took part with a vast crowd on the banks. St Martin is the patron saint of the cities of
Utrecht and
Groningen. In
Flanders, the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium, St Martin's Eve is celebrated on the evening of 10 November, mainly in
West Flanders and around
Ypres. Children go through the streets with
paper lanterns and candles, and sing songs about St Martin. Sometimes, a man dressed as St Martin rides on a horse in front of the procession. In
Wervik, children go from door to door, singing traditional "Séngmarténg" songs, sporting a hollow beetroot with a carved face and a candle inside called "Bolle Séngmarténg"; they gather at an evening bonfire.
English and Scottish In Scotland, Martinmas became one of the legal ‘term and quarter days’ when rent had to be paid and farm leases were commonly terminated. Although 11 November, traditional Martinmas, was the quarter day for centuries, in the 20th century by statute the Martinmas term day changed to 28 November and this is now in the Term and Quarter Days (Scotland ) Act 1990. The legal quarter days are different in England. Martinmas was widely celebrated on 11 November in
medieval and
early modern England. In his study "Medieval English Martinmesse: The Archaeology of a Forgotten Festival", Martin Walsh describes Martinmas as a festival marking the end of the harvest season and beginning of winter. Today, 11 November is
Remembrance Day.
German with children carrying
paper lanterns in
West Germany in 1949 ,
Konz,
Germany,
Rhineland-Palatinate 2016 A widespread custom in Germany is to light
bonfires, called
Martinsfeuer, on St. Martin's Eve. In recent years, the processions that accompany those fires have been spread over almost a fortnight before Martinmas (
Martinstag). At one time, the
Rhine River valley would be lined with fires on the eve of Martinmas. In the
Rhineland, St. Martin's Day is traditionally celebrated with a feast of goose. The nights before and on the eve itself, children walk in processions called
Laternelaufen, carrying lanterns, which they made in school, and sing St. Martin's songs. Usually, the walk starts at a church and goes to a public square. A man on horseback representing St. Martin accompanies the children. When they reach the square, Martin's bonfire is lit and Martin's
pretzels are distributed. In the Rhineland, the children also go from house to house with their lanterns, sing songs and get candy in return. The origin of the procession of lanterns is unclear. To some, it is a substitute for the Martinmas bonfire, which is still lit in a few cities and villages throughout Europe. It formerly symbolized the light that holiness brings to the darkness, just as St Martin brought hope to the poor through his good deeds. Even though the bonfire tradition is gradually being lost, the procession of lanterns is still practiced. A
Martinsgans ("St. Martin's goose") is typically served on St. Martin's Eve following the procession of lanterns. "Martinsgans" is usually served in restaurants, roasted, with red cabbage and dumplings. Many German restaurants feature a traditional menu with goose and
Glühwein (a mulled red wine). St Paul, Minnesota celebrates with a traditional lantern procession around
Rice Park. The evening includes German treats and traditions that highlight the season of giving. In Dayton, Ohio the Dayton Liederkranz-Turner organization hosts a St Martin's Family Celebration on the weekend before with an evening lantern parade to the singing of St Martin's carols, followed by a bonfire.
Danish St Martin's Day (
Mortens Dag), November 11, and St Martin's Eve (
Mortensaften), November 10, was an early autumn feast in Denmark. Eating St Martin's goose (
mortensgås) St Martin's Eve was a well-known custom in Denmark. The oldest known Danish source is from 1616. Today, the goose is often replaced by duck.
Swedish St Martin's Day or St Martin's Eve (
Mårtensafton) was an important medieval autumn feast in Sweden. In early November, geese are ready for slaughter, and on St Martin's Eve it is tradition to have a roast goose dinner. The custom is particularly popular in
Scania in southern Sweden, where goose farming has long been practised, but it has gradually spread northwards. A proper
goose dinner also includes
svartsoppa (a heavily spiced soup made from geese blood) and apple
charlotte.
Slavic Croatian In
Croatia, St. Martin's Day (
Martinje,
Martinovanje) marks the day when the
must traditionally turns to
wine. The must is usually considered impure and sinful, until it is baptised and turned into wine. The baptism is performed by someone who dresses up as a
bishop and blesses the wine; this is usually done by the host. Another person is chosen as the godfather of the wine.
Czech A
Czech proverb connected with the Feast of St. Martin –
Martin přijíždí na bílém koni (transl. "Martin is coming on a white horse") – signifies that the first half of November in the
Czech Republic is the time when it often starts to snow. St. Martin's Day is the traditional feast day in the run-up to Advent. Restaurants often serve roast goose as well as young wine from the recent harvest known as Svatomartinské víno, which is similar to
Beaujolais nouveau as the first wine of the season. Wine shops and restaurants around Prague pour the first of the St. Martin's wines at 11:11 a.m. Many restaurants offer special menus for the day, featuring the traditional roast goose. Many people bake special St. Martin rolls in a shape of a horseshoe filled with nuts or poppy seeds (Svatomartinské rohlíčky). Children walk in processions carrying lanterns.
Polish In Poland, 11 November is
National Independence Day. St. Martin's Day (
Dzień Świętego Marcina) is celebrated mainly in the city of
Poznań where its citizens buy and eat considerable amounts of
croissants filled with
almond paste with white poppy seeds, the
rogal świętomarciński or St. Martin's Croissants. Legend has it that this centuries-old tradition commemorates a Poznań baker's dream which had the saint entering the city on a white horse that lost its golden horseshoe. The next morning, the baker whipped up horseshoe-shaped croissants filled with almonds, white poppy seeds and nuts, and gave them to the poor. In recent years, competition amongst local patisseries has become fierce. The product is registered under the European Union
Protected Designation of Origin and only a limited number of bakers hold an official certificate. Poznanians celebrate the festival with concerts, parades and a
fireworks show on Saint Martin's Street. Goose meat dishes are also eaten during the holiday.
Slovene The biggest event in Slovenia is the St. Martin's Day celebration in Maribor which marks the symbolic winding up of all the wine growers' endeavours. There is the ceremonial "christening" of the new wine, and the arrival of the Wine Queen. The square Trg Leona Štuklja is filled with musicians and stalls offering autumn produce and delicacies.
Celtic Irish In some parts Also in Ireland, no wheel of any kind was to turn on St. Martin's Day, because Martin was said by some people
Welsh In
Welsh mythology the day is associated with the
Cŵn Annwn, the spectral hounds who escort souls to the otherworld (
Annwn). St Martin's Day was one of the few nights the hounds would engage in a
Wild Hunt, stalking the land for criminals and villains. The supernatural character of the day in Welsh culture is evident in the number
omens associated with it. Marie Trevelyan recorded that if the hooting of an owl was heard on St Martin's Day it was seen as a bad omen for that district. If a meteor was seen, then there would be trouble for the whole nation.
Latvian Mārtiņi (Martin's) is traditionally celebrated by Latvians on 10 November, marking the end of the preparations for winter, such as salting meat and fish, storing the harvest and making preserves. It is a day when the lines between the spirit world and the world of the living begin to blur. Mārtiņi also marks the beginning of masquerading and sledding, among other winter activities.
Maltese St. Martin's Day (
Jum San Martin in
Maltese) is celebrated in
Malta on the Sunday nearest to 11 November. Children are given a bag full of fruits and sweets associated with the feast, known by the
Maltese as ''Il-Borża ta' San Martin'', "St. Martin's bag". This bag may include
walnuts,
hazelnuts,
almonds,
chestnuts,
dried or processed figs, seasonal fruit (like
oranges,
tangerines,
apples and
pomegranates) and "
Saint Martin's bread roll" (Maltese: ''Ħobża ta' San Martin''). In old days, nuts were used by the children in their games. A feast is celebrated in the village of
Baħrija on the outskirts of
Rabat, including a procession led by the statue of Saint Martin. There is also a fair, and a show for local animals. Cooking chestnuts on the open fire was one of the main attractions.
San Anton School, a private school on the island, organises a walk to and from a cave especially associated with Martin in remembrance of the day. The
Maltese phrase ''Is-Sajf ta' San Martin'' ("St. Martin's Summer") refers to the usual good weather period experienced there around the feast of Saint Martin.
Portuguese and Galician This period is also quite popular because of the usual good weather period that occurs in Portugal in this time of year, called
Verão de São Martinho (St. Martin's Summer). It is frequently tied to the legend since Portuguese versions of St. Martin's legend usually replace the snowstorm with rain (because snow is not frequent in most parts of Portugal, while rain is common at that time of the year) and have Jesus bringing the end of it, thus making the "summer" a gift from God. St. Martin's Day (
Dia de São Martinho) is commonly associated with the celebration of the maturation of the year's wine, being traditionally the first day when the new wine can be tasted. It is celebrated, traditionally around a
bonfire, eating the
magusto,
chestnuts roasted under the embers of the bonfire A typical Portuguese saying related to Saint Martin's Day: St Martin's Day is widely celebrated in
Galicia. It is the traditional day for slaughtering fattened pigs for the winter. This tradition has given way to the popular saying "
A cada cerdo le llega su San Martín from Galician
A cada porquiño chégalle o seu San Martiño ("Every pig gets its St Martin"). The phrase is used to indicate that wrongdoers eventually get their comeuppance. In
Moaña the San Martiño Festival starts early in the morning on 9 November and extends over four days.
Sicilian In Sicily, November is the winemaking season. On the day Sicilians eat anise, hard biscuits dipped into Moscato, Malvasia or Passito. ''l'Estate di San Martino'' (Saint Martin's Summer) is the traditional reference to a period of unseasonably warm weather in early to mid November, possibly shared with the
Normans (who founded the
Kingdom of Sicily) as common in at least late English folklore. The day is celebrated in a special way in a village near Messina and at a monastery dedicated to Saint Martin overlooking Palermo beyond Monreale. Other places in Sicily mark the day by eating
fava beans. ==In art==