Bitesize Blogs - Autumn pt.2

The Science Bit

When is the Autumn Equinox?

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In the UK, the Autumn Equinox falls (see what I did there?!) on the 21st, 22nd or 23rd of September. Mabon refers to the period around this time. But if you're like me and my witchy friends, September 1st means we're in the season – and sometimes even before that!

Meteorological Autumn vs Astronomical Autumn in the UK

Definition	Starts On	Why It Matters
Meteorological Autumn	September 1 — runs through to November 30	Aligns with calendar months — makes comparing weather and climate data simpler Met OfficeRMetSWikipedia
Astronomical Autumn	Autumnal Equinox—around September 22–23 (in 2025, on September 22)	Based on Earth’s orbit and tilt — when day and night are nearly equal Royal Museums Greenwichnpl.co.ukAccuWeather

What's the Difference?

• Meteorological Autumn uses a fixed calendar system - September, October, November - in order to standardize weather statistics year after year Met OfficeRMetS.

• Astronomical Autumn marks a cosmic event the Autumn Equinox, when the Sun crosses the Earth’s equator, creating equal day and night. In 2025, it falls on September 22 in the UK at approximately 18:20 GMT Royal Museums Greenwichnpl.co.uk.

  
  

  Why This Matters for Us -

• It depends on what you are doing, where your focus is, whether you follow the seasons and cycles for rituals, ceremonies, gardening etc;

  
  

• Gardening & Rituals: If you're syncing with Earth’s rhythms or scheduling seasonal rituals, like equinox ceremonies, it’s better to follow the Astronomical Autumn for symbolic and natural alignment.

• Planning & Weather Tracking: For practical purposes, like planting times, agricultural planning, or comparing climate data, Meteorological Autumn is more reliable because of its consistency.

• Phenological Observations: Nature’s response (late leaf-fall, migrations, berry ripening) often signals Autumn’s onset earlier or later than both meteorological and astronomical standards, depending on the year and climate conditions The Week

Mabon, Fall, or Autumn Equinox – Are They the Same, What's in a Name?

Mabon, Fall, the Autumn Equinox…are they the same? It can get confusing when and what to celebrate. Lets delve into a little bit of info about the differences.

• Mabon and the Autumn Equinox are connected but not identical.

• The equinox is a natural astronomical event.

• Mabon is a modern Pagan and Wiccan celebration aligned with the equinox.

  
  

In the traditional farming calendar that our Ancestors would have followed we celebrated three harvests:

• Lammas / Lughnasadh ( around the1st August) = grain harvest

• Autumn Equinox (Mabon) = harvest of fruits, vegetables and nuts

• Samhain (31st October) = harvest of meat - when the animals would be slaughtered to sustain the tribe/village over the Winter

  
  

This whole time of the harvest covered the three festivals, and was simply called Harvest , Harvest Home or Ingathering. You can read some info on that here in this Britannica article.

Did You Know? The Word “Fall” Originated in England

Yes – "Fall" is originally British!

• First used in the 1500s to describe "the fall of the leaf"

• Its opposing season, "Spring", comes from "spring of the leaf"

• "Autumn" entered English from French and Latin roots, appearing in literature from Chaucer to Shakespeare

• By the late 1600s, Autumn replaced Fall in Britain

• But Fall remained across the Atlantic with early colonists. There is a belief that the word fall was continued as the colonists moved across the Americas, whereas here in Britain it was dropped in favour of the word Autumn as the aristocracy associated it with the common people!

Personally, I love the word Fall – it feels rich with symbolism – and I try to use it over Mabon… though old habits die hard, and like Lughnasadh / Lammas, I tend to use both, so it becomes the Autumn Equinox / Mabon!

What is the Autumn Equinox?

The Autumn Equinox (aka the September or Fall Equinox) is an astrological event when the sun crosses the celestial equator, and day and night are nearly equal.

• It marks the end of summer and beginning of autumn

• Celebrated around 21st–22nd September

• A global event observed by many cultures

• It’s not spiritual by default – but becomes so when we imbue it with meaning

What is (or Rather Who) is Mabon?

Mabon is:

• A modern Pagan and Wiccan holiday

• Part of the eight Sabbats on the Wheel of the Year

• Named after Mabon ap Modron, the Child of Light in Welsh mythology

*"Mabon (MAH-bon), otherwise known as Mabon ap Modron, is a character in Welsh mythology. His name literally translates to ‘the divine son of a divine mother.’ (Sound familiar??  The theme of the divine child born of a divine (or semi-divine) mother is one of the most widespread archetypes across myth, folklore, and religion. It often carries themes of renewal, salvation, the sacred feminine, and the cyclical life, death, rebirth mystery - but that is for another blog!).

This Mabon is scarcely mentioned beyond a singular tale in the Mabinogi (often called the Mabinogion), a medieval collection of Welsh prose from the 11th and 14th centuries.

The Mabinogi primarily features tales about mothers or goddesses who are separated from their sons, and their sons, who are destined for great leadership as heroes or kings.

Mabon ap Modron may be related to a Gaulish Celtic deity called Maponos, as both the names Mabon and Maponos mean ‘divine son,’ ‘divine youth,’ or ‘great son,’ where Modron simply means mother, or ‘divine mother.’

Much of what we know about Gaulish Celtic deities comes from the accounts of Julius Caesar. As such, the deities are reliably conflated with Roman gods that he saw as fit equivalents. Caesar equated the Gaulish Maponos with the Greco-Roman Apollo, a god of medicine, music, and poetry, among many other things.

This Mabon appears only in the Mabinogi’s tale of Culhwch and Olwen."*Taken from an article by Sea Witch Botanicals. Click here to read the full article.

However, there is little evidence that Mabon was celebrated in Celtic countries and the term Mabon was given to the festival as recently as the 1970’s. All part of our reconstructed Paganism. This does not make it wrong, as all things evolve, and as we know, where we place our intention and energy we create new ways of being – but it is important to understand and acknowledge the root of things.

The Equinox is the scientific seasonal shift. Mabon is the spiritual celebration of that shift – but the naming has stirred debate.

Some say:

• Mabon wasn’t historically celebrated in Celtic traditions.

• Many don't know who Mabon was, even in Wales.

• Alban Elfed is the Druid name for the Autumn Equinox, meaning “Light of the Water” - This festival marks the balance of day and night before the darkness takes over, and is a time to thank the Earth for the harvest. 

• In Norse traditions, it’s Haustblót or Winter Finding. This feast celebrates the beginning of Autumn.

All of this reflects the diverse Ancestral roots that inform our modern practices, and how nothing is really wrong, especially when we just work with the feeling and energy of the season. Notice what you see happening in the world around you and your home, out in nature - the crops being harvested, the berries ripe for plucking in the hedgerows, the nights drawing in, the leaves falling from the trees. what do you feel and sense energetically?

This is a time when our senses come alive - the calls of the melodic song birds of Spring  give way to the calls of the crows at Autumn.

Tune into these things, honour and celebrate the rhythm of the Seasons, to what is going on around you and you can't go wrong.