Today is the autumnal equinox. To be precise, it occurred at six minutes past midnight this morning, and I'm reminded of an error I've encountered recently from several people claiming expertise in the matter of folklore and the old ways. They've pointed out that Halloween on 31st October is the beginning of the Gaelic season of Samhain, and is therefore 'the start of the darkest half of the year.' No it isn't.
Half a year is six months, and so the darkest half of the year runs from the autumnal equinox in September to the vernal equinox in March. Today is the start of the darkest half of the year. To say that Halloween is the start of the darkest quarter of the year would be more or less accurate, or it would be acceptable to say that it's the start of the darkest part of the year because 'part' is open ended. To use the word 'half' is simply wrong.
Maybe I'm being picky, but words matter to me, especially when they're coming from self-proclaimed experts.
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