My SO and I - in the UK - celebrate an adapted form of the Roman festival of Brumalia - which, as celebrated in Byzantium in later times (recorded as late as C11th CE despite Xtian repression) began on Nov 24th and continued through to Saturnalia - and a little beyond. This will be our third Brumalia.
A common greeting during the festival was 'Vives Annos' - Live for Years.
I follow a broadly Celtic path, but am happy to adopt, adapt and extend the Interpretatio Romana where it usefully adds to my understanding of the Celtic deities, and certainly am happy to adopt appropriate festivals from the Roman calendar.
We will be progressively decorating the house for the solstice, starting from today - the first day of Brumalia - and then adding additional items each day until the start of Saturnalia. This year, I have also created an advent-style calendar running from Nov 24th to the end of Brumalia with a pair of chocolates in each day's drawer. In addition, since this is above all a chthonic, Saturnian festival, on each weekend during the period, we will make offerings to relevant gods and godesses: Bruma (personification of Winter), Bacchus, Ceres and Saturn being the originals. Consequently our calendar for the season looks like:
- Fri Nov 24th - Put the first of the lights up, and then offerings to and celebration of Bacchus
- Sat Nov 25th - First hebdomad of Brumalia, saythen a Cailleach - Offering to and celebration of the Cailleach Bheur, the Crone of Winter
- Mon Nov 27th - Full moon
- Sat Dec 2nd - second hebdomad of Brumalia, saythen a Sucellos - new moon
- Tues Dec 5th - Faunalia and also Krampusnacht (both Dec 5th). Offering to and celebration of Faunus Auseci Medugeni^1
- Sat Dec 2th - third hebdomad of Brumalia, saythen a Erecura - Offering to and celebration of Erecura
- Thu Dec 14th - Geminids peak
- Sat Dec 16th - decorations completed, fourth hebdomad of Brumalia, saythen a Cernunnos, Eponalia
- Sun Dec 17th - start of Saturnalia, Offering to and celebration of Cernunnos
- Fri Dec 22nd - Solstice (03:27) - and off to a local mummers' mystery play
- Sat Dec 23rd - end of Saturnalia
- Sun Dec 24th - Mother Night
- Mon Dec 25th - Sol Invictus, end of Brumalia
- Tues Dec 26th - Boxing day and off to a Cutty Wren ceremony held locally.
- Wed Dec 27th - Full moon
- Mon Jan 1st - Morris dancing
1 - Although a title of Roman origin, Faunus had a temple and cult revealed through archaeological digs quite near to us in the late Romano-Celtic period and has a strong personal significance for me. Several items found in the dig were inscribed with Brythonic epithets to Faunus.