Acknowledgements (p.4)

List of Illustrations (p.7-8)

Foreword (p.9)

I. Hallowe'en: Samhuinn (p.11-30 inclusive)

Festival of the Dead (p.11-14)

The fairies (p.14-15)

The witches (p.15-17)

The bonfires (p.17-18)

"Burning the witch" (p.18-19)

The Hallowe'en torches (p.19-20)

Sacrifice to Shony (p.20-21_

The Hallowmas bannock (p.21-23)

The Hallowmas fair (p.23)

Guising {Guisers] (p.23-24)

The Hallowmas foy (p.24)

Guising among children (p.25-26)

Turnip lanterns (p.26)

Hallowe'en pranks (p.26-29)

The nut-gathering (p.29)

The Hallowe'en apple (p.29-30)

A memory / poem by Violet Jacob (p.30)

II. Hallowe'en divination rites: Season of omens and auguries (p.31-42 inclusive)

[Materials used in divination rites] (p.31)

[Ordeal by water] ; [Ordeal by fire] (p.31-32)

[Other] indoor rites (p.32-36)

Outdoor rites (p.36-40)

The Modern Hallow'en (p.40-42)

III. Martinmas: St. Martin of Tours (p.43-46 inclusive)

St. Martin's Day ; Martinmas in the Scottish ballads ; Feeing-time on the farms (p.43-44)

The Martinmas foy ; Armistice Day (p.43-46)

IV. Anermas or St. Andrew's Day (p.47-52 inclusive)

Tradition of the bringing of the Saint's bones to Scotland ; Origin of St. Andrews (Fife) ; The St. Andrew's Banquet ; "Sanct Andra-ing" (p.47-50)

The Scots Box (p.50)

V. Yule (p.51-60 inclusive)

The Scandinavian festival (p.51-52)

Christianising of Yule (p.52-53)

Christmas in Medieval Scotland ; Mass in Trinity College Kirk (p.53-58)

The banning of Christmas (p.58-60)

VI. Yule in later times: (p.61-71 inclusive)

Festival fare in humble homes (p.62-66)

Ploys and pastimes (p.66-68)

Feasting through the ages (p.68-71)

VII. Christmas customs: (p.72-80 inclusive)

The Yule log (p.72-73)

The Yule candles (p.73)

Mistletoe (p.73-74)

Evergreens (p.74)

The Christmas tree (p.74-75)

Santa Claus (p.75-77)

The Christmas carol (p.77-79)

The Christmas card (p.79-80)

VIII. The guiser: (p.81-98 inclusive)

Guising in the lowlands (p.81-82)

The Goloshan (p.82-86)

The Seven Champions of Christendom (p.87)

The straw suits (p.87-88)

Guising in the Hebrides (p.88)

The Christmas lads (p.88-89)

The Hogmanay lads (p.89-94)

The Bairns ; Bairn thymes (p.94-98)

IX. Hogmanay: (p.99-112 inclusive)

[Origin of the festival] (p.99)

The communal welcome to the New Year ; Hogmanay at the Tron Kirk (p.99-102)

Hogmanay in the home ; Festive fare (p.102-104)

First-footing (p.104-106)

[Orkney and Shetland new year song] (p.107-108)

New Year's day in rural Scotland ; [Feasting] ; [Shinty and Ba' games] (p.109-111)

Aberdeen [The New Year Procession] (p.111)

Hogmanay in the army (p.111-112)

A festival of renewal (p.112)

X. Hogmanay rites and superstitions: (p.113-116 inclusive)

[Saining rites] ; [Rites for good fortune] ; [Other rites] ; [Weather signs] ; [The Frith] (p.113-116)

XI. New Year in the Highlands: (p.117-121 inclusive)

[New Year's eve] ; [Procession of the Bull] ; [Ceilidh at the big house] ; [Traditional dances] ; [New Year's Day] ; [Shinty match] (p. 117-121)

XII. Auld Handsel Monday: (p.122-125 inclusive)

[Farm workers and servants holiday] ; [The big breakfast] ; [Family gatherings] ; [Fairs] ; [Barn dances] (p.122-125)

XIII. Uphalieday: (p.126-129 inclusive)

[Feast of the Epiphany] ; [Court Festival at Old Holyrood] ; [King and Queen of Bean] ; ["The twleve days of Yule"] ; [Snapdragon] ; [Burning of evergreens] (p.126-129)

XIV. The Yules in Shetland: (p.130-139 inclusive)

[The Scandinavian tradition] ; [Yule fires] ; [Trows (Trolls) released from the Underworld] (p.130)

Saining rites ; [Tulya's E'en] ; [Helya's Night] ; [Tammasmas E'en] ; [Byena's Sunday] (p.130-132)

Yule E'en (p.132)

Yule Day (p.132-133)

[The Grülacks] ; [Island dances] (p.133-135)

Yule at the Big House (p.135-137)

The Horse Festival (p.137)

New Year's Day (p.137-138)

Up-helly-aa ; [Chasing of trows to the Underworld] ; [Burning of the galley] (p.138)

XV. The future of Yule (p.139-140)

Appendix: Burns Night (A Nicht Wi' Burns" (p.141-144)

Notes (p.145-164)

Index (p.165-178)

Bibliography (p.179-180)