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Michaelmas

Historical Festival
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Christian feast on September 29 honoring Michael the Archangel, marking the start of autumn quarter and legal year in England

Detailed Definition
Michaelmas was a quarter day for rents and hiring fairs, with goose feasts. In poetry, it appears in medieval and folk verse as a marker of seasonal change. Poets use it to explore themes of judgment, protection, and the transition to darker months—making it a symbol of cosmic order, harvest’s end, and the archangel’s role as soul-guide and warrior of light.
Example
Example in poetry:
John Keble’s “Christian Year” includes a Michaelmas hymn on angelic warfare; Poets use Michaelmas to explore protection, harvest, and spiritual battle; In modern verse, Michaelmas symbolizes courage and seasonal shift; The festival appears in September poetry as autumn’s threshold; Poets contrast Michael’s sword with scales of justice; Eco-poets reference Michaelmas as goose harvest and balance.
Additional Notes
Michaelmas (September 29) is synonymous with Feast of Saint Michael (ID 13575); see that entry for notes on the archangel, autumnal judgment, and poetic themes of cosmic warfare and divine protection.
Other Meanings of “Michaelmas”
Also Known As
Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels Feast of Saint Michael
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