Parkin (cake) in November had many Christian festivals, and like Celtic festivals that preceded them they were celebrated with a fire and ritual cakes. November starts with All Hallows Eve, that runs into All Saints Day (1 November), which is followed by All Souls Day (2 November). Little Lent and the forty-day fast until Christmas, started at Martinmas. (11 November). On All Souls Day soul cakes were baked. The Martinmas fair was important being the traditional day when cattle were bought and sold, and servants were hired for the following year. It was also the date that cattle were slaughtered and salted
St. Martin's Day Martin, is celebrated with traditional dinners, while the day itself is rarely recognized. ("Morten" is the Danish vernacular form of "Martin".) The background is the same legend as mentioned above, but nowadays the goose is most often replaced with a duck due to size, taste and/or cost. In Estonia, Martinmas signifies the merging of Western European customs with local Finnic pagan traditions. It also contains elements of earlier worship of the dead as well as a certain year-end celebration that predates Christianity. For centuries mardipäev (Martinmas) has been one of the most important and cherished days in the Estonian folk