Halloween History, Halloween Myths, and Fun Halloween Facts!

Things You May Not Know About Halloween

Halloween has become the most celebrated holiday on October 31st. It is considered by most a fun holiday. Time to wear costumes, go door to door asking for candy, watching monster movies, parties, ghost tours, visiting haunted attractions, bonfires, games, and reading or telling scary stories. (But the holiday’s origins go back centuries). October 31st is associated with the colors of orange and black, symbols, and traditions. The holiday is mostly for children but adults also enjoy some of the festivities as well.

Background Information

Halloween is traced back to ancient religions and myths, including Paganism, ancient Roman religions, early Catholic Christianity, Irish folklore, as well as British politics. The term Halloween is shortened from “All Hallows Eve” (hallows means saints in this case). This became “All Hallow E’en”, leading to “Hallowe’en,” or “Halloween”. It was the night before All Hallows Day, later named All Saints Day. This was a feast for all martyrs and saints. It was celebrated on November 1st for the first time during the 8th century. It was a day of religious celebrations in parts of the pagan tradition of Northern Europe, before Popes Gregory III and Gregory IV switched from the old Christian feast of the All Saints day from May 13th to November 1st. May 13th was a pagan holiday, the Feast of the Lemures. So in the 10th century this feast was the eve of All Souls Day. November 2nd. (on All Souls Day) was a day of prayer for the dead. It was to comfort dead souls or bring them back from purgatory. This day was to honor the dead who were not saints. The Celtics had a festival marking the end of the year about 2,000 years ago. This festival was called Samhain (pronounced sow-en) and was on November 1st. The end of the summer and the end of the harvest season was near. During the long winter many deaths of animals and people occurred. So the weaker livestock were killed and eaten. They wouldn’t of survived through the long winter anyway. It is believed that the night before the New Year, that the boundary between the living and the dead was opened. So this would allow the spirits of the dead, good and bad, to mingle among the living. Some of the spirits were thought to possess living people, some where known to cause trouble, also ruin crops, or search for a way to get to their afterlife. During Samhain, people would do unusual things, such as moving their livestock to a different pasture (field). Women would dress like men and vice versa, they would move gates and fences also. This festival would include bonfires and the bones of the animals that were killed for food were thrown into the fire. Fairies were known to roam the land during Samhain. They were going door to door asking for food dressed as beggars. If you gave the fairies food you were rewarded, if given nothing, the the fairies would punish you. This is known to be the origin in modern practice as “trick or treat”.

Halloween is not celebrated everywhere in the world. The celebration in the United States has had a big impact on how Halloween is celebrated. Let’s check out how it is observed in different countries. In England, on All Souls Day, the poor would ”go a-souling”. They would go door to door asking for food and if you gave them food they would pray for the souls of your deceased relatives. It was believed at one time the souls of the deceased would not go into heaven until enough people had prayed for them.

In Mexico, Latin America, and Spain, they have a three day celebration on the evening of October 31st, through November 2nd. November 1st will honor the dead children and November 2nd honors the adults who have died. The shops start to get ready for the festival called “Day of the Dead”. Supposedly the spirits of the relatives go and visit their families home. At the home an alter is made and decorated with flowers, pictures of the deceased, candy and pastries are shaped like skulls with their deceased ones name on it. There was also the decease’s favorite foods and drinks with candle’s. An after dinner cigarette and liquors are provided with burning incense. This will help the spirits find their way home. Now on the 2nd. of November the graves of the deceased are cleaned, painted, and decorated. The families would gather like a family reunion with food, drinks, and tequila. In some area’s, fireworks would announce an open-air mass. The most formal time of the Day of the Dead. This is the celebration of their deceased one’s family.

All Saints Day is spent praying most of the day, praying to the Saints and thanking God. This is how Eastern Europe celebrate. They also visit their deceased one’s at the cemeteries. This is a somber day of remembrance and reflection. Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, and Italy celebrate Halloween American style. In the early United States history, Halloween was not popular and the early settlers were Protestant.

Jack-o’-lantern

Now, let me inform you about the Jack-o’-lantern. The early Pagan Celtic people would use hallowed out turnips, gourds, or rutabagas to hold a fire from the sacred bonfire, so they could lite the home fires from the sacred one. How did Jack-o’-lantern get the name? Now, an Irish myth, “Stingy Jack” was a swindler and a drunk. He invited the Beelzebub to have a drink with him. Jack finally talked the devil into changing himself into a coin so he could pay for the drinks. When he did change into the coin, Jack put it in his pocket by a silver cross, which trapped the devil from changing back to himself. The devil and Jack agreed that the devil would not bother Jack for one full year if Jack would turn him back into the devil. The following year Jack tricks the devil again. To climb a tree and retrieve a piece of fruit. When the devil was up in the tree, Jack carved a cross on the tree trunk, stopping him from climbing down out of the tree. Jack and the devil made a deal, that the devil would not seek his soul any more.

So when Jack died, he was not allowed in heaven or hell because of his drinking and swindling ways. The devil kept his word and gave Jack an ember to put into a turnip for Jack to carry while he roamed around the Earth. The devil did take pity on Jack. Now, the “Jack-o’-lanterns” are made to scare off Stingy Jack and other spirits wondering around. The significance and relation to the Irish tale of Jack is still unknown.

Traditions

There are many Halloween Traditions. I would like to mention several of them. Let’s start with the favorite, “Costumes”. Some say that dressing in costumes has its roots in the Pagan Celtic of Samhain. Theory 1 — They dressed as ghouls to fool evil spirits on October 31st so they wouldn’t get possessed by them. Theory 2 — They dressed in costumes for fun and to make mischief. Theory 3 — The Fairies dressed as beggars asking for food (this is the origin of the “trick or treat”). Only after Samhain was replaced with All Saints Day, did the people dress as dead Saints and Devils. The ones that did not show hospitality were dealt with harshly by the magical fairies. On All Souls Day, the poor would beg for “Soul Cakes” which are sweet pastries. In return the poor would pray for the persons deceased love ones, to help with their passage into heaven.

Now, the bonfires have origins. It is a religious tradition to extinguish home fires and to have only one holy bonfire in each town at the end of the New Year. It is said to scare away the evil spirits from their homes not to have the fire lit. Some people say it takes place at the start of the New Year. The apple is a seasonal fruit as well as the symbol of the Roman Goddess Pomona. It is thought to possess qualities of knowledge, resurrection, and immortality. On the night of Samhain, bobbing for apples and then peeling a long long peel was thought to foretell the future. Don’t forget about Stingy Jack and the “Jack-o’-lanterns”. Now, you have the “Ghost Stories”. This was a Celtic belief that the spirits of the dead (good and bad) wandered on October 31st on Samhain. Nowadays Ghost Stories are used to amuse and scare the children (and some adults) to get them into the “Spirit” of Halloween.

There are many more traditions, foods, symbols, superstitions, legends, folklores, games, haunted attractions, and etc. that I haven’t mentioned pertaining to Halloween holiday on October 31st. So, do have a Happy Halloween and Trick or Treat!