Gina Kemmerer, Senior
Millions of people celebrate and enjoy Halloween; the costumes, trick-or-treating, and other traditions are near and dear to many. However, most people don’t know where the holiday originated from.
According to History, the origins of Halloween date back to nearly 2,000 years ago with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain. The Celts, who celebrated this, lived in what is now known as Ireland, the United Kingdom, and northern France. The Celts celebrated their new year on November 1 as the end of summer and the beginning of winter, which was seen as a season associated with death and destruction. It was believed that the barrier between the living world and the dead was easy for ghosts to pass through that night on October 31, and the ghosts of the dead would return to earth. This was the night when Samhain was celebrated. They believed that the spirits would ruin their crops and wreak havoc. It was also believed that Celtic priests, also known as Druids, could make predictions about the future much easier and more accurately on this night. Many people looked up to these predictions to help them through the winter. On Samhain, the Druids had bonfires where crops and sacrificial animals were burned in honor of the Celtic deities. The Celts also wore costumes during this event.
The Roman Empire began to take over the Celts territory in 43 A.D. With this takeover, two significant Roman holidays were combined with the Samhain celebration. Feralia, which was in late October where the dead were commemorated. And Pomona, a day to give thanks to the goddess of trees and fruit, Pomona. This holiday could explain why we go apple bobbing, as the symbol of this goddess was an apple.
Christianity began spreading throughout the Celtic areas by the 9th century, and in 1000 A.D. the church created All Souls day. This day was meant to honor the dead and shared many similarities with Samhain. This included things like bonfires, parades, and wearing costumes as angels, devils, and saints. Other names for All Souls day were All-hallows and All-hallowmas. And the night before this celebration (originally Samhain) was now known as All-Hallows Eve, and years later, Halloween.
Because of Protestant New England in America, Halloween was more commonly celebrated in the southern colonies. As cultures began to mix together, Americans commonly had “play parties” on Halloween night. Neighborhoods would dance, sing, tell fortunes, and stories. As time went on, new traditions began to emerge like telling ghost stories, and making trouble. Immigrants helped spread the holiday, especially those coming from the Irish Potato Famine. Children would go to doors in their neighborhoods asking for food and money, which eventually turned into the common activity of trick-or-treating. Halloween was now a wide-spread tradition in America with millions participating every year.
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