Costume tents are starting to set up in parking lots and grocery stores are stocking up with bags of candy, pumpkins and decorations. Every year, towns and cities all over the world celebrate this well known holiday, Halloween. Most kids dress up like princesses, ghosts, zombies etc. and walk door to door in their neighborhood. Although many people celebrate Halloween, whether they’re passing out candy or trick-or-treating,  we usually don’t think about why or how this holiday began.

The ideas that influence parts of modern day Halloween come from an ancient Celtic holiday called Samhain. The Celts believed that the end of the year opened up a “bridge” to the dead and they would roam throughout the living realm. The new year to the Celts in Ireland was November 1st, so this day was celebrated on the 31st of October. People would dress up in costumes as a disguise and light bonfires in an attempt to scare away any bad spirits.

In the middle ages, the Roman Catholic Church celebrated All Souls Day. On this day, the 2nd of November, some adults and young children would go around to homes asking for food and often they would get a “soul cake” in return for singing songs and praying for the dead.

Modern day trick-or-treating didn’t come up until the 1920’s and 30’s in North America. Now, it is influenced by both Samhain and All Souls Day and is mostly for fun.

Facts:

•  Halloween began in Ireland.
• Starting in 1959, there were several cases of razor blades found in Halloween candy. This was meant to be a prank and fortunately it does not happen anymore.
• The Jack-o-Lanterns we make today were first carved out of turnips.
• Snickers is the most popular type of candy given out.
• The orange and black colors that represent Halloween mean fall harvest and the end to summer.
• About 2 billion dollars are spent on Halloween candy annually in the United States.