Halloween is an annual holiday celebrated on the 31st of October.
This year, Halloween occurs on Thursday the 31st of October.
Halloween is said to derive from Samhain (pronounced “sow-win”), which was a holiday celebrated by the Celts.
Who were the Celts?
The Celts were an ethnic European group who settled and lived in the areas of western Europe, including Ireland, France, Wales, Spain etc.
They shared similar beliefs, languages, traditions and cultures despite living in different areas. The Celts, who lived roughly 2,000 years ago, celebrated their New Year on the 1st of November. This was the day that marked the end of summer, initiating the harvest, the slaughter of livestock, and the start of a cold and dark period often associated with death.
What is “Samhain”?
Samhain was a Pagan festival celebrated on the night before the New Year, therefore on the 31st of October, where the Celts believed that the separation between the world of the living and the dead was removed, allowing the interaction between humans and entities of the otherworld, the supernatural.
Celebrations
The Celts believed that the presence of supernatural spirits would make it easier for the Celtic priests to make predictions about the future. Huge bonfires were built, and people gathered to burn crops and animals as a sacrifice to Celtic gods.
The Celts also wore monster costumes made from animal skins and tried to predict each other's futures.
The feeling of paranoia, bad luck, and superstition which accompanies Halloween’s reputation can derive from the fact that there are many malicious mythological creatures which are thought to cross the border from the otherworld into our earth. Pucas, for example, are little ill-intentioned fairies which take any form, and manipulate and hurt humans.
For this reason, the Celts prepared little offerings and left them outside the fields and villages in order to please the fairies and receive ripe fruits in the springtime
The 1st of November was later made All Saints day in the VIIIth century, a day to honor all Saints, therefore, October 31st became Hallows eve (meaning all holy-thing’s eve, the eve before All Saints).
Fun Fact:
Trick or Treating is said to derive from ancient Irish and Scottish practices of the nights leading to Samhain. People would go “Mumming”; going from door to door in costumes and singing songs to the dead, cakes were given as a payment, hence the “treat”. The “trick” derives from the fact that the Celts believed that the “Pucas” or fairies would play tricks on people.
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