This is Halloween

Ashlee O'Neill and Kate Lutow|October 15, 2021

Where did Halloween originate from?

Annually, Halloween is celebrated on the last day of October, which is the thirty-first. This chilling day is believed to have originated from the ancient Celtic Festival of Samhain in Ireland. During this Celtic Festival, civilians would make bonfires and dress in costumes. The Celtic thought that spirits helped the Druids -Celtic priests- predicted the future. As the 19th century arrived immigrants from Ireland came to the U.S. bringing the Halloween tradition.

Why do people carve pumpkins?

Ireland started carving demonic faces on turnips to scare away Jack’s wandering soul. As Irish immigrants moved to the US, people began carving jack- o’- lanterns out of pumpkins because they were native to the region. The reason people carved pumpkins was to scare off evil spirits. People were known to set the turnips, beets, potatoes, or carved pumpkins by their front doors hoping it would protect them. Now people tend to carve pumpkins for fun and to display them to the public.

What does the teal pumpkin mean?

Displaying a teal pumpkin on your doorstep means you have non-food treats available for trick-or-treaters with food allergies or other conditions. A few of these non-food treats may include but are not limited to glow sticks, bubbles, pencils, and other small toys.

What is the reason behind the costumes?

The reason costumes are worn on Halloween may have a number of purposes for different cultures. One of the purposes for wearing costumes on Halloween is to confuse the spirits. In a few cultures it was believed that during the time of Halloween the barrier between our world and the spirits world was at its thinnest. So people would dress up in costumes (disguises) to protect themselves from their fear of evil spirits rising. In the present day, most Halloween lovers tend to wear costumes for fun.

How did Trick-or-Treating begin?

Trick-or-Treating begun by people going door to door saying prayers for the dead in exchange for food/treats. As time went on the once known gift of prayers changed to performances, which then changed to threats for food. Soon after the tradition came across to the U.S and was modified to people (mainly children) going door to door saying the phrase some of us know well, trick-or-treat.

The Superstition of Black Cats

Black cats may be associated with Halloween due to superstition. In medieval and ancient time in a number of different places black cats were considered bringers of bad luck, cursing any human they came near too (left to right or just in the general vicinity), as well as associated with witchcraft. However, black cats are not all symbols of bad luck/news, there are also countless cultures of black cats being a symbol of good luck. In some times black cats were also believed to be bringers of good wealth and luck. Black cats were even worshipped in ancient Egypt.

The United States black cats became to represent bad luck and the overall spookiness from the Pilgrims distrusting anything related to witches and sorcery which started the black cat superstition.

Top 5 Most Popular Halloween Movies

-selected by Robinson students-