Why Do We Celebrate Halloween?
Halloween has been around for more than a thousand years. Originally a religious observance, it became increasingly secular over the centuries until its religious trappings all but disappeared. Today Halloween is considered a holiday for dress-up and fun, especially for children.
Halloween’s origins can be traced back to the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain, which was held on November 1 in contemporary calendars. It was believed that on that day, the souls of the dead returned to their homes, so people dressed in costumes and lit bonfires to ward off spirits. In this way, popular Halloween tropes such as witches, ghosts, and goblins became associated with the holiday.
In the 7th century CE, Pope Boniface IV created All Saints Day, originally celebrated on May 13. A century later, Pope Gregory III moved the holiday to November 1, likely as a Christian substitute for the pagan festival of Samhain. The day before the saintly celebration became known as All Hallows Eve, or Halloween.
Though the holiday began in Celtic regions of Ireland, the United Kingdom, and France, it quickly spread to other parts of the world. The first American colonists in New England were forbidden to celebrate it for religious reasons, though it enjoyed some popularity in the So
uthern colonies. By the 1800s, fall festivals marking the seasonal harvest incorporated Halloween elements, and Irish immigrants escaping the devastating Potato Famine brought with them many Halloween traditions that remain today.
The custom of trick-or-treating, in which children dress up in costume and solicit treats from neighbour’s, became popular in the United States in the early 20th century as Irish and Scottish communities revived the Old World custom of “guising,” in which a person would dress in costume and tell a joke, recite a poem, or perform some other trick in exchange for a piece of fruit or other treat. By 1950, trick-or-treating for candy had become one of Halloween’s most popular activities. Today, Halloween is one of the biggest holidays for candy sales in the United States, estimated to be more than $3 billion, according to the National Retail Federation
Halloween legend
Trick or treat? 31 October is Halloween. The festival so popular in the United States was introduced by European immigrants in the 19th century. And with it, the tradition of pumpkin lanterns. With a spooky face and lit by a candle, this cultural element so often used in Halloween decorations is related to an urban legend of an unsuccessful deal between a drunkard and the devil.
According to Irish popular culture, a man called Sting Jack bumped into the Devil and asked him out for a drink. When it came time to pay the bill, Jack had no money. To overcome this situation, Jack made a pact with the Devil. Jack exchanged his soul for payment of the debt at the pub. The Devil turned into a coin. But Jack broke the deal and kept the Devil coin in his pocket along with a silver crucifix, so that the Devil would be trapped in his new form.
To free the Devil, Jack made a new deal. In exchange for his freedom, the Devil had to let him live for another ten years. When the time was up, Jack played one more trick on the Devil. He made him climb a tree and drew a cross on the trunk. Imprisoned once again, the Devil accepted Jack’s new proposal. He couldn’t take his soul after death.
When Jack died, he was turned away by St Peter in Heaven and could not enter Hell. Jack’s fate was to wander the earth as a lost soul, carrying a turnip and a coal in his hands that he had received as a gift from the Devil.
The legend of Jack of the Lantern has passed down through the generations and has taken centre stage at festivals. Halloween is pumpkin harvest time in the United States. It is believed that due to the abundance of pumpkins and the fact that they are easier to carve, people began to use pumpkins instead of turnips. And lanterns with scary faces and lights were used to scare away evil spirits.