Halloween's Origin & Celebration
The name Halloween, which falls on October 31, comes from All Hallows’ Eve, the evening before the holy days of All Hallows’ Day (also known as All Saints’ Day), which falls on November 1st, followed by All Souls’ Day on November 2. Similar to Christmas and Easter, All Hallows’ Day featured major feasts, followed by vigils, periods of purposeful sleeplessness. Halloween (All Hallows’ Eve), All Hallows’ Day, and All Souls’ Day all follow the liturgical period of Allhallowtide, a time in which Christians honor martyrs (people killed for their testimony or faith in Jesus) and saints (aka hallows, people recognized in having an exceptional degree of holiness), as well as praying for other departed souls.
Halloween: Modern Traditions
There are multiple annual traditions people do around the world for Halloween, but the most popular are listed below:
- Trick-or-treating: A tradition that is mostly for children, where they dress in costumes asking for treats with the phrase “trick or treat”; some form of candy or money is given in most cultures.
- Halloween Costume Parties: Get-togethers that feature most attendees with costumes, such as pop culture, supernatural figures, or some who don’t dress in costumes.
- Carving: A type of craft that features individuals taking out all flesh and seeds out of either pumpkins, squash, or turnips into decorations, such as jack-o-lanterns.
- Bonfire: Not nearly as common, but is common enough to be mentioned; controlled fires to celebrate Halloween, likely used for feasts or disposal of items.
- Apple Bobbing: An event in which individuals fill a large container (such as a bucket) with water and dropping apples in the container. Players will try to get the apples only using their teeth, with no arms allowed.
Halloween Theories
There are some theories about Halloween, such as traditions being influence by the Celtic Harvest Festivals, specifically the primarily Gaelic festival known as Samhain, believed to have paganistic roots. These theories go as far as suggesting that Samhain
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