History of Halloween

There are thousands of holidays celebrated varying from Diwali, Christmas, and Chanukah to National Best Friends day… and then there's Halloween. The unique one that doesn't focus on family and history, but instead on scaring and fear. Where did this horror-focused holiday originate from, and why does it exist?

Halloween's first form was created by the Celts, who had a festival each year called Samhain. Samhain was a pagan spiritual tradition, and was celebrated more than 2,000 years ago and was the New Year. The intent behind it was to greet the harvest and later transition into the shadier half of the year. The shift into winter often brought many deaths. Winter during this period was very treacherous due to the harsh climate and the inability to grow crops or hunt food safely. This initiated the belief that the barriers between the spirit and the living world were blurred during this night. The Celts believed that ghosts would be able to visit earth on October 31st- the day before winter started. People would dance around a bonfire wearing animal heads and skins on their bodies and make sacrifices.

At around 43 A.D.,most of the Celts’ land had been conquered by the Roman Empire. Two Roman festivals were incorporated with the Celtic celebration of Samhain, due to the influence of Celtic culture even after being conquered by Rome. The first of the two merged Roman festivals was called Feralia, a festival set to commemorate the passing of the dead- which was held in later October. The second of the Roman holidays was a day to praise Pomona, the Roman goddess of trees and fruit. Feralia easily merged with much of Samhain's ideas- with death and life being such a big part of both. But Pomona's honor was incorporated into Samhain differently. Pomona's symbol was an apple, which evolved into the tradition of candied apples and candies during Halloween today.

In 609 A.D., Pope Gregory III dedicated an already-created holiday to celebrating all Christian martyrs. Originally, this was celebrated on May 13th but was moved to November 1st. All Celtic lands had been conquered by the 9th century, and Christianity had spread and replaced many ancient Celtic rites. In around 1000 AD, All Souls Day on November 2nd was created with the hope that it would replace the Celtic festival of the dead (Samhain). All Souls Day was like Samhain in many ways, with big bonfires, parades, and costumes. All saints' days started to be called All-Hallows, or All-Hallowmas, and the night beforehand was anointed, All-Hallows Eve. This name was shortened into our current word, Halloween.

When America was newly colonized, Halloween wasn't widely celebrated due to Protestant beliefs in the new colonies. Halloween was almost barely celebrated in Maryland and other southern colonies, and not at all in the more northern ones. Through the years, European ethnic groups and American Indians shared their versions of Halloween with each other. An American version of Halloween began to form, and it became popular fast. And, although much of the original Halloween has changed since its first baby years, one thing hasn't changed. It's the fear factor and relation to the dead.

By around the middle of the 19th century, autumn festivals were common throughout the US, but Halloween wasn't widely celebrated yet. In the second half of the 19th century, the great potato famine happened and the US gained many Irish immigrants. As Halloween was originally a Celtic holiday, the Irish certainly did bring over many Halloween traditions. These traditions helped make the celebration of Halloween an American-wide event. People would wear costumes and go all over towns asking for food- which later evolved into our now-a-days trick or treat. Witchcraft and tricks were a big part of this past Halloween

In the late 1800s, people in America started to mold Halloween into the holiday we know today. With its community-like setting and neighborhood focus, many other aspects soon disappear. Some aspects that were lost to time included ghosts, pranks, and witchcraft. Treats and games soon replaced those more horror-oriented themes.

So, Halloween is the oddest one out. Death and witchcraft turned into scary and fun. Halloween is one of the most interesting holidays out there and it's coming up soon! Get your witch hats and spells ready, and get your zombie best friends away, this holiday is going to scare you right out of your pants. Maybe literally… 

Source: 

Halloween 2022. A&E Television Networks, 8 Nov. 2009, www.history.com/topics/Halloween/history-of-Halloween. 

Accessed 20 Oct. 2022.