Halloween is considered by most in the United
States as a fun holiday, mostly for children, but it has roots in ancient
religions and folklore, including paganism, ancient Roman religions, early
Catholic Christianity, Irish folklore, and even British politics! Children
and adults alike enjoy this holiday today, with funny costumes, candy, and
parties, while some countries observe this time as a remembrance of
departed loved ones and religious saints.
Here is a short history of this holiday:
History
Halloween is a holiday with ancient roots
that had a much greater meaning than the boisterous, costume-filled
holiday that we know today. Around 2,000 years ago, the Celts, who lived
in what is now the United Kingdom, Ireland, and northern France, had a
festival commemorating the end of the year. Their New Year was November 1,
and this festival was called Samhain, pronounced sow-en. The end of their
year signaled the end of summer, the end of the harvest season, and the
beginning of a long, hard winter that often caused many deaths of animals
and people. Weaker livestock were often killed and eaten during this
holiday, since most likely, they would not survive the winter anyway.
Because of this, and the cruel winter to come, this time of year signified
death to the Pagan Celtics. They believed the night before the New Year,
that the wall between the living and the dead was open, allowing spirits
of the dead, both good and bad, to mingle among the living. Some of these
spirits were thought to possess living people, cause trouble, ruin crops,
or to search for passage to the afterlife.
Samhain was considered a magical holiday, and
there are many stories about what the Celtics practiced and believed
during this festival. Some say the spirits that were unleashed were those
that had died in that year, and offerings of food and drink were left to
aid the spirits, or to ward them away. Other versions say the Celts
dressed up in outlandish costumes and roamed the neighborhoods making
noise to scare the spirits away. Many thought they could predict the
future and communicate with spirits as well during this time. Some think
the heavily structured life of the Pagan Celtics was abandoned during
Samhain, and people did unusual things, such as moving horses to different
fields, moving gates and fences, women dressing as men, and vice versa,
and other trickeries now associated with Halloween. Another belief is that
the Celtics honoured, celebrated, and feasted the dead during Samhain. A
sacred, central bonfire was always lit to honor the Pagan gods, and some
accounts say that individual home fires were extinguished during Samhain,
either to make their homes unattractive to roving spirits, or for their
home fires to be lit following the festival from the sacred bonfire.
Fortunes were told, and marked stones thrown into the fire. If a person's
stone was not found after the bonfire went out, it was believed that
person would die during the next year. Some Celts wore costumes of animal
skulls and skins during Samhain. Faeries were believed to roam the land
during Samhain, dressed as beggars asking for food door to door. Those
that gave food to the faeries were rewarded, while those that did not were
punished by the faeries. This is reported to be the first origin of the
modern "trick or treat" practice.
In the First century A.D., the Roman Empire
had taken over most of the Celtic lands. The Romans had two festivals also
celebrated at the same time of year as Samhain. One was Feralia, also in
late October, was the Roman day honouring the dead. The second festival
was for Pomona, the Roman goddess of trees and fruit. Pomona's symbol was
the apple. These two festivals were combined with Samhain in the Celtic
lands during the four hundred years the Roman Empire ruled over the Celts.
The goddess Pomona's apple might be the root of the Halloween tradition of
bobbing for apples.
Over the next several hundred years,
Christianity had spread to include the lands inhabited by the Celtics and
the Romans, but the festival of Samhain was still celebrated by the
people. The Christian church reportedly did not like a festival with Pagan
roots practiced by Christians, so a replacement was needed. Pope Boniface
IV designated May 13 as All Saints Day to honour dead church saints and
martyrs. Samhain continued to be celebrated, so in 835 A.D., Pope Gregory
IV moved the holiday to November 1, probably to take attention away from
the Pagan Samhain festival and replace it. Since All Saints Day was
sanctioned by the church, and related to the dead, the church was happy,
but many Pagan traditions of Samhain continued to be practiced, including
bonfires, parades, and dressing up in costume. All Saints Day was also
known as All Hallows, or All Hallowmas (Hallowmas is Old English for All
Saints Day). Since Samhain was celebrated the night before November 1, the
celebration was known as All Hallows Eve, and later called Halloween. In
the year 1000 A.D., the church designated November 2 as All Souls Day, to
honour the dead who were not saints, and they eventually became combined
and celebrated as Hallowmas.
On All Souls Day in England, the poor would
"go a-souling". They would go door to door asking for food, and
in return, would pray for the souls of their dead relatives. It was widely
believed at the time that the souls of the dead would await passage into
heaven until enough people prayed for their souls. The Christian church
encouraged this practice to replace the old Pagan tradition of leaving
cakes and wine out for the spirits of the dead. The poor would be given
"soul cakes", which were pastries made for those who promised to
pray for their dead relatives. In some cultures, soul cakes would be given
in exchange for a performance or song as well. Children eventually adopted
this practice, and were given food, ale, or money.
Jack o'lanterns are a Halloween staple today,
with at least two historical roots. The early Pagan Celtic peoples used
hollowed out turnips, gourds, or rutabagas to hold an ember from the
sacred bonfire, so they could light their home fires from the sacred
bonfire. Another tale from folklore gives jack o'lanterns their name. In
Irish myth, a man known as "Stingy Jack", who was a swindler and
a drunk, who asked the devil to have drink with him. Jack convinced the
devil to change himself into a coin so he could pay for the drink, but
Jack put the coin in his pocket next to a silver cross, which trapped the
devil, preventing him from changing himself back. Jack agreed to free the
devil on the condition that the devil would not bother Jack for a year.
Next year, Jack tricks the devil into climbing a tree to fetch a piece of
fruit. While the devil is up the tree, Jack carves a cross into the trunk,
preventing him from climbing back down the tree. In order to get out of
the tree, the devil promised Jack not to seek his soul any more. When Jack
died, he was not allowed into heaven, because of his drunken and swindling
ways, but he was not allowed into hell either, because the devil kept his
word. Taking pity on Jack, the devil gave him an ember to light his way in
the dark, putting it into a hollowed out turnip for Jack to carry on his
lonely, everlasting roamings around the Earth. People from Ireland and
Scotland would make "Jack o'lanterns" during this season to
scare away Stingy Jack and other evil spirits wandering about.
Over the next several centuries,
superstitions about witches and black cats were added to to the folklore
and legends of Halloween. Cats were thought of as evil, especially black
cats, and were killed by the thousands in Medieval times, possibly
contributing to the Black Plague, due to the shortage of the rat's natural
enemy, the cat. During this time, the church created the belief that evil
witches existed.
In the 1500's, Martin Luther created the
Protestant Church, which had no saints, so no All Hallows Day was allowed.
On November 5, 1606, Guy Fawkes was executed for attempting to blow up
England's Parliament. Fawkes, along with an extremist Catholic
organization he belonged to, wanted to remove the Protestant King James
from his throne. The English wasted no time to have a celebration to
replace All Hallows Day, so Guy Fawkes Day was celebrated from then on.
Many traditions of All Hallows Day were practiced, such as bonfires, and
children asking for money, but the reasons why were different. Bonfires
were known as "bone fires" originally, because they were lit in
order to burn an effigy of the Catholic pope, burning his
"bones". Two hundred years later, the effigy of the pope was
replaced by an effigy of Guy Fawkes, prompting children to go door to
door, asking for a "penny for Guy", so they could make their
effigy to burn. In the New World, the colonists celebrated Guy Fawkes Day
for a while, but as the colonies became the United States of America, Guy
Fawkes Day fell by the wayside.
In the United States
Halloween was not a popular observance in
early United States history, as most of the early settlers were
Protestant. At the time, Halloween was considered mostly a Catholic,
Episcopalian, and Pagan holiday, and therefore largely ignored. In the
southern colonies, such as Virginia and Maryland, there were some
Halloween customs observed. The first common events were called "play
parties". These parties got neighborhoods together to celebrate the
harvest, dance, sing, tell stories of the dead, tell fortunes, and have
pageants for children in costume. By the mid 1800's, immigration
increased, and many Irish immigrants, mostly Catholics fleeing the potato
famine, brought many Halloween traditions with them. Jack o'lanterns found
a new face, the pumpkin, which was very plentiful in the New World.
Catholics and Episcopalians sought to preserve their traditions, so
started an effort in the late 1800's to popularize and make their holidays
known to the general population. By campaigning to put these holidays
(Halloween and All Saints Day) on public calendars, magazines and
newspapers started to publicize these holidays, and soon became popular in
the United States more as a community and family holiday, rather than one
of great religious and supernatural importance.
By the mid twentieth century, Halloween
turned into a secular holiday, community centered with parties city-wide,
parades, and great costumes. Halloween is mostly aimed to children, but
young and old enjoy this holiday, with events and parties for both
children and adults. Starting in 1950, the United Nations Children's Fund
(UNICEF) started a campaign for children to collect money at Halloween for
underprivileged children around the world. Halloween is the United States'
second largest commercial holiday, spending approximately $6.9 billion a
year.
In Other Countries
Mexico, Latin America, and Spain observe All
Saints Day and All Souls Day with a three day celebration starting on the
evening of October 31, through November 2. In most areas of Mexico,
November 1 is set aside to honour dead children, and November 2 to honour
those who died as adults. Starting in mid October, shops are filled with
decorations, flowers, toys made like skeletons and other macabre shapes,
sweets, pastries, and candies shaped like bones, coffins, and dead bodies
in preparation for the festivities. Called "Day of the Dead",
the spirits of relatives are supposed to visit their families homes. An
area of the home is cleared away, and an altar is erected decorated with
flowers, photographs of the deceased, candies and pastries shaped like
skulls inscribed with their name, candles, and a selection of the
deceased's favorite foods and drinks. Even after dinner cigarettes and
liquors are provided for the dear departed's after dinner enjoyment.
Incense is burning to help the spirits find their way home.
In preparation for November 2, the graves of
the deceased are cleaned, painted, and decorated for the occasion.
Families gather November 2 for a festive family reunion. Food, drinks, and
tequila are brought along, along with sometimes even a mariachi band. In
some areas, fireworks announce an open-air mass, the most solemn time of
the Day of the Dead. Many customs vary depending on the particular city,
town, or culture, but all over Mexico, Latin American, and Spain, the Day
of the Dead is considered a celebration of their departed family.
Eastern Europe's celebration of All Saints
Day are usually spent by praying most of the day, praying to the Saints
and thanking God. Often, they visit their departed family members at the
cemeteries. Slovakia, Hungary, Lithuania, Slovenia, and Poland observe All
Saints Day as a public holiday, but unlike Mexico and the United States,
this day is a somber day of remembrance and reflection. France, Italy, and
Germany are celebrating Halloween, American style, as does Canada. Ireland
celebrates American style, but a common town bonfire, a remnant of Celtic
days is still lit. England still celebrates Guy Fawkes Day on November 5
with bonfires, burning effigies of Guy Fawkes, and fireworks.
Halloween Traditions
Many traditions are observed for Halloween.
Costumes: Dressing in costumes has its roots
in the Pagan Celtic roots of Samhain. One theory is they dressed as ghouls
to fool evil spirits let loose on October 31, so they would not be
possessed by these spirits. Another theory is they dressed in costume just
for fun, and to make mischief. Yet another theory is that faeries would
dress as beggars asking for food, which would also be the origins of the
"trick or treat" practice. After the Catholic Church replaced
Samhain with All Saints Day, people would dress as dead Saints and devils
for their festivities.
Trick or Treat: This practice might have had
it's start in the legend from Celtic days that faeries would dress as
beggars going from door to door asking for food, and those that did not
show hospitality would be harshly dealt with by these magical faeries. On
All Souls Day, the poor would beg for "Soul Cakes" (sweet
pastries) in exchange for prayers for their departed loved ones,
expediting their passage to heaven. Sometimes costumed groups would sing
and perform in exchange for food, ale, or money. In the United Kingdom,
Guy Fawkes effigies to be burned were prepared by children, going door to
door, asking for a penny for Guy, on Guy Fawkes Day.
Bonfires: These have two origins. The first
is the sacred ritual of extinguishing home fires, and one sacred bonfire
is lit in each town for the end of the New Year. Some say the reason home
fires were extinguished is to scare away evil spirits from homes, while
others say that home fires were supposed to be lit from embers from the
sacred bonfire to start the New Year. The second origin was from Guy
Fawkes Day in the United Kingdom to burn effigies of the Catholic pope,
and later of Guy Fawkes himself.
Apples: A seasonal fruit, and also the symbol
of the Roman goddess Pomona, commonly thought at the time to possess
qualities of knowledge, resurrection, and immortality. Bobbing for apples,
peeling a long apple peel, and other manipulations of the fruit were
thought to foretell the future, on this night of Samhain.
Jack o'lanterns: From the Irish folk tale of
Jack, who tricked the devil, but was not allowed in heaven or in hell. The
devil, taking pity of Jack, gave him an ember to light his way on his
eternal walks on Earth, carried in a hollowed out turnip. Because of their
size and availability, pumpkins were substituted for turnips in the United
States. The Celtics did use a hollowed out rutabaga to carry an ember from
the sacred Samhain bonfire home to light their home fires, but the
significance and relation to the Irish tale of Jack is unknown.
Ghost Stories: Ghost stories probably have
their roots in the original Celtic belief that the spirits of the dead
(both good and bad) wandered the Earth on October 31 (Samhain). Later,
when the church replaced Samhain with All Saints Day and All Souls Day,
the dead were remembered, and spoken about. In the United States today,
they are used to amuse and scare children (and some adults) to get them in
the "spirit" of Halloween. |
