History of Halloween

History of HalloweenBy: Emily Sheridan

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History Channel Video

•http://www.history.com/video.do?name=ha lloween

Celtic Festival of Samhain

•Considered October 31st as their New Year’s Eve

•Boundaries between the living and the dead were blurred, hence ghostsreturned to Earth on this night

•Celts believed the presence of these spirits help Druids to cast fortunes

•Druids sacrificed crops and animals into sacred bonfires

•Celts were costumes and told each other’s fortunes

•After the celebration, hearth fires were lit from the sacred bonfire to protectthe people during the winter

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Romans Conquer the Celts

•By 43 AD, most Celtic territory was controlled bythe Romans

•Over the course of four hundred years, twoRoman festivals were combined with Samhain:Feralia and a day to honor the goddess Pomona

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Feralia

•Roman holiday at theend of October whichcommemorates thepassing of the dead

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The Goddess Pomona

•Pomona was theRoman goddess offruit and trees

•Her symbol is theapple

•Presumably, “bobbingfor apples” is tracedby to this holiday

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Influence of the Catholic Church

•In the seventh century, Pope Boniface IVdesignated November 1st All Saints’ Day

•Today, it is speculated the Pope wanted toreplace a pagan holiday with a more“church appropriate holiday

•In 1000 AD the Church would designatedNovember 2nd as All Souls’ Day

•Together, the three holidays are known as“Hallowmas”

Halloween Comes to America

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Halloween in the Colonies

•The Puritan’s strict belief system restricted thecelebration of Halloween

•Halloween was more commonly celebrated inMaryland and many of the southern colonies

•The first celebrations were known as “playparties”

•Large public events were held to celebrate theharvest

•Colonial Halloween festivals featured ghoststories and mischief making

Halloween in 19th Century

•Americans began todress up in costumesand go house tohouse looking for foodor money

•Young girls woulddivine the name oftheir future husbands

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Twentieth Century

•Parties for adults and childrenwere more common

•Parents encouragedcommunity leaders to take“grotesque” practices out ofHalloween; thus it became amore secular holiday

•“Trick or treating” practicesrevived

•Parties were moved fromcommunity centers to privatehomes

•Today, Americans spendapproximate $6.9 billion dollarsannually

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Today’s Traditions

•“Trick or treating” dates back to the AllSouls’ Day Parades in England

•Poor would beg for food, such as “soulcakes”

•The tradition of wearing a costume datesback to Celtic and European traditions

Halloween Around the World

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El Dia De Los Muertos

•This specific celebration is observed inMexico, Latin America, and Spain

•October 31st begins a three daycelebration to honor the dead

•Most families construct an altar inmemorial of their dead loved ones

•On November 2nd, families picnic at thegravesite

Guy Fawkes Day

•In England, effigies are burned in bonfiresand fireworks are set off

•After the Protestant Reformation manyProtestants stopped celebrating All Saints’Day

•Guy Fawkes Day commemorates theexecution of the notorious traitor

•It is recorded the Pilgrims celebrated thisholiday at the first settlement in Plymouth

Halloween Myths and Legends

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Superstitions

•The practice of avoiding black cats datesback to the Middle Ages when it wasbelieved that witches could turn into cats

•Walking around a ladder rather than underit, dates back to the ancient Egyptianbelief that triangles are sacred

•In Scotland and Ireland, girls would try topredict the identity of their future husbands

Presentation Provided by:

"History of Halloween." History Channel. 15Oct. 2008. History Channel. 15 Oct. 2008<http://www.history.com/minisites/halloween/>.