Halloween Historical Background
The tradition of Halloween celebrations return every October 31st. Nowadays those who enjoy the celebrations the most are the children. Halloween is an opportunity to dress up in fancy dress and call on the neighbors trick or treating. Some families go out of their way to decorate their house and front yard in a ghostly and creepie Halloween theme.
Halloween is an ancient Celtic festival, and has lasted down the ages most strongly in the Celtic communities in Ireland, Scotland and Wales. From those countries, with immigration, Halloween has spread around the world, especially to America. In recent times, the spread of popular American culture has generated fresh interest in Halloween to new places, such as Asia and Western Europe.
The early Celtic celebrations were pagan festivals about the changing seasons as winter approached. By tradition it was a time when people could communicate with the dead, and magic was about in the land. The early Christian church, as with many pagan cultures, absorbed these festivities into the Christian calendar. All Saints Day, also known as All Hallows Day, was designated on November 1st. All Hallows Evening, the night of October 31st, became known as Hallow E’en, later just Halloween, and the time for the customary celebrations.
Halloween was celebrated in each village, and there was usually a large fire to keep warm and entertaining games. The apple harvest was going on, and games such as trying to eat an apple on a string or floating in a tub of water with no hands, were favorites. Children would go from house to house to gather fruit, nuts and other foodstuffs for the festivities, which was the origin of the “treating” visits of today. Notably in Scotland, the children would sing or put on a performance in return for the treats they were handed. Nowadays the treats handed out are usually candies and sweets, and perhaps some coins.
Halloween “tricks” were originally secret and often witty pranks played on some adults by children, with responsibility assigned to the mischievous spirits that were said to be abroad on Halloween. This trickery was especially common in Ireland. At some stage long lost in time, trick or treating became a stand over tactic: give a treat or become the victim of a trick. This unsociable development led to such customs as throwing eggs at houses and soaping windows, and what we would now see as vandalism. Today such activities at Halloween are uncommon.
Halloween parties are often held amidst decorations to a haunted house theme. Children’s eyes light up when Halloween menu items include the likes of tomato soup changed to vampire soup, spaghetti served up as cemetery worms, and witches fingers made of breadsticks tipped with sliced almonds. Halloween pumpkins are carved into jack-o-lanterns. Pumpkin dishes such as pumpkin pie are popular at Halloween.
For the last few years, the magic and wizards themes of the popular Harry Potter books have added fresh ideas to Halloween fancy dress and decorations for children’s Halloween parties.
Halloween costume parties have also become popular events for adults as well in recent years. They are a great excuse to dress up and have fun. It seems the trend today is for any costume to be acceptable, not necessarily just the traditional witches, vampires and ghosts of Halloween. Costume design inspirations are now drawn from many sources, such as recent movies and television series. Some costumes are just witty, such as the seasonally appropriate theme of a “leaf blower”, consisting just of a leaf suspended from the brim of a cap where it can be blown.
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