Halloween is that time of year unlike any other. You can stay out late with your friends, dress up in all kinds of costumes, party, and eat candy to your heart’s content! However, not everyone knows about the spooky holiday’s origins.
Halloween’s origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain.The Celts lived 2,000 years ago, mostly in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom and Northern France. They celebrated the new year on November 1st. It marked the end of summer and the harvest, as well as the beginning of the winter.
Winter was associated with human death, and the Celts believed that the night before the new year the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On October 31–when we celebrate Halloween today–they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. This is likely why Halloween is heavily associated with ghosts and ghouls.
The Celts had all sorts of traditions to commemorate the event. They held a ritual where they would make huge sacred bonfires to burn crops and animals in order to use them as sacrifices. They would even tell each other’s fortunes. The tradition of Halloween costumes also originates from the Celtic festival. People would ward off or hide from spirits by wearing animal skins and masks–hence Halloween costumes were born! Even receiving candy on Halloween came from the Samahin festival. Instead of going Trick-or-Treating, children and poor people would go “souling”. This means that they would go to wealthier homes and offer prayers for dead loved ones in exchange for food, coins, and “soul cakes,” intricate delicacies that commemorate the dead.
The holiday gained popularity in the United States when large numbers of Irish immigrants moved over in the 19th century. Along with their vibrant culture and hard work, the newcomers also brought this spooky tradition to the United States, which is what helped popularize the celebration of Halloween nationally.
As you can see, there are a lot of parallels between the old traditions and modern day Halloween traditions. You can see what aspects of the old traditions are still present in the modern day celebration.
Now lets hear from the Olympia Titans, and see what they’re doing for Halloween this year!
“I’m probably going to go Trick-or-Treating with my friends”, junior Fynn Mullin says. Mullin’s Halloween costume is going to be Elliot, who is a character from a popular video game on Roblox called Work at a Pizza Place. Going Trick-or-Treating on Halloween is an absolute must. Spending time with friends is also a great way to celebrate as well. Everything is more fun with a close knit group of friends! “My birthday is two days before Halloween, so I’ll probably go to Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights”, senior Joshel Powell states. She says that for her Halloween costume, she wants to be either Raven or Starfire from the older TV show version of the Teen Titans. The fact that Powell is celebrating her birthday as well as Halloween must be very fun! If you are brave, and enjoy being frightened, Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights is the place to go. It is a thrilling and exciting way to celebrate the holiday.
Both Mullin and Powell’s costumes are very creative! It’s great to be able to dress up as your favorite character. Although costumes are a fun way to celebrate Halloween, there are a myriad of customs and traditions that can make this holiday truly special for you. Now that you know all about Halloween’s origins, I hope that you have a newfound appreciation for the holiday! Halloween has a very interesting history, and we still participate in a lot of the same activities and traditions that we did in the past. All of these old customs are very unique, and we continue to keep the spirit of Halloween alive through our modern traditions. Activities like carving pumpkins, going to creepy haunted houses, and corn mazes are all things we carried over to today. No matter what you decide to do this spooky season, make sure to remember the history that made it happen. There are so many festivities to look forward to for Halloween this year!
