Halloween is ???

Halloween goes back 2000 years, many people believe that Halloween comes, from the Celtic festival of Samhain.

The Celtic lived in an area that is now Ireland, the Untied Kingdom and Northern France celebrated their new year on the 1st of November this day marked the end of summer and the harvest also the beginning of dark cold winter.

Celt believed that on the night before the new year, the walls between the world of the living and the dead became weak, on the night of October the 31st they celebrated Samhain, when they believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to the earth and caused trouble and mayhem. The Celt also believed this was the right time for priests to make there predictions about the future, for people who were dependant on the natural world growing crops and raising cattle. During the celebrations they would wear costumes, and light hearth fires for protection from the coming winter.

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Why do we dress up on Halloween.

Remembering the Celt and their beliefs wearing a costumes would keep them safe from visiting sprites that have crossed over to wander around in the land of the living, they thought that by disguising themselves as one of them to fool the spirits, and no bad luck would come to them.

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Why do we carve pumpkins on Halloween.

In Ireland one of the most popular traditions was to carry a Jack O lantern, the lantern its self was made by scooping out the insides of a turnip to simulate good crop for the harvest, then carving the shell to resemble what looks like a human face, now through time we use pumpkin instead, a lighted candle was then placed in side the turnip. The lantern was used to ward of evil spirits that might be hanging on to a person, on the night of Halloween they would carry this lantern every were they went.

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Why do we go trick or treating.

The practice of dressing up in costumes and begging door to door for treats on holidays, dates back to the middle ages. Trick or treating resembles the late medieval practice of souling, were poor folk would go door to door on Halloween, receiving food in return for prayers for the dead on all souls day. The tricking would be not to pray for the souls of the dead if a treat was not received. Trick or treating started in Ireland and Britain. In the United States trick or treating is now one of their traditions of Halloween.

What ever you do on Halloween make it safe and fun remember they maybe watching you!