I guess most of you are already thinking how to dress for this year’s Halloween party, already bough a pumpkin and practicing carving scary faces. But do you think that we all know everything about Halloween and how it all started? I bet 80% of people or even more think it is an old American tradition- you are wrong!
2,000 years ago on the territory what is now Ireland, United Kingdom and northern France the Celts would celebrate their new year 1 October- Samhain. Samhain was a day that symbolised the end of summer / harvest and start of winter. Celts believed that nature was ‘dieing’ because ghosts of the dead returned on earth the day before the new year, damaging crops and causing trouble. As a result Samhain was associated with death. During celebrations Celts would wear costumes made of animal heads and skins, make huge bonfires and burn crops, Druids would predict the future on this day.
After Roman Empire conquered most of Celtic territory, over time, the Samhain evolved in to 2 separate festivals: Feralia and a day to honour Pomona. Feralia was the day when ghost of dead would pass through earth in a late October. Pomona was the Roman goddess of the fruit and trees; the main symbol of Pomona was an apple. Are you still questioning why we play with apples and cook them for the Halloween?
Over centuries Christianity started to dominate Europe. Pope Boniface IV established All Marthyrs Day on May 13 in the Western Church. Later, Pope Gregory III included all saints as well as martyrs in to the celebration and moved the celebration from May 13 to November 1. With the time, the All Marthyrs Day would evolve in to All Souls’ Day celebrated 2nd November, what would honour the dead. All Souls’ Day would be celebrated the same way as Samhain and also called All-Hallows / All- Hallomas (what from translation from Middle English means All Saints’ Day).
It is fascinating, but though we think that American culture brought to us Halloween- it was brought to America by English colonies while migrating. In America, Halloween is since celebrated as a community festival, rather it being about ghost, death and witchcraft. It is unfortunate that some people take it to extreme and use violence on this day.