Have you ever wondered why everyone dresses up for Halloween or where it came from or why everyone tries to make their pumpkin’s face more terrifying than another? Maybe even why people put more effort in decorating for Halloween than for Christmas? Why parents let their little kids run around, asking for candy from total strangers, with them having absolutely no problem with them giving it to them?

            Truth is, in many cultures Halloween is some sort of religious or cultural celebration. The Romans worshiped and paid tribute to many of their gods on October thirty-first, especially the goddess of fruit trees, also known as Pomona. The Druids, who resided Britain, copied this celebration, except they spread it out into two days. The Druids also honored Samhain, the lord of the dead, on November first. Since they also worshiped Pomona, they made the celebration very extensive. Druids believed that Samhain put all sorts of ghosts, witches, fairies, elves and other creatures that we keep on out front yard like gnomes, onto earth for that one night, the night before he was worshiped. They believed that all of the spirits occupied animal bodies, especially black cats and bats, as a punishment for what they did in their time on Earth. The Druids were afraid of what the animals were capable of, so the feast was also a tribute to the lord of the dead, asking him to protect them from the evil that temporarily occupied the earth. These are the reasons why witches and black cats are such popular symbols of the Halloween holiday.

Now, here comes one of the fun parts of the season- jack-o-lanterns. The jack-o-lantern originated in Ireland. The Irish believed that it represented a “damned soul”. The myth went that when a man named Jack passed he couldn’t enter either heaven or hell, because of his life’s unforgiven mishaps and the tricks he had played on the devil. Since he wasn’t accepted to either of the realms, he was damned to wander the earth for all eternity. It’s ironic how the modern society turned the jack-o-lantern into something fun and innocent. Here’s another interesting tidbit- the origins of the saying “trick or treat”. When people came into hard times, they would go and ask or beg people for some food and if their requests were ignored or denied the Irishmen would say, “Treat me, or I’ll trick you.” If their favor was answered then the people who gave them the treat would supposedly have good luck for the rest of the year. Too bad this tradition doesn’t exist anymore.  

            The most recent change began roughly six hundred years ago, about the same time when the Romans converted to Christianity, they made the crossover to the religion slightly easier by continuing with some of the pagan feasts and celebrations.  Instead of being considered pagan holidays they would no be considered Christian. They changed the celebrations of October thirty-first and November first into something totally opposite. Instead of worshiping the gods, they would honor their deaths on November first-“All Saints Day” and hold the mass on October thirty-first; which was named “All Hollows Eve”. This night didn’t end up as holy as the church had hoped and the pagans continued to celebrate their traditions.

            Now Halloween is simply something fun. It still holds many of the ancient traditions. The children run around asking for a form of candy or treat, screaming “trick or treat”. The carved pumpkins, with the terrifying, lit up faces. And most of all the fear of the ghosts, ghouls, witches and all the other monsters connected with Halloween is connected with traditional Druid beliefs. So, what is Halloween really? Is it simply some fun holiday for kids to go out, dress up and get candy, and the one night a year it’s okay for adults to go out looking like foolish. Or is it really something more? It’s all for you to decide. Fun or fact? Or is it both?