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Origin
Of Halloween
Extract
from "The Origin of Halloween"
on the History
Channel
To commemorate the event, Druids built huge sacred bonfires, where the people
gathered to burn crops and animals as sacrifices to the Celtic deities.
By the 800s, the influence of Christianity had spread into Celtic lands. In the seventh century, Pope Boniface IV designated
November 1 All Saints' Day, a time to honor saints and martyrs. It is widely believed today that the pope was attempting
to replace the Celtic festival of the dead with a related, but church-sanctioned holiday. The celebration was also called
All-hallows or All-hallowmas (from Middle English Alholowmesse meaning All Saints' Day) and the night before it, the night of Samhain, began to be called All-hallows Eve and, eventually, Halloween.
The American tradition of "trick-or-treating" probably dates back to the early All Souls' Day parades in England.
During the festivities, poor citizens would beg for food and families would give them pastries called "soul cakes" in return
for their promise to pray for the family's dead relatives.
The tradition of dressing in costume for Halloween has both European and Celtic roots. Hundreds of years ago, winter was an uncertain and frightening time. Food supplies often ran low and, for the many people afraid of the dark, the short days of winter
were full of constant worry. On Halloween, when it was believed that ghosts came back to the earthly world, people thought
that they would encounter ghosts if they left their homes. To avoid being recognized by these ghosts, people would wear masks
when they left their homes after dark so that the ghosts would mistake them for fellow spirits. On Halloween, to keep ghosts away from their houses, people would place bowls of food outside their homes to appease the ghosts and prevent them from attempting
to enter.
As European immigrants came to America, they brought their varied Halloween customs with them. Because of the rigid
Protestant belief systems that characterized early New England, celebration of Halloween in colonial times was extremely
limited there. It was much more common in Maryland and the southern colonies. As the beliefs and customs of different
European ethnic groups, as well as the American Indians, meshed, a distinctly American version of Halloween began
to emerge.By the middle of the nineteenth century, annual autumn festivities were common, but Halloween was not yet
celebrated everywhere in the country.
In the late 1800s, there was a move in America to mold Halloween into a holiday more about community and neighborly
get-togethers, than about ghosts, pranks, and witchcraft. At the turn of the century, Halloween parties for both children
and adults became the most common way to celebrate the day.
By the 1920s and 1930s, Halloween had become a secular, but community-centered holiday, with parades and town-wide
parties as the featured entertainment. Despite the best efforts of many schools and communities, vandalism began to plague Halloween celebrations in many communities during this time. By the 1950s, town leaders had successfully limited
vandalism and Halloween had evolved into a holiday directed mainly at the young. Between 1920 and 1950,
the centuries-old practice of trick-or-treating was also revived. Trick-or-treating was a relatively inexpensive way for an entire community to share the Halloween celebration. In theory, families could also prevent tricks being played on them
by providing the neighborhood children with small treats. A new American tradition was born, and it has continued to grow.
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