The History of Halloween

What we now know as Halloween has a long and complicated history. It doesn’t come from just one source. It’s a blending of religious rites, superstitions, customs and traditions and has become what we know today as a night of costumes, parties, candy and spooky stories. By combining elements from the Celtic druids from 2000 years ago and the Roman Catholic Church, we have what it is recognized as Halloween.

The word Halloween itself traces back to “All Hollows Eve”, the night before the Catholic tradition of “All Hallows Day”, also known as “All Saints Day”. November 1 was set aside to honor the saints of the church. Due to it being the same date as the ancient Celtic new year celebration, Samhain, elements of both have blended together over the years.

There are many different conflicting stories about the Celtic celebrations at this time, with some claiming human sacrifice had it’s part. However, more recently it is thought to have been a fire lighting ceremony, symbolic of the old year ending, and the new year starting. The families would put out all the fires in their homes and go to a common light source – a bonfire tended by the druids. They would take home some of the fire to relight their own hearths.

Trick or treating also has had some varied opinions on its origins. Some stories indicate that people would dress up as scary beings and wander the streets in an attempt to avoid being possessed by the spirits of the dead who were wandering on All Hallows Eve. Others connect it to the practice of “souling” on November 2, or “All Souls Day”, where beggars would wander and beg for soul cakes in exchange for praying for those who gave.

The trick part came into play in the 1800’s and 1900’s with something called “mischief nights”. Immigrants from Scotland and Ireland would play pranks on Halloween night. By the 1920’s, people started to organize the kids into a “trick or treat” night, to help avoid the tricks by taking them door-to-door to collect treats.

The jack-o-lantern has had some bad press over the years, with some people believing a story that the druids used candles made of human fat, put in carved pumpkins to light their human sacrifices (after going door to door, looking for someone to sacrifice). Not only has research shown that the druids did not perform human sacrifices, they couldn’t have used pumpkins as they are a North American plant.

There is also an 18th century legend about a man named Jack, who tricked the devil into climbing into a tree and trapping him there. After Jack died, he was given a light in a gourd to see by while wandering - neither in heaven nor hell. It was quite common to carve out things like turnips or beets to be used as lanterns. This was adapted to the jack-o-lantern made with pumpkins popular in North America.

It is easy to see that Halloween has a varied and often confusing, history. There are many sources and legends that have blurred together over the years. While no one may know the complete history, it is fun to see where some of the traditions may have come from in the past.

References: Rupert, Dennis. "The History of Halloween- It's Probably Not What You Think." The History of Halloween. 29 Dec 2006. 21 Jul 2007 http://www.new-life.net/halowen1.htm

Wilson, Jerry. "History and Customs of Halloween." History and Customs of Halloween. 2002. 21 Jul 2007 http://wilstar.com/holidays/hallown.htm