What's Halloween?

Question

Celebrations

Sorry I mistakenly put the question under Hardeware option. Forgive me please.

Answer 1

I know what Halloween is but anyway I found this website for you. There's lots of information in it!

Answer 2

Halloween's origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in).

The Celts, who lived 2,000 years ago in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom, and northern France, celebrated their new year on November 1. This day marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31, they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. In addition to causing trouble and damaging crops, Celts thought that the presence of the otherworldly spirits made it easier for the Druids, or Celtic priests, to make predictions about the future. For a people entirely dependent on the volatile natural world, these prophecies were an important source of comfort and direction during the long, dark winter.

To commemorate the event, Druids built huge sacred bonfires, where the people gathered to burn crops and animals as sacrifices to the Celtic deities.

During the celebration, the Celts wore costumes, typically consisting of animal heads and skins, and attempted to tell each other's fortunes. When the celebration was over, they re-lit their hearth fires, which they had extinguished earlier that evening, from the sacred bonfire to help protect them during the coming winter.

By A.D. 43, Romans had conquered the majority of Celtic territory. In the course of the four hundred years that they ruled the Celtic lands, two festivals of Roman origin were combined with the traditional Celtic celebration of Samhain.

The first was Feralia, a day in late October when the Romans traditionally commemorated the passing of the dead. The second was a day to honor Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit and trees. The symbol of Pomona is the apple and the incorporation of this celebration into Samhain probably explains the tradition of "bobbing" for apples that is practiced today on Halloween.

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. Even later, in A.D. 1000, the church would make November 2 All Souls' Day, a day to honor the dead. It was celebrated similarly to Samhain, with big bonfires, parades, and dressing up in costumes as saints, angels, and devils. Together, the three celebrations, the eve of All Saints', All Saints', and All Souls', were called Hallowmas.

Answer 3

I know why Pumpkins are Tradition. It was originally started when the irish, emigrated to America, at the beginning of the 1800's. This was just after the potato Famine. What the irish used to do were Carve out Turnips, To remember the Relatives that had died on the Voyage over to America. But it wasn't all that easy to find Turnips in America so it quickly changed to Pumpkins

Answer 4

An import from America which is now over here, we did not have them in this country for years, folk lore to prevent whitches form the days of the whitch hunts in America

Answer 5

All Hallows Eve, is the night of October 31 st when the spirit and nor- mal world allegedly become one.

Answer 6

it was originally a tradition to lead up to all saints day (november 1st) and that days to remember all the dead, so halloween, the night before all saints day (october the 31st) is supposed to be a night where all the dead come back to haunt you. some kids centuries ago thought it would be funny to go to peoples houses and dress up and pretend to be ghosts and goblins and everything to scare their neighbors, and it worked, so everyone started doing it. i don't know how it originated to people giving kids candy tho...

Answer 7

Hallowe'en is an excuse for all the local kids that throw rocks at your car to put masks on and expect you to give them money.

Answer 8

Halloween is where you go trick or treating and get some candy that`s halloween

Answer 9

Another chance for profiteers to make a bundle out of fools!

Answer 10

Halloween=Hardware =]