Steel Notes Magazine | 7
Origin of Halloween — Alexxis Steele
THE ORIGIN OF HALLOWEEN
BY HISTORIAN NICHOLAS ROGERS ( REPRINT ACCORDING TO WIKI )
Halloween or Hallowe ’ en is a contraction of “ All Hallows ’ Evening ”), also known as Allhalloween , All Hallows ’ Eve , or All Saints ’ Eve , is a yearly celebration observed in a number of countries on 31 October , the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Hallows ’ Day . It initiates the triduum of Allhallowtide , the time in the liturgical year dedicated to remembering the dead , including saints ( hallows ), martyrs , and all the faithful departed believers . Within Allhallowtide , the traditional focus of All Hallows ’ Eve revolves around the theme of using “ humor and ridicule to confront the power of death .”
According to many scholars , All Hallows ’ Eve is a Christianized feast initially influenced by Celtic harvest festivals , with possible pagan roots , particularly the Gaelic Samhain . Other scholars maintain that it originated independently of Samhain and has solely Christian roots .
Typical festive Halloween activities include trick-or-treating ( or the related “ guising ”), attending costume parties , decorating , carving pumpkins into jack-o ’ -lanterns , lighting bonfires , apple bobbing , visiting haunted house attractions , playing pranks , telling scary stories , and watching horror films . In many parts of the world , the Christian religious observances of All Hallows ’ Eve , including attending church services and lighting candles on the graves of the dead , remain popular , although in other locations , these solemn customs are less pronounced in favour of a more commercialized and secularized celebration . Because many Western Christian denominations encourage , although no longer require , abstinence from meat on All Hallows ’ Eve , the tradition of eating certain vegetarian foods for this vigil day developed , including the consumption of apples , colcannon , cider , potato pancakes , and soul cakes .
1 Etymology 2 History 2.1 Gaelic and Welsh influence 2.2 Christian influence 2.3 Spread to North America 3 Symbols 4 Trick-or-treating and guising 4.1 Costumes
Contents
5 Games and other activities
6 Haunted attractions 7 Food 8 Religious observances 8.1 Perspectives 8.1.1 Christianity 8.1.2 Other religions 9 Around the world
4.2 UNICEF
Steel Notes Magazine | 7