Straddling
the line between fall and winter, plenty and paucity, life and death, Halloween
is a time of celebration and superstition. It is thought to have originated
with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires
and wear costumes to ward off roaming ghosts. In the eighth century, Pope
Gregory III designated November 1 as a time to honor all saints and martyrs;
the holiday, All Saints’ Day, incorporated some of the traditions of Samhain.
The evening before was known as All Hallows’ Eve and later Halloween. Over
time, Halloween evolved into a secular, community-based event characterized by
child-friendly activities such as trick-or-treating. In a number of countries
around the world, as the days grow shorter and the nights get colder, people
continue to usher in the winter season with gatherings, costumes and sweet
treats.
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.
