HALLOWEEN is a festival that takes place on October 31. Though it is not a public holiday, it is very dear to those who celebrate it, especially to children and teenagers. This day was originally called All Hallow’s Eve because it fell on the eve of All Saints Day. The name was later shortened to Halloween. According to old believe Halloween is the time, when the veil between the living and the dead is partially lifted, and witches, ghosts and other supernatural beings are about. Now children celebrate Halloween in unusual costumes and masks. It is a festival of merrymaking, superstitious spells, fortunetelling, traditional games and pranks. Halloween is a time for fun.
HISTORY
Few holidays tell us as much of the past as Halloween. Its origins date back to a time, when people believed in devils, witches and ghosts. Many Halloween customs are based on beliefs of the ancient Celts, who lived more than 2,000 years ago in what is now Great Britain, Ireland and northern France.
Every year the Celts celebrated the Druid festival of Samhain, Lord of the Dead and Prince of Darkness. It fell on October 31, the eve of the Druid new year, the date marked the end оf summer, or the time when the sun retreated before the powers of darkness and the reign оf the Lord of Death began. The Sun god took part in the holiday and received thanks for the year’s harvest.
The Celts believed that on this night Samhain allowed the souls of the dead to return to their earthly homes as witches, goblins, black cats, or in other weird forms. To honour the Sun god and to frighten away evil spirits, the Druids built huge bonfires on hilltops. They sat around the fires watching the bright flames and related eerie happenings they had experienced.
It was believed that evil spirits sometimes played tricks on October 31. They could also do all kinds of damage to property. Some people tried to ward off the witches by painting magic signs on their barns. Others tried to frighten them away by nailing a piece of iron, such as a horseshoe, over the door.
The druids tried to appease the powers of darkness by sacrificing animals and possibly even human beings. During the celebration, people sometimes wore costumes made of animal heads and skins. They told fortunes about the coming year by examining the remains of die animals that had been sacrificed.
Many fears and superstitions grew up about this day. An old Scotch superstition was that witches — those who had sold their souls to the devil — left in their beds on Halloween night a stick made by magic to look like themselves. Then they would fly up the chimney and off through the sky on a broomstick, attended by a black cat. On this night all witches gathered to honour their master, the devil.
In Ireland, and some other parts of Great Britain, it was believed, that fairies spirited away young wives, whom they returned dazed and amnesic 366 days later.
When Halloween night fell, people in some places dressed up and tried to resemble the souls of the dead. They hoped that the ghosts would leave peacefully before midnight. They carried food to the edge of town or village and left it for the spirits.
In Wales, they believed that the devil appeared in the shape of a pig, a horse, or a dog. On that night, every person marked a stone and put it in a bonfire. If a person’s stone was missing the next morning, he or she would die within a year.
Much later, when Christianity came to Great Britain and Ireland, the Church wisely let the people keep their old feast. But it gave it a new association when in the 9th century a festival in honour of all saints (All Hallows) was fixed on November 1. In the 11th century November 2 became All Souls’ Day to honour the souls of the dead, particularly those who died during the year.
Christian tradition included the lightning of bonfires and carrying blazing torches all around the fields. In some places masses of flaming straw were flung into the air. When these ceremonies were over, everyone returned home to feast on the new crop of apples and nuts which are the traditional Halloween foods. On that night, people related their experiences with strange noises and spooky shadows and played traditional games.
When millions of Irish people immigrated to the United States in the 1840s, Halloween traditions came with them. Today, Halloween is celebrated with perhaps even more enthusiasm in the New World than was once in the Old World.
CUSTOMS AND TRADITIONS
Halloween customs today follow many of the ancient traditions, though their significance has long since disappeared.
Jack-o -lantern.
A favourite Halloween custom is to make a jack-o’ — lantern. Children take cut the middle of the pumpkin, cut holes for the eyes, nose and mouth in its side and, finally, they put a candle inside the pumpkin to scare their friends. The candle burning inside makes the orange face visible from far away on a dark night — and the pulp makes a delicious pumpkin-pie.
People in England and Ireland once carved out beets, potatoes, and turnips to make jack-o’-lanterns on Halloween. When the Scots and Irish came to the United States, they brought their customs with them. But they began to carve faces on pumpkins because they were more plentiful in autumn than turnips.
According to an Irish legend, jack-o’-lanterns were named for a man called Jack who was notorious for his drunkenness and being stingy. One evening at the local pub, the Devil appeared to take his soul. Clever Jack persuaded the Devil to “have one drink together before we go”. To pay for his drink the Devil turned himself into a sixpence. Jack immediately put it into his wallet. The Devil couldn’t escape from it because it had a catch in the form of a cross. Jack released the Devil only when the latter promised to leave him in peace for another year. Twelve months later, Jack played another practical joke on the Devil, letting him down from a tree only on the promise that he would never pursue him again. Finally, Jack’s body wore out. He could not enter heaven because he was a miser. He could not enter hell either, because he played jokes on the Devil. Jack was in despair. He begged the Devil for a live coal to light his way out of the dark. He put it into a turnip and, as the story goes, is still wandering around the earth with his lantern.
Halloween is sometimes called Beggars’ Night or Trick- or-Treat night. American children celebrate Beggars’ Night as Irish children did in the 17th century. They dress up as ghosts and witches and go into the streets to beg. They go from house to house and say: “Trick or treat!”, meaning “Give me a treat or I’ll play a trick on you”. Some groups of “ghosts” chant Beggars’ Night rhymes:
Trick or treat,
Smell our feet.
We want something
Good to eat.
They all hold bags open to catch the candy, fruit, or coins that the neighbours drop in. As they give each child a treat, the neighbours exclaim over the costumes and try to guess who is under the mask. Children usually get the treat, so they do not often have to play mischievous tricks.
Now most people do not believe in evil spirits. They know that evil spirits do not break steps, spill garbage or pull down fences. If property is damaged, they blame naughty boys and girls. Today, Halloween is still a bad night for the police.
Perhaps the most common trick is soaping house and car windows. Children draw pictures or write on the windows with soap.
In big cities Halloween celebrations often include special decorating contests. Young people are invited to soap shop-windows, and they get prizes for the best soap-drawings.
In old times, practical jokes were even more elaborate. It was quite normal to steal gates, block house doors, and cover chimneys with turf so that smoke could not escape. Blame for the resulting chaos was naturally placed on the “spirits”.
Halloween originated as a celebration connected with evil spirits. That is why its symbols are ghosts, goblins, skeletons and witches flying on broomsticks with black cats. They are popular trick-or-treat costumes, and decorations for greeting cards and windows.
In the weeks before October 31, many people decorate windows of houses and schools with various Halloween symbols and set jack-o’-lanterns in the windows. Black and orange are the traditional Halloween colours.
On Halloween night teenagers enjoy costume dances at their schools, and the more shocking the costume the better! The scariest, funniest and most original costumes always get special prizes.
Certain fortunetelling methods began in Europe hundreds of years ago and became an important part of Halloween. For example, such objects as a coin, a ring, and a thimble were baked into a cake or other food. It was believed that the person who found the coin in the cake would become wealthy. The one who found the ring would marry soon, but the person who got the thimble would never get married.
It was believed, that if a girl went into her room at midnight on the fateful eve, sat down before her mirror, cut an apple into nine slices, and held each slice on the point of her knife before eating it, she might see in the mirror looking over her shoulder the face of her future husband and he would ask for the last slice.
In old times, the results of fortunetelling were accepted in all seriousness, and Halloween was thought to be the most favourable time for divinations concerning marriage, luck, health, and death.
Today, some people use such fortunetelling techniques аs cardreading or palmistry in addition to the traditional Halloween methods. The best fortunes are those told by gipsies in church doorways.
Halloween parties
While some young people are out playing pranks, others are gathered for a party (though the party-goers very possibly think of some pranks on the way home).
At Halloween parties the guests wear every kind of costume. Some people dress up like supernatural creatures, others prefer historical or political figures. You can also meet pirates, princesses, Draculas, Cinderellas, or even Frankenstein’s monsters at a Halloween festival. They all play games, give clever plays and pageants based on the ancient customs, and feast on the ever-popular candied apples, popcorn, candy corn, and peanuts.
Traditional games
At Halloween parties children play traditional games. Many games date back to the harvest festivals of very ancient times. One of the most popular is called bobbing for apples. One child at a time has to get apples from a tub of water without using hands. How? By sinking his or her face into the water and biting the apple! Sometimes, the players try to eat apples which hang by a string from the ceiling. Of course they must not use their hands to catch or hold the apples!
Another game is pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey. One child is blindfolded and spun slowly so that he or she will become dizzy. Then the child must find a paper donkey hanging on the wall and try to pin a tail onto the back.
Fortunetelling games are also very popular. A young girl, for example, pares an apple so carefully that the peeling comes off in a long strip. She throws the peeling on the floor and hopes it will form the initials of the young man she will marry.
Ghost stories
No Halloween party is complete without at least one scary story. It helps to create an air of mystery. Usually one person talks in a low voice while everyone else crowds together on the floor or around a fire. But no one is really frightened. The stories only add to the fun.
Today, merrymaking, partying and trick-or-treating are not the only thing that people enjoy doing on Halloween. It has become a good tradition to collect money to buy food and medicine for needy children around the world.
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