Halloween History & Facts

It’s trick or treat time! It’s the Halloween phrase. Have you ever wondered why small ghosts and goblins say that when they walk from house to house looking for candy?

According to History.com, Halloween may be traced back to the pre-Christian Celtic holiday of Samhain, which took place on October 31st. On Samhain, the ancient Celts thought the dead returned to earth, and they would commemorate the occasion with bonfires and other rituals. People dressed up in costumes during some events, often picking ghosts and devils to play the parts.

The early Christian church despised the pagan festival and sought to replace it with its own, declaring Nov. 1 as All Hallows Day or All Saints Day, a day to commemorate Catholic saints. However, the day was commemorated in the same fashion, with bonfires and masquerades. People would also pay visits to their neighbors in exchange for “treats” in exchange for praying for their loved ones’ souls. In exchange, the guests would frequently tell a joke or perform a “trick.”

Halloween was not observed by the early colonists, many of whom were religious Puritans. The practice was popularized by Irish immigrants who arrived in America in the 1840s, and it quickly expanded across the United States. Fireworks, ghost stories, and general mayhem were all part of the early celebrations. The Irish also imported the tradition of Jack O’ Lanterns, which are carved pumpkins (although in Europe they used turnips) that are believed to ward off evil spirits.

The American holiday grew entwined with the English custom of “guising,” in which the impoverished would go door-to-door asking for money, and before long, young people – and pranksters – were going door-to-door looking for treats.

The phrase “trick or treat” was first used in 1934, when a Portland, Oregon newspaper published a story about local kids pulling several Halloween pranks. The slogan eventually made its way into greeting cards, and by the 1940s, it was widely used during the Christmas season.

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We’re all familiar with the Halloween customs. It’s that time of year again, when we watch frightening movies, dress up in our most outrageous costumes, and hand out candy to our friends and neighbors. Despite the fact that we’ve all engaged in these Halloween activities numerous times, there’s a high possibility you don’t know much about Halloween’s history or how these customs came to be. So, we’ve got all of the answers to your Halloween-related inquiries!

You might be shocked to hear that Halloween has been celebrated for thousands of years, and that traditions like trick-or-treating have surprising origins. Even modern-day facts like world records for pumpkin carving and how much people spend on Halloween decorations can amuse you and give you a fresh appreciation for these holidays. These Halloween facts will add even more excitement to your spooky festivities, whether you’re arranging a game of trivia for your Halloween party or simply getting ready for the event yourself. Make a fun quiz out of this list with your family and friends, and give a point for each accurate answer. The winner gets first dibs on the chocolates!

1. Halloween has been celebrated for almost 2,000 years.

The first Halloween celebrations, according to History.com, may be dated back to the ancient Celts. They resided in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom, and northern France, and on October 31st, they had a feast called Samhain. It was the day before their new year, the beginning of winter, and the day when the dead were thought to return to Earth.

2. Trick or treating arose from a custom known as “souling.”

Poor youngsters used to go door-to-door begging for food and money during the Celtic celebration of Samhain. According to Business Insider, children would promise to pray for the souls of their recently deceased loved ones in exchange for their generosity, which is how the action was given the moniker “souling.”

3. Immigrants from the 19th century popularized Halloween in the United States.

Despite the fact that colonial New Englanders were aware of Halloween, according to History.com, celebrations were limited due to their strong Protestant beliefs. The celebration didn’t become popular in America until the second part of the nineteenth century, when a wave of Irish and other European immigrants arrived.

4. Irish folk stories about “Stingy Jack” inspired the creation of Jack-o’-lanterns.

After striking a deal with the devil, Stingy Jack was destined to wander the world at night for the rest of his life. He ignited a coal in a hollowed out turnip to lead his way, urging Irish and Scottish folk to do the same. However, when they eventually emigrated to America, they discovered that the native pumpkins had a better surface for carving.

5. “Chicken feed” was the original name for candy corn.

Candy corns initially debuted on the market in the 1880s, according to History.com, when farmers made up over half of the American workforce. As a result, candies were frequently molded like agricultural shapes, such as chicken feed, which we now refer to as corn. Corn’s perception changed after World War I, when it was recognized as a human meal.

6. The city of Keene, New Hampshire, holds the record for the most illuminated jack-o-lanterns.

The City of Keene is the reigning champion in jack-o-lantern displays, having set a Guinness World Record by lighting 30,581 pumpkins in 2013. The city was the first to set a record in this category, and they’ve since broken it eight times, demonstrating their commitment to winning.

7. Halloween games were once popular among women as a way to discover more about their prospective husbands.

Although Valentine’s Day is now commonly recognized as the romantic holiday, Halloween was formerly associated with courtship. According to the New York Times, Halloween festivities in the early twentieth century often preyed on women’s desire for love. One game involved slicing an apple skin and tossing it over her shoulder, with the landing peel supposedly indicating her future suitor’s first initial.

8. Candy was not exclusively given out to trick or treaters until the 1970s.

According to History.com, trick or treating became popular in the United States in the 1930s, when it was normal to give out everything from homemade cookies to nuts, toys, and cash. In the 1950s, candy producers began marketing pre-packaged Halloween products, and 20 years later, it had become the most popular treat for kids.

9. Candy has cost the United States over $3 billion in recent years.

Halloween spending in the United States set a new high in 2017, with $9.1 billion spent on the event. According to a poll conducted by the National Retail Federation, 95% of respondents planned to buy candy that year, resulting in a $2.7 billion overall spend on these festive treats.

10. In Halloween, Michael Myers’ mask is a well-known celebrity’s face.

Although the iconic costume from this 1978 film is menacing, its origin is actually very hilarious. The film’s production designer Tommy Lee Wallace discovered a mask of William Shatner as Captain Kirk in Star Trek and was entirely inspired, according to the New York Times. To get the style we’re all familiar with now, the crew spray-painted it white.

11. Beggars’ Night is a unique event in Des Moines.

In most areas, trick or treaters merely need to show up dressed in character to receive their Halloween candy, but not in Des Moines. According to the Des Moines Register, children must perform a trick or tell a joke as part of their Beggars’ Night tradition in order to receive their share of candy.

12. The fastest time for carving a pumpkin is 16.47 seconds.

For most people, carving pumpkins is a relaxing pastime, but in 2013, competitive carver Stephen Clarke earned a Guinness World Record by cutting his masterpiece in just 17 seconds. The pumpkin had to have a nose, eyes, mouth, and ears in order to be considered.

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There is so much to anticipate during this frightfully enjoyable October holiday, from brainstorming spooky costumes to trying out pumpkin carving ideas with our children, consuming unfathomable amounts of Halloween sweets, candy, and chocolate, and indulging in everything pumpkin-spice-flavored.

Regardless of your age or how many times you’ve gone around the block, the holiday never gets old. The smallest children get to dress up and go trick-or-treating, while parents can indulge in a boozy Halloween cocktail.

However, amid the Halloween party activities and sugar rushes, have you ever wondered about Halloween’s origins and history?

We’re sharing the history and significance of Halloween in the hope that it will enhance your festivities. After all, this traditional festival stretches all the way back many, many years. It is far older than you may believe! And what about the witches and wizards with whom you’ve been acquainted? They, too, are a part of the story. This is the true story of how Halloween came to be.

You’re probably already aware that Halloween occurs on the final day of October, but here’s something you may not be aware of: The term itself literally translates as “holy evening,” and was previously referred to as All Hallows’ Eve by early European celebrants. Both All Hallows’ Eve (October 31) and All Saints’ Day (November 1) honor saints (“hallows” = saints). The word was later abbreviated to “Halloween,” which we still know and enjoy.

However, the pagan and Christian occasions were not necessarily consecutive. Until the seventh century CE, All Hallows’ Eve was observed on May 13. Perhaps in an attempt to balance the occasion with a religious festival, Pope Boniface IV eventually called for the commemoration to be moved to its current November 1 date.

What Is the Purpose of Halloween on October 31?

Halloween occurs on October 31 due to the ancient Gaelic holiday of Samhain, which is considered the earliest known origin of Halloween. It was a vital time of year when the seasons changed, but more importantly, watchers believed the veil between this world and the next grew particularly thin at this time, allowing them to communicate with the dead. This belief is mirrored by a number of other cultures; a similar concept is cited in connection with the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, which comes in October and involves praying for the deceased. This is also the origin of Halloween’s “haunted” overtones.

Halloween Activities Throughout History

Samhain, the early pagan celebration, comprised numerous ritualistic procedures to establish contact with spirits, as the Celts were polytheistic. While little is known about these rituals, many believe the Celts wore costumes (granted, they were likely as rudimentary as animal hides) to ward off ghosts, ate special feasts, and fashioned lanterns out of hollowed-out gourds (thus, the origin of jack-o’-lanterns). Over antiquity, when Christianity took over and the holiday’s pagan overtones were diminished, the holiday’s fundamental traditions remained a part of mainstream culture year after year; they merely developed and modernized.

Historically, magical rites evolved into more lighthearted amusement and games. For instance, the more heinous concept of interacting with the dead was abandoned in favor of the more whimsical concept of foretelling the future. Bobbing for apples, for example, became popular on All Hallows’ Eve as a fortune-telling game: Apples were chosen to represent all of a woman’s suitors, and the guy—er, apple—she ended up biting into was reputedly her future husband. Indeed, Halloween was a significant (though somewhat superstitious) matchmaking opportunity for young ladies in the nineteenth century.

Another common All Hallows’ Eve tradition was mirror-gazing in the hope of seeing a glimpse of their future. Additionally, there are accounts of fortune cookie-style rewards being distributed in previous periods. Individuals penned messages on scraps of paper with milk, which were then folded and placed inside walnut shells. The shells would be roasted over an open flame, causing the milk to brown just enough for the receiver to see the message appear mystically on the paper.

Halloween Costumes and Trick-or-Treating History

Numerous people were claimed to dress up as saints and go door to door reciting hymns or poetry. Additionally, children would go door to door requesting “soul cakes,” a dessert resembling biscuits. Technical note: Soul cakes started on November 2 as part of the All Souls’ Day holiday (yeah, a third holiday! ), but subsequently got associated with Halloween night as the concept expanded into trick-or-treating. In the early to mid-1900s, the candy-grabbing concept became popular in the United States, when families would feed delicacies to youngsters in the expectation that they would be immune to Christmas pranks.

Costumes, likewise, evolved. While they began as sincere honors to saints, that tradition almost certainly fell out of favor… until young Scottish and Irish pranksters revived the practice of dressing up in frightening attire in order to startle unsuspecting neighbors. And just like that, Halloween costumes became terrifying, eerie, humorous, and inventive all at the same time, courtesy of these local hooligans.

How Halloween Is Now Celebrated

While Halloween is clearly still a popular festival in America today, it nearly did not make over across the Atlantic. Puritans were opposed to the holiday’s pagan origins and hence abstained from celebrations. However, as Irish and Scottish immigrants began to come in greater numbers in America, the holiday re-entered the zeitgeist. The very first Halloween celebrations in colonial America included big public gatherings to welcome the approaching harvest, tell ghost stories, sing, and dance.

By the early twentieth century, Halloween was believed to be celebrated by the majority of (candy-loving, costume-wearing) individuals across North America. And once again, on October 31, we’ll all be eating our favorite candy and admiring our neighbors’ decorations—and the only terrifying spirits we’ll be discussing are our friends’ witch and ghost outfits.

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