What is halloween

As we all know Halloween is a time of year when we like to dress up in scary costumes and look forward to a night of enjoyment. Halloween is celebrated on the 31st of October every year and is one of the oldest holidays of the world but where does it come from and why?

2000 years ago Halloween originated right here in the British Isles it was the Celts that introduced us to the festival originally known as ‘the Samhain festival. This festival was to mark the end of summer and the beginning of long dark winter nights it was often celebrated as the new year, it was at this time of year that there was a lot of human death this was mainly caused by the cold weather but the Celts believed the deaths were caused by evil spirits. They believed that on the 31st of October the boundaries between the living and the dead dissolved enabling the spirits to return to the earth for just one night when they would damage crops and cause death. To fight this the locals began to build great bonfires which were to scare the evil sprits away and keep the villagers warm during the cold nights, they would also throw and burn crops and slaughtered animals on the fires and wear costumes mimicking the spirits. This is actually where bonfire night originates from too and bonfire night was actually later moved to the 5th of November to the anniversary of the gunpowder plot but was originally from the bonfires of the Celts.
When the Romans invaded they had two of their own festivals that they brought with them these were firstly Ferelia a festival on the 1st of November to remember the dead and secondly a day of honouring a roman godess of fruit and trees Pamona. All three festivals were intertwined and renamed Hallowmas and gradually as time went on became Halloween.During Halloween the Celts would bring home embers of the bonfire in a cut out turnip resembling the Jack O Lantern, Irish folk tales say they were named Jack O Lanterns after a most cunning and devious trickster named Jack who on more than one occasion tricked the devil when it was his time to die by enticing him up a tree then trapping him by carving crosses around the bottom preventing the devil from descending. It is said when Jack died he was refused entry at heaven due to his sins and was also refused entry at hell meaning he had to constantly search for a resting place for eternity and it is said the devil threw an ember into his lantern that would forever burn which is where we get the Jack O Lantern.

The colours of orange and black are associated wth Halloween because orange symbolises the harvest and black symbolises death. Apples play an important part of Halloween and are used for many Halloween superstitions, some of these are very interesting the first one is that by peeling an apple all in one piece and tossing the long piece of peel over your shoulder the peel will land in the initial of your future spouse. Another is that by slicing an apple and eating it by candle light in front of a mirror you will see in your reflection the image of your future spouse. There are many fun things to do at Halloween apple bobbing is popular as is trick or treating a favourite with the children as they get to go round houses collecting candy. Do enjoy the festival and dont get too spooked…