by Umique Artison

Created on: October 31, 2008

The Origin of Halloween

Halloween or All Hallows Eve, as called by the Celtics, was the eve of All Hallows Day. Well, just who were the Celts? An understanding of this culture will create a better understanding of why and how this particular holiday originated. The Celts culture has been branded upon many nations either through war, art, or trade. They were a tribe of people who were believed to have lived about 2000 years ago in central Europe. They later migrated into parts of Ireland, Britain, Scotland, and many other nations.

There are many opinions as to the original home land of the Celts. Because this culture dates back to as early as 400 B.C, it has become harder and harder to distinguish its true origination. What we do know for certain is that the Celts took great pride in Kinship, faithfully passing their culture down through generations which is how Halloween was introduced to America in the late nineteenth century by Irish and Scottish immigrants.

All Hallows Day was celebrated on November 1st-the Celtic New Year. This day marked the end of the harvest season and the beginning of the dark, cold winter. This was a time of year that the Celts often associated with death; a time where the line between the living and dead was crossed.

The night before, October 31st, they celebrated with a festival called Samhain also known as All Hallows Eve.They believed that ghosts walked the earth on this night causing chaos by damaging their crops among other ghoulish activities. They thought that the presence of these spirits made it easier for them to tap into the spiritual world and predict the future. Druids, which were Celtic priests prophesied to the people. This brought them comfort and hope that they could make it through the long, dark and cold winter ahead. During this event, the Celtics lit huge bonfires, and dressed in costumes made of animal skins and heads.

The Celtics were later invaded by the Roman empire and this ancient holiday slowly began its transformation throughout the centuries. Halloween as we know it today is far from what the Celtics practiced. However, a lot of the customs that we celebrate still carry a vague familiarity of certain Celtic traditions.

For example, the jack-o-lantern, which is simply a pumpkin that has been carved and a lit candle placed inside, was once believed by the Celts to ward off evil spirits as the head of any vegetable could do. The "head" was thought of as containing the "spirit" of man. These and other symbols, costumes, games, activities, and foods all have some type of connection to the early Celtic beliefs.

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