by Rachel Jonitis

Created on: July 31, 2009

Today, Halloween is a holiday that is loved by many, especially kids who get to run around in costumes collecting candy from the neighborhood. But this holiday hasn't always been so innocent. Halloween began with the Celts 2,000 years ago in Ireland, the United Kingdom and France. They celebrated their New Year on November 1st, rather than January 1st, as this day marked the end of summer and the harvest and marked the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often closely associated with death. October 31st was chosen because it was believed that on this night, the boundary between the world of the living and the world of the dead became blurry. This was when they celebrated Samhain, a pagan holiday still celebrated by many today. Not only were spirits thought to cause trouble and damage crops on this day, it was also believed that their presence made it easier for druids to make predictions about the future, which was an important source of direction and comfort during the long winter. Huge bonfires were built to burn crops and animals, not only as sacrifices, but also the animals that were not strong enough to make it through the winter were slaughtered and their bones would be burned in the fires as well. Often times the slaughter was so great that November became known as the blood month. During these festivities, the Celts wore costumes consisting of animal heads and skins, and they would tell each others fortunes.

By A.D. 43, the Romans covered most of the celts territory, and during the 400 years that they remained there, two Roman festivals were integrated into the traditional celtic celebrations. One was Feralia, a day in late October when the romans commemorated the dead. The second day was to honor the roman goddess of fruit and trees, Pomona. Her symbol was an apple and this probably explains the introduction and ongoing tradition of bobbing for apples.

By the 800s, Christianity was spreading, and in the 7th century, Pope Boniface the 4th made November 1st All Saints Day, to honor saints and martyrs. It is thought that much like Christmas, the church created a holiday in proximity to a pagan holiday in an attempt to make conversion easier. There are many names for the celebration, including All Hallows Day, All Hallowmas( comes from the middle english Alholowmesse which means All Saints Day). The night prior, Samhain, began to be called All Hallows Eve, which eventually turned into Halloween. Later on, the church would

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