by Linda Whiting

Created on: October 16, 2009

Halloween has its roots in the Celtic Samhain Festival. Halloween is the oldest, most celebrated and most controversial holiday. For the Celtic, the Samhain Festival was the end of the year, end of the harvest, and being able to travel easily. The winter was coming, the weather was harsh, the trees changed colors, flowers died, and days got shorter.

In the early years, people treated Celtic priest with respect. Because of their use of magic and knowledgeable, they held positions as judges and teachers. Their ways were different, but were easily accepted by the Britain and other tribes.

The Roman came to Britain in 45 B.C., but left and did not come back until 43 A.D. Romans found the Celtic Samhain Festival with its sacrifices were barbaric. Maybe the magic that the Celtics practiced scared the Romans.

The Samhain festival began 2000 years ago; they believed the boundaries between livings and dead opened up. They did scarified and burned fields (which actually helped the next year's crop grow). They dressed up in animal heads and skins and made predictions of the future.

Ancient cultures explain the trees changing colors, plants dying, animals hibernating, and shorter days, by the dark side joining with a daughter of some God. The daughter coming up for six months at a time at which time the flowers bloomed only to die when she had to go back underground.

In order to appease the people who wanted to keep the Samhain the Romans incorporated two of their festivals the Pomona and Faralia. Pomona was a Roman Goddess of fruits, trees, and orchards that the Romans celebrated. She was in Harry Potter series as the teacher of herbology. Snap apple was a game that was added to the festival, apples tied to a tree or door frame and a person had to try to bite it without using their hands. It became bobbing for apples later. Feralia day closed the Parentalia festival. This holiday was held in February commemorated passing of dead.

When Catholic religion became the main religion of the Romans, Pope Gregory III and Gregory IV moved all Saints Day from February 13 to November 1. They called it Hallow means sacred thus; Halloween was called Hallow Eve also known as Hallow-mas, and All Hallow.

Later Guy Fawkes Day was added. At first, the day was November 5. He managed to be caught with gunpowder trying to blow up King James. He was not the leader of a group, but was part of a group looking for Religious freedom. His punishment burned him on top of a bonfire; hence, ever year afterwards a bonfire. Children would carry around effigies saying a penny for a Guy then throw them in bonfire after going around town collecting money. It was added to Halloween and poor would beg for food in exchange for food. Soul cakes were made and given out. Straw for prosperity and rings for marriage were some of the things added to cakes. As days got shorter and food become, scares the people would dress up in costumes so they were not attacked by lost souls.

Mexico, Latin America, and Spain celebrate All Soul's Day on November 2. Relatives gather at grave have a picnic, and reminisce sometimes there is drinking and mariachi bands.

In the nineteenth century, the emigration to America from Ireland's draught brought. Young women believed they could tell their future by doing tricks with yarn, apple paring, and mirrors. It was more about getting together than ghost and witchcraft.

Britannica.com

History.com

Faith and Treason, the Story of Gunpowder Plot by Antonia Fraizer

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