The History Of Halloween | The Nibble Webzine Of Food Adventures - The Nibble Webzine Of Food AdventuresThe History Of Halloween | The Nibble Webzine Of Food Adventures
The Jack o’ Lantern evolved from a turnip. Photo by Rawkus | SXC.
Halloween Trivia To Share
Bring these fun trivia facts to work, to school, to a Halloween party:
Halloween has its origins in the festival of Samhain (sah-WEEN), celebrated by ancient Celts at the end of the harvest.
The Celts believed that on October 31, the boundaries between the worlds of the living and the dead overlapped and the deceased would come back to life and cause havoc.
To avoid the spirits and ghosts that roamed the countryside, they began to wear masks and costumes to avoid being recognized as human.
Samhain marked the end of the “lighter half” of the year and beginning of the “darker half.” The Halloween colors of orange and black represent the lighter side (fall harvest) and the darker side.
Jack o’ Lanterns were not originally pumpkins. To keep away spirits and ghosts on Samhain, people placed candles in their windows, using hollowed-out turnips and other vegetables as the holder.
Around 600 C.E., Christian missionaries replaced the pagan festival of Samhain with All Saints Day, also called All Hallows Even (even means evening).
The name Halloween is first found in 16th-century Scotland, evolving from All Hallows Eve.
Afraid of Halloween? That’s called Samhainophobia.
