How did Halloween start?

Halloween is upon us again….All the little Ghouls and Ghosts will be out again, and you might be wondering to yourself, how did Halloween start?

Or why the heck do we paraded around the neighbourhood dressed as vampires, witches and zombies and ask for sweets??!

Well I’m about to tell you…Find exactly out how Halloween started right here:

Halloween

Halloween (once known as all Hallows Eve) originated in Ireland and Great Britain centuries ago during the times of the Romans and Pagans.

Although no one knows the exact date, Halloween started sometime around 2000 years ago when the Romans invaded Britain.

In Ancient Ireland and Great Britain the Celtics celebrated the religious holiday of Samhain. Samhain was the Celtic New Year and marked the end of the summer and the beginning of the winter, and was celebrated with the feast of the dead.

Spirits and ghosts

The pagans believed that on this night the spirits of the dead could once again walk the earth. During The Feast of the Dead (Held at night time) there would be huge bonfires, sacrifices and the pagans would walk around wearing animal heads and skins to protect them from evil spirits.

After the Romans invaded Britain, they merged Samhain with their own celebrations of the Godess Pomona (The Goddess of Fruitful abundance), held on November 1^st and the celebration All Saints Day (also known as Hallowmas or All Hallows) and finally followed by All souls Day on November 2^nd.

Souling

So that explains where the day Halloween originated, but why do we trick or treat? Well, All souls day was the celebration of those that had passed and not yet reached heaven, and it was tradition on that day for soulers (usually children) to travel door to door, sing and say prayers for the dead and receive a Soul cake in return. Each cake would represent a soul being released from purgatory into heaven.

Modern day Trick or Treating

Over the years the religious celebrations of Samhain, All saints day, and the tradition of Souling merged into one celebration on the 31^st October and modern day Trick or treating was born. Although originating in Ireland and Britain, it wasn’t until immigrants moved over to America, taking this tradition with them that Trick or treating and Halloween really gained popularity!

So there you have it, dressing up as a monster is a sure fire way of protecting you from evil ghouls on Halloween, or at least a great way to get some treats!