{"id":1733,"date":"2023-10-30T18:36:54","date_gmt":"2023-10-30T17:36:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eurekalc.com\/?p=1733"},"modified":"2023-11-08T16:31:36","modified_gmt":"2023-11-08T15:31:36","slug":"halloween-a-scary-mashup-of-history-and-tradition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eurekalc.com\/ca\/halloween-a-scary-mashup-of-history-and-tradition\/","title":{"rendered":"Halloween: A Scary Mashup of History and Tradition"},"content":{"rendered":"

So, it’s that time of year again when the air gets a bit cooler and the leaves change colour from green to shades of orange and red. <\/span>Yep<\/b>, you guessed it, it’s autumn\u2026and what is our favourite part of autumn\u2026.<\/span><\/p>\n

Halloween!<\/span><\/p>\n

It means it\u2019s time for costumes, candy and a <\/span>dash <\/b>of <\/span>spookiness<\/b>. Let’s take a <\/span>look through<\/b> the history, and\u00a0 traditions that make Halloween so much fun.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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A Dash of History:<\/h5>\n

Halloween goes back centuries and its origins are a mix of Celtic, Roman and Christian. The Celts celebrated a festival\u00a0 called Samhain, which was to mark the end of the harvest season and welcome the dark, winter days. People in these times believed that on the night of October 31st, the boundary between the living and the dead blurred, and to scare away the ghosts they would light bonfires and dress up in animal skins.<\/span><\/p>\n

As time went on the Samhain festival was merged with two Roman festivals: <\/span>Feralia, a day to honor the dead, and a festival dedicated to the goddess Pomona, who was associated with fruit and trees. It was around this time that the tradition of apple bobbing started.<\/span><\/p>\n

Next up the Christians added to the mix with All Saints\u00b4 Day on November 1st, to honour the saints and martyrs. The day before, October 31st, became known as \u2018All Hallows\u2019 Eve\u2019…which eventually changed to Halloween!<\/span><\/p>\n

So, that\u2019s the history, but what about modern Halloween?<\/span><\/p>\n

Halloween – The USA-way<\/h5>\n

I don\u2019t know about you, but when I think of Halloween, I think about all those crazy displays outside houses, elaborate fancy dress, <\/span>trick or treating<\/b> and scary movies. Where does this commonly happen? The United States of America.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the USA, Halloween is a <\/span>full-blown<\/b> holiday extravaganza! Pumpkin patches appear all over the place and people transform their homes with ghosts, zombies and skeletons. Fancy dress parties are popular, where dressing up as pop culture icons, creepy creatures or even your favorite food is the challenge.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Pumpkin carving is also big, with people creating a face or a halloween scene on the pumpkin and then putting a candle inside.<\/span><\/p>\n

Trick-or-treating is the main event, where kids <\/span>don<\/b> costumes ranging from cute little pumpkins to terrifying monsters and parade through neighborhoods in pursuit of lots of candy.<\/span><\/p>\n

Believe it or not, the popularity of Halloween is relatively new to Great Britain, so the experience isn\u2019t as exciting as the USA. When I was young, sometimes there was little a trick or treating and maybe a candy or two. We were more focussed on Bonfire Night on November 5th. What is Bonfire Night you ask? Well check out the next blog in a few days to find out more.<\/span><\/p>\n

So will you be getting dressed up as a scary creature this year?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m off now to watch my favourite scary movie. Halloween.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ben<\/span><\/p>\n

Key Language<\/h5>\n