Halloween Is in the Air

As the autumnal season is fully underway, I feel anticipation for one of my favorite holidays: Halloween! As a kid, I LOVED dressing up and running around with my friends and cousins… not to mention the candy! Of course, the candy was definitely my favorite part. But, between carving jack-o-lanterns and pretending not to be afraid of ghosts, I never really questioned these strange, ghoulish traditions. Did you? Well, this year, I started to wonder… why skeletons? Ghosts? Witches? Costumes? Lit-up pumpkins? Gathering candy from strangers? It's all pretty weird, honestly. So, I set out to answer my own questions and hopefully write something informational and entertaining for you.

Celtic Origins

According to my research, the bulk of Halloween traditions come from the Celtic culture, which was concentrated mainly in Ireland. Their holiday Samhain (pronounced sow-in) had particular influence. According to Regina Hansen, a professor at Boston University, “They believed it was the time when ghosts and spirits came out to haunt, and the Celts would appease the spirits by giving them treats. The feast was celebrated in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and parts of Britain.”

This is so interesting to me because I grew up being told by adults that Halloween was a pagan tradition and it came from a bad culture or people who were less than ours. Of course, nobody told me that part, but my little kid mind filled in the gaps. Come to find out, it was my culture! Well, rather, my ancestors’ culture that provided the seed for Halloween. Now, I can proudly wear my Halloween costume and declare that I’m connecting with my ancestors. Other parts of Halloween come from German or Roman roots, but they all come back to the Celts one way or another.

Trick-or-Treating

Probably the muddiest tradition of Halloween is trick-or-treating. No one knows for sure where it came from, but it seems to be a combination of 3 or 4 different cultural traditions. Firstly, there are the Celts and the holiday Samhain. They would leave food and drinks out for the wandering spirits to eat and be appeased. Secondly is the Scottish practice of ‘souling’, where children and poor adults go from house to house and collect food and drink in return for prayers for their deceased loved ones. This would happen on All Soul’s Day, which falls on November 2nd, just two days after Halloween. Lastly, the German tradition of ‘belsnickeling’ seems to be a factor as well. This was a Christmas tradition where children would dress up in costumes, and the locals would have to guess who was who. Some would even win rewards of food or treats. My theory is that through the process of immigrants attempting to relate to and celebrate with their neighbors from different countries, and over years of marketing campaigns as well, we now have the modern practice of trick or treating.

Costumes

In the above section, I alluded a bit to one possible origin of wearing costumes being for trick or treating, but there’s more to it than that. One of the traditions associated with the festival Samhain was to dress up in disguise to confuse and deter any evil spirits walking the earth. It was said that that time of year was a transitional period where those who had died the previous year would get to go to the next world, and those who were already there could journey back for a time. This is interesting to me because of it’s similarity with the Latin American holiday Dia De Los Muertos. Since these holidays occur around a similar time of year, I wonder how two different cultures could produce such a similar holiday. But, I digress.

Carving Pumpkins

Check out our article all about how Jack-o-lanterns came to be if you want the whole story. They essentially come from a Celtic folk tale about a guy named Jack who tricked the devil. When he died, it is said that God didn’t let him into heaven, but the devil didn’t allow him into hell either. So, he was sentenced to roaming the earth with only an ember in a turnip to light his way. Jack-o-lanterns are meant to ward off him and any other wandering spirits. While turnips were the preferred carving medium in Ireland, the popularity of pumpkins in America took over! So, now we use those.

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Black and Orange Color Scheme

Again, this one calls back to Samhain. When the Celts celebrated this holiday, one purpose was to celebrate the end of summer and the beginning of the new year. They counted the new year as starting on November 1st. So, the colors traditionally associated with Halloween are black and orange. Black symbolizes the death of summer, and orange symbolizes autumn, the harvest, and the season's abundance.

Black Cats and Bats

Black cats and bats have become associated with Halloween for some minor reasons. Black cats because they have always been associated with witches. With Samhain being a pagan holiday, it was a natural connection. Bats are also a symbol of Halloween because the huge bonfires that the Celtics would erect in the evening of the festival would attract insects and bats because of the light. So, they have always been seen during that time of year.

Apples

The obvious reason for apples being such a prominent food during the Halloween season is that fall is when most apples are ready to be harvested and are, therefore, cheap and easy to find. But there is a little more to it than that. Apples are also associated with the Roman festival of Pomona, which celebrates the goddess of the same name. This festival, also occurring around November 1st, was likely meshed into the conglomerate holiday we call Halloween through centuries of cultural shifts and mixing. So, the game of bobbing for apples and the delicious treats of candied and caramel apples are all thanks to the Roman goddess.

The Name "Halloween"

Lastly, the name “Halloween” comes from a shortening of All Hallows’ Eve, a traditional Christian holiday occuring on Ocotober 31st. It is the holiday that Christian missionaries chose to mesh with the existing celtic pagan holiday of Samhain in order to find common ground in converting the populace. All Hallows’ Eve was a day designed by Pope Gregory III to celebrate the saints of the church who had passed on.

Whether you have apprehensions about celebrating Halloween or not, it all comes down to fun and games. With Christianity taking over the religious scene and marketing companies taking over holidays, the Halloween that we celebrate today is a far cry from what pagan worshipers would have known it to be. Nowadays, it is a holiday for children to dress however they want, eat candy, and run wild. Find that inner child in you and have a Happy Halloween!

Lara Wadsworth, True Leaf Market Writer

I am a native of Southwestern Michigan, where I also reside, and I love all things plants! I got a Bachelor's Degree in Horticulture and found the first work-from-home job I could get. Now, I spend my days writing for TLM, playing with my dog, eating delicious food with my husband, and plotting my next landscape or gardening move. I believe everyone should get down and dirty in the soil now and then. Happy Gardening!