Halloween

What is Halloween?

Halloween is celebrated on the night of October 31 in various ways that are more or less original:

costumed children go from door to door after treats or tricks to make those who do not provide coins or sweets (trick or treat), and all the while singing and make rhymes like "Trick or Treat / smell my feet / Give me Something good to eat ";

theme parties where each participant unrecognizable disguises witches, vampires, pumpkins, skeletons, owls;

bonfires to ward off evil spirits;

pumpkin carvings or simple cuts in coming to life again with the lights placed inside them;

watching horror movies, not necessarily in the group, that feeling of fear to be diminished.

Halloween is celebrated mainly in his native country, Ireland, and the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, United Kingdom, New Zealand and even Australia.

Origin celebration

Hundreds of years ago, the lands known today as Great Britain and Northern France , lived the Celts.They celebrated their new year on November 1 with a festival that marked the end of summer and the beginning of the dark period and cold related death. This festival called Samhain , last three days , and people costumed in leather and animal heads.Festival fires often involve the animal bones were thrown and people hoping to ward off evil spirits in costumes as scary .

 On October 31 , the boundary between the living and the dead lost their outline , and thus dead become dangerous for the living and the disease or they broke their crops.

The Celts believed that the presence of those on the other side , helping Druids - Celtic priests - to predict the future . For a people totally dependent on the volatile natural world and prophecies became important sources of comfort and guidance that was long and dark winter .

When the festival was over, the Celts rekindle their hearths - which had been extinguished in the early evening - to be , protected in winter.

Two other influences on Halloween come from Roman culture that celebrated Pomona , on or around November 1 , and the Christianity of All Saints and All Souls Day .

History of name

The term Halloween is a Scottish variant of All-Hallows-Even the name ("evening"), that is, the night before "All Hallows". Until the twentieth century, it was written and "Hallowe'en", eliminating the "v" and shortening the phrase All Hallows cuvântul.Deşi appears in Old English (ealra hālgena mæssedæg "All Saints"), according to Oxford English Dictionary (second edition), Oxford University Press, All-Hallows-Even was confirmed only in 1556.

Symbols

Halloween symbols and related handicrafts have developed over time. For example , carving jack- o' -lantern comes from the habit of All Saints modeling of turnip lanterns to enlighten the souls of purgatoriu.Napul Halloween was traditionally used in Ireland and Scotland , but immigrants coming to North America used native pumpkin , which are more easily accessible and larger - making it easier to model than American napii.Tradiţia pumpkins modeling is attested from 1837 and was originally associated with harvest time , Halloween is not specific only to the late nineteenth century.

Halloween images from multiple sources, including national customs , works of Gothic and horror fiction literature (such as the novels Frankenstein and Dracula ) , and classic horror films (such as Frankenstein and The Mummy ) . Among the earliest works on Halloween are the Scottish poet John Mayne in 1780 , which stated pranks played on Halloween , what fearfu ' pranks ensuite ! , as well as the supernatural associated with the night , bogies ( ghosts ) , influencing the Robert Burns, author of autumn poetry Halloween 1785.Elemente , such as pumpkins , corn cobs and crow scarecrow are also ubiquitous . Houses are also decorated with these symbols.

 Other images are Halloween themes of death, evil, the occult , or traditional feast legendari.Culorile monsters are black and orange .

Clothing

Halloween costumes are traditionally modeled after supernatural figures, monsters, skeletons, ghosts, witches, and devils. Over time, such outfits appliances and those of fictional characters, celebrities commonplace and generic archetypes such as ninjas and princesses.

Dressing and carols with them was current in Scotland Halloween in the late nineteenth and lea.Tradiţia entered the United States in the early twentieth century, both among adults and among children. The first mass-produced Halloween costumes appeared in stores in the 1930s when American habit of trick-or-treating was becoming popular there.

On October 31 or around them, often on Friday and Saturday before Halloween, costume parties are held often.

Fare

Since the time of harvest feast falls on apples, glazed or caramelized apples are among the traditional dishes of Halloween. This was accomplished by the anointing of whole apples with a sweet sticky syrup sometimes add ground nutmeg .At one time , children were given sugared apples , but virtually disappeared after rumors that some people stick needles or razor blades in apples copiilor.Nu data there is evidence of such incidents , so it can be assumed to be the more rare and do not result in serious injury. However , many parents believe that such practices are common due to excessive coverage . At the peak of apples hysteria , some hospitals offered radiographs of children's candy bags to identify a problem. Virtually all those little events " poison " apples were actually caused even the parents of the victims.A custom that persists in Ireland today is cooking (or often purchase ) of barmbrack ( Galician báirín breac ), a light fruit cake , which inserted a ring, a coin and other " charms " . It is said that those who eat a barmbrack ring will find love in the next year , similar to the traditional Epiphany cake king .Associated food feast.

Barmbrack (Ireland )

Caramel (United Kingdom)

Apple caramel / apple glazed ( UK and Ireland)

Caramel corn

Colcannon (Ireland )

Candy shaped skulls, pumpkins , bats , worms, etc. 

Pumpkin , pumpkin pie , pumpkin bread

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Roasted sweet corn

Soul cakes

Halloween in the world

As one of the world's oldest holidays, Halloween is now celebrated in many countries around the globe, most notably Ireland, the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and the United Kingdom and occasionally in parts of Australia and New Zealand. In North America and Canada maintains the highest level of popularitate.În each year, 65% of Americans decorate their homes and offices for Halloween.Procent is exceeded only by decorations made ​​at Christmas.Halloweenul is the feast is sold more candy and holiday after Christmas is the second volume of global sales.

Religious observances

On Hallowe'en (All Hallows' Eve), in Poland, believers are taught to pray out loud as they walk through the forests in order that the souls of the dead might find comfort; in Spain, Christian priests toll their church bells in order to remind their congregants to remember the dead on All Hallows' Eve.

In Ireland, and among immigrants in Canada, a custom includes the practice of abstinence, keeping All Hallows' Eve "as a meatless day with pancakes or Callcannon" being served instead.In Mexico, on "All Hallows Eve, the children make a children's altar to invite the angelitos (spirits of dead children) to come back for a visit." The Christian Church traditionally observed Hallowe'en through a vigil "when worshippers would prepare themselves with prayers and fasting prior to the feast day itself."This church service is known as the Vigil of All Hallows or the Vigil of All Saintsșâ; initiative known as Night of Light seeks to further spread the Vigil of All Hallows throughout Christendom. After the service, "suitable festivities and entertainments" often follow, as well as a visit to the graveyard or cemetery, where flowers and candles are often placed in preparation for All Hallows' Day.In Finland, because so many people visit the cemeteries on All Hallows' Eve to light votive candles there, they "are known as valomeri, or seas of light.

Christianity

Christian attitudes towards Halloween are diverse. In the Anglican Church, some dioceses have chosen to emphasize the Christian traditions associated with All Hallow's Eve.Some of these practises include praying, fasting and attending worship services.

"Father, All-Powerful and Ever-Living God, today we rejoice in the holy men and women of every time and place. May their prayers bring us your forgiveness and love. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. —All Hallow's Eve Prayer from the Liturgy of the Hours."

Other Protestant Christians also celebrate All Hallows' Eve as Reformation Day, a day to remember the Protestant Reformation, alongside All Hallow's Eve or independently from it.This is because Martin Luther nailed his Ninety-Five Theses to All Saints' Church in Wittenberg on All Hallows' Eve, because hundreds of visitors would come to the church during the celebration of Hallowmas.Often, "Harvest Festivals" or "Reformation Festivals" are held on All Hallows' Eve, in which children dress up as Bible characters or Reformers.In addition to distributing candy to children who are trick-or-treating on Hallowe'en, many Christians also provide gospel tracts to them. One organization, the American Tract Society, stated that around 3 million gospel tracts are ordered from them alone for Hallowe'en celebrations.Others order Halloween-themed Scripture Candy to pass out to children on this day.

Belizean children dressed up as Biblical figures and Christian saints.Some Christians feel concerned about the modern celebration of Halloween because they feel it trivializes – or celebrates – paganism, the occult, or other practices and cultural phenomena deemed incompatible with their beliefs.Father Gabriele Amorth, an exorcist in Rome, has said, "if English and American children like to dress up as witches and devils on one night of the year that is not a problem. If it is just a game, there is no harm in that."In more recent years, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston has organized a "Saint Fest" on Halloween.Similarly, many contemporary Protestant churches view Halloween as a fun event for children, holding events in their churches where children and their parents can dress up, play games, and get candy for free. Many Christians ascribe no negative significance to Halloween, treating it as a fun event devoted to "imaginary spooks" and handing out candy. To these Christians, Halloween holds no threat to the spiritual lives of children: being taught about death and mortality, and the ways of the Celtic ancestors actually being a valuable life lesson and a part of many of their parishioners' heritage.

In the Roman Catholic Church, Halloween's Christian connection is cited, and Halloween celebrations are common in Catholic parochial schools throughout North America and in Ireland.Many fundamentalist and evangelical churches use "Hell houses", themed pamphlets, or comic-style tracts such as those created by Jack T. Chick in order to make use of Halloween's popularity as an opportunity for evangelism.Some consider Halloween to be completely incompatible with the Christian faith due to its putative origins in the Festival of the Dead celebration.Indeed, even though Eastern Orthodox Christians observe All Hallows' Day on the First Sunday after Pentecost, the Eastern Orthodox Church recommends the observance of Vespers and/or a Paraklesis on the Western observance of All Hallows' Eve, out of the pastoral need to provide an alternative to popular celebrations.

Other religions

The reaction of non-Christian religions towards Halloween has often been mixed, ranging from stern disapproval to the allowance of participation in it. According to Alfred J. Kolatch in the Second Jewish Book of Why, in Judaism, Halloween is not permitted by Jewish Halakha because it violates Leviticus 18:3 which forbids Jews from partaking in gentile customs. Many Jews observe Yizkor, which is equivalent to the observance of Hallowmas in Christianity, as prayers are said for both "martyrs and for one's own family."Nevertheless many American Jews celebrate Halloween, disconnected from its Christian origins.Reform Rabbi Jeffrey Goldwasser has said that "There is no religious reason why contemporary Jews should not celebrate Halloween" while Orthodox Rabbi Michael Broyde has argued against Jews observing the holiday.Sheikh Idris Palmer, author of A Brief Illustrated Guide to Understanding Islam , has argued that Muslims should not participate in Halloween, stating that "participation in it is similar to one commemorating Christmas or Easter, or congratulating the Christians upon their prostration to the crucifix".Javed Memon, a Muslim writer, has disagreed, saying that his "daughter dressing up like a British telephone booth will not destroy her faith".Most Hindus do not observe All Hallows' Eve, instead remembering the dead in the festival of Pitru Paksha, during which Hindus pay hommage to and perform a ceremony "to keep the souls of their ancestors at rest."The celebration of the Hindu festival Diwali sometimes conflicts with the date of Halloween; but some Hindus choose to participate in the popular customs of Halloween.Other Hindus, such as Soumya Dasgupta, have opposed the celebration on the grounds that Western holidays like Halloween have "begun to adversely affect our indigenous festivals."Neopagans do not observe Halloween, but instead observe Samhain on 1 November, although some neopagan individuals choose to participate in cultural Halloween festivities, opining the idea that one can observe both "the solemnity of Samhain in addition to the fun of Halloween." Other neopagans are opposed to the celebration of Halloween, believing that it "trivializes Samhain", and "avoid Halloween, because of the interruptions from trick or treaters.