The air is getting chilly, and the leaves are turning colorful, which can only mean one thing; Halloween is creeping towards us. As people make their last-minute Spirit Halloween shopping trips, stock up on value packs of candy, or sink their hands into pumpkin guts, some people might wonder when, and why these iconic traditions became what they are. Like these popular Halloween customs: costume wearing, trick-or-treating, and pumpkin carving.
The Celtic festival of Samhain, held on October 31st, is regarded as the first Halloween celebration. The first recorded mention of wearing costumes, comes from an 1585 Scottish text, which describes people wearing disguises, in order to protect themselves from the spirits of the dead. These early costumes were a far cry from the elaborate ghosts, and zombies of today, and usually consisted of simple fabric masks, or face paint. At around the same time, the Christian holiday of Allhallowtide, created a similar but independent costume tradition, in which poorer churches who could not afford to display statues, would have people dress up as saints instead. According to Business Insider, Americans adopted the tradition of costumes in the late 1900s.
“The things that appealed to people were the things that they loved about Halloween, so you saw a lot of handmade witch costumes and ghost costumes,” Halloween expert Lesley Bannartyrne said to Insider.
Samhain and Allhallowtide, also marked the origin of trick-or-treating. In Celtic tradition, children and adults alike, would put on their costumes, and walk from home to home, performing poems or songs, in exchange for food. Meanwhile, at Allhallowtide, a practice known as ‘souling’ was popular among kids, who would also go door-to-door, and collect soul cakes, which represented the deceased members of a family, in exchange for saying prayers for them.
Lastly, the practice of carving pumpkins was at first not associated with Halloween. Carving eyes and mouths into turnips or squash, before placing a lit candle inside, was a Celtic pagan practice beginning in the 16th century. It was believed the scary faces would ward off evil spirits. According to Britanica, The term ‘jack-o-lantern’ comes from an Irish folktale, about a man named Jack, who tricked the devil, and was cursed to roam the earth forever. In 19th century America, carving pumpkins became popular among young pranksters, who would place jack-o-lanterns along dark paths in order to frighten unsuspecting passersby.
Halloween is one of the most popular holidays, and its iconic traditions contribute a lot to the fun. This Halloween, while you wear your Barbie costume, or settle in to watch It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, take a moment to remember the history of these cozy customs.
