Also called All Hallows' Eve, Halloween was a hallowed evening observed on Oct 31st. This is the Eve of All Hallows Day (or All Saints' Day).
In the ancient Druids, there was a 3 day celebration at the beginning of Novermber. On the eve before, they believed spririts of the dead roamed abroad and they lite bonefires to drive them away. In ancient Rome the festival of Pomona, goddess of fruits and gardens, occurred at about this time of the year
In ancient Britain and Ireland, the Celtic festival of Sambain was observed on Oct 31st at the end of the summer. This date was also the eve of the new year for the new year in Celtic and Anglo Saxon times and was an occasion for ancient fire festivals where huge bonfires were set on hilltops to frighten away evil spirits. The soul's of the dead were supposed to revisit their homes on this day. The festival that later came to be in the autumn acquired ghost, witches, hobgoblins, black bats, and demons that were said to be roaming about.
The pagan observance of Sambain influenced the later Christian festival of All Hallows' Eve (also called Holy Eve) which was celebrated on the same date. All Hallows' Day was on Nov 1st and was a time in which the church honored Christian Saints. Nov 2nd was All Souls' Day when prayers were offered for all the dead. Their souls were said to be in a special waiting place called purgatory.
In medieval times The Pagan Sambain and The Christian Hallows were combined. Children went souling from door to door, singing and begging for soul cakes for the wandering spirits. If no treats were offered, beggars or souls played pranks.
Immigrants to the US, particularly the Irish, introduced secular Halloween customs that became popular in the late 19th century. Mischief making on this occasion by boys and young men included overturning sheds and outhouses and breaking windows. In later years the occasion has come to be observed mainly by small kids who go from house to house in costume saying "trick or treat".
In modern day America, almost everyone is ignorant of past Halloween traditions. In fact, many people protest the holiday saying it's demonic when it really has modern roots in Christianity. Since 1965, UNICEF, an agency of the UN, has attempted to incorporate a money collection for the UN Children's fund. I would have to stress the word attempted since I have never had this collection at my house, but I suppose it's the thought that counts.
Aside from these roots that no one seems to care about anyhow, Halloween is simply a luxury for kids. A day for kids to get candy and wear costumes. But more importantly, this is a day for business to make money in food, costume, and decorations. The press which usually has nothing of importance to report eats this day up and spends it reporting the same stories about how to be safe and what went on in company sponsored trick or treat areas. We can all look forward to our place in the history books for taking each and every holiday and making it into something with no significance accept for a day to make money.
The word Jack O Lantern was 1st used to describe a mysterious light seen at night flickering over marshes. When approached, it advances, always out of reach. The phenomenon is also known as will o the wisp and ignis fatuus (foolish fire). In pop legend it is considered ominous and is often thought to be the soul of one who has been rejected by hell carrying its own hell coal on its wanderings.
In Ireland, where Halloween began, the first jack-o'-lanterns weren't made of pumpkins. They were made out of rutabagas, potatoes, turnips, or even beets! There is an old Irish legend about a man named Stingy Jack who was too mean to get into heaven and had played too many tricks on the devil to go to hell. When he died, he had to walk the earth, carrying a lantern made out of a turnip with a burning coal inside. Stingy jack became known as "Jack of the Lantern," or "Jack-o'-lantern."
From this legend came the Irish tradition of placing jack-o'-lanterns made of turnips and other vegetables in windows or by doors on Halloween. The jack-o'-lanterns are meant to scare away Stingy Jack and all the other spirits that are said to walk the earth on that night. It wasn't until the tradition was brought to the United States by immigrants that pumpkins were used for jack-o'-lanterns.
