2008 Woodie Awards
The orgin of Halloween
Michelle Malone
Issue date: 10/24/08 Section: News
Some 2,000 years ago the Celts, who lived in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom, and northern France, celebrated their new year on Nov. 1.
This day marked the end of summer and harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with death.
On the night of Oct. 31, the Celts celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. The Celtic people thought that they would encounter these ghosts if they left their homes at night, so to avoid being recognized by the returning ghosts, people would wear masks when they left their homes after dark so that the ghosts would mistake them for fellow spirits.
To commemorate the event Druids, or Celtic priests, built huge sacred bonfires to burn crops and animals as sacrifices. During the celebration Celts wore costumes usually consisting of animal heads and skins and attempted to tell each other's fortunes. When the celebration was over, they re-lit their hearth fires, which they had extinguished earlier that evening, from the sacred bonfire to help protect them during the coming winter.
By A.D. 43, Romans had conquered the majority of Celtic territory, and two festivals of Roman origin were combined with the traditional Celtic celebration. The first was Feralia, a day in late October when the Romans traditionally honored the passing of the dead. The second was a day to honor Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit and trees. The symbol of Pomona is the apple and this is believed to be where the tradition of "bobbing for apples" derived.
By the 800s, the influence of Christianity had spread into Celtic lands. In the seventh century, Pope Boniface IV designated Nov. 1 All Saints ' Day, a time to honor saints and martyrs. This declaration is believed to be the Popes attempt to replace the Celtic festival of the dead with a related, but church-sanctioned holiday. The celebration was also called All-hallows and the night before it, the night of Samhain, began to be called All-hallows Eve, and eventually, Halloween.
This day marked the end of summer and harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with death.
On the night of Oct. 31, the Celts celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. The Celtic people thought that they would encounter these ghosts if they left their homes at night, so to avoid being recognized by the returning ghosts, people would wear masks when they left their homes after dark so that the ghosts would mistake them for fellow spirits.
To commemorate the event Druids, or Celtic priests, built huge sacred bonfires to burn crops and animals as sacrifices. During the celebration Celts wore costumes usually consisting of animal heads and skins and attempted to tell each other's fortunes. When the celebration was over, they re-lit their hearth fires, which they had extinguished earlier that evening, from the sacred bonfire to help protect them during the coming winter.
By A.D. 43, Romans had conquered the majority of Celtic territory, and two festivals of Roman origin were combined with the traditional Celtic celebration. The first was Feralia, a day in late October when the Romans traditionally honored the passing of the dead. The second was a day to honor Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit and trees. The symbol of Pomona is the apple and this is believed to be where the tradition of "bobbing for apples" derived.
By the 800s, the influence of Christianity had spread into Celtic lands. In the seventh century, Pope Boniface IV designated Nov. 1 All Saints ' Day, a time to honor saints and martyrs. This declaration is believed to be the Popes attempt to replace the Celtic festival of the dead with a related, but church-sanctioned holiday. The celebration was also called All-hallows and the night before it, the night of Samhain, began to be called All-hallows Eve, and eventually, Halloween.
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