Halloween is a universal holiday celebrated by many but what we know about it can be very surprising.
Why do we celebrate Halloween?
Presently, the origins of Halloween can be misunderstood as a tradition that was first started in America. However, The Sun reports that the holiday stems from Ireland.
Right now, Halloween started when the Irish people migrated to America. They celebrated a festival called the Gaelic Festival which honored the dead on November 1st. The Gaelic festival is also a time for the Irish to welcome the winter season.
During their time in America, the Irish would celebrate this festival in order to get rid of negative spirits. This comes as the Irish believe that the dead come back to their home on this day. They therefore, honor these people on the festival day.
Today, Halloween is associated with carving pumpkins, dressing up in costumes, and trick or treating by going door to door.
The reason people do trick or treating
In America, today, many celebrities and ordinary people celebrate Halloween by dressing us as past icons who passed on or dressing up as movie characters.
The holiday has mostly become associated with children. Due to dressing up and getting different kinds of candy from different homes.
Thus far, the door-to-door tradition is believed to have started when the Irish would go to their neighbors for food and gifts under the promise they will pray for dead souls. This old tradition is also an extension of people dressing up and sitting around a bonfire to get rid of or scare evil spirits. These could also take the form of performing for something in return.
Since then, this tradition has stuck with many around the world and has since evolved to be known as the spooky season where individuals would watch scary movies, attend spooky events, and the like. Halloween currently takes place every year on the 31st of October. The day preceding this is known as Hallows Eve.
Source: The Sun