History of Halloween

Discover the ancient roots and evolution of Halloween traditions, from Samhain to trick-or-treating!

1. The ancient Celts celebrated a holiday called Samhain, which meant "end of summer". 2. The word bonfirecomes from the Celts throwing bones, or other sacrifices, onto huge fires.3. These large bonfires attracted bats because of all of the bugs brought in by the light, making the bat a symbol of this holiday.4. The Roman goddess, Pamona, was the goddess of the harvest, and her symbol, the apple, is believed to be where bobbing for apples comes from.5. In 300 CE, Pope Gregory III, moved a Roman holiday to November 1st and called it All Hallows' Day, making Samhain called All Hallows' Eve.6. In France and Spain, Christians would go to their ancestors' graves and put milk on them, while in Italy, they put candles on the graves.7. The practice of guising is thought to be the earliest form of trick-or-treating because people would dress up in masks and go from door to door to perform to get sweets and food.8. In early England, the king got rid of Allhallowtide and replaced it with Guy Fawkes Day, or Bonfire Day, to remember the death of the man who tried to blow up the monarchy.9. The first jack-o-lanterns were created by carving turnip and add hot coal.10. The American Civil War changed Halloween in America due to ghost stories and the sudden disappearance of family members.11. Scottish and Irish immigrants brought their traditions to America and Canada, creating a big problem when children went around causing mischief.12. To keep the kids from causing mischief, cities would throw big parties on Halloween night.13. Halloween decorations, games, and books became popular during World War I due to the need to keep children from pranking people.14. "The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" came out in 1966. Draw Draw me a picture of something he talked about in the video. I will not grade you on your artistic abilities but rather on the fact that you drew me something from the video.Example: Bat, pumpkin, apple, ghosts, decorations, bonfire How do you celebrate Halloween?