The History of Halloween

Where did it come from?

Pomona

Roman goddess of fruitful

abundance

Known for carrying a cornucopia

from“pomum”which means fruit

Parentalia

Roman festival of the dead

“ancestral days”, honoring passed

family members

Observed Feb. 13- 21

First pointing towards “spooky” spirits

and ghosts

Celtic Festivals

Samhain- old Irish for “summers end”

Celts felt that spirits and magic were

more present as the cold set in

Built huge bonfires to ward off spirits

Carved turnips

Medieval Christianity

Known as All Saints Day

A time to honor the dead who had

not yet gone to heaven

Another reference to the

“spooky” spirits we think of today

Irish & Scottish Immigrants to America

Brought with them Celtic tradition of Samhain

Originally celebrated in small immigrant communities

Spread to a nationwide holiday and adopted an American fruit, the pumpkin

Why do we call it Halloween?

a Scottish variant of the fuller All-

Hallows-Evening

Hallowmas- another name for All Saints

Day

All Hallows Eve

Hallowtide in Britain

Where do our Halloween “customs” come from?

Costumes

Originates from

Scottish “guising”,

going from house to

house in disguise

Became very

popular in the U.S.

around the 1930’s

because of the

Great Depression

Trick-or-TreatingOriginates in the Middle

Ages

Poor would go door to door

receiving food for prayers

The threat of a trick if one

does not receive a treat

Became popular in the

1950’s

Food & SymbolsPumpkin – native to Americas, was not

originally part of Halloween

A symbol of the harvest

Carving originated in Ireland and Scotland

Immigrants found pumpkins more

available and easier to carve when they

came to America