The word "halloween" is a contraction of the English phrase "Allhallows evening" which means "All Saints Day Vigil". Halloween has its origin in a combination of various parties or celebrations. The idea that it is a night of ghosts and witches, comes from the Celts, a people that lived in France, Spain and the British Isles many centuries ago.
The Celts had a festival called Samhain, which meant "end of summer Samhain, then, was a celebration that marked the end of the food plant age. The Celts believed that the spirits of fruits and vegetables, as well as the spirits of people, visited the earth on the day of Samhain, that is, October 31. The Celts lit large fires on the tops of the hills and mountains to scare away spirits.
Later, the Celts converted to Christianity, with which their Samhain became confused with All Saints' Day, which every November 1 reminds all Christians of the death of their loved ones.
Much of the mysterious and ghostly folklore that still exists in some countries in relation to the vigil of All Saints Day has its origin in practices initiated by the Celts.
Some people believe that witches flew on broomsticks?
In Europe, a few centuries ago, there were people that people called witches, they worshiped the devil in the same way that most people worship a god. They pretended that they could do sorcery or perform acts of magic. The witches held large gatherings called "sabbats." In them, they cooked magic potions over the fire of a large bonfire.
Some of those potions were beverages for the witches' own consumption. When they were taken, the drugs they contained gave them the feeling that they were flying through the air. Near the fire, there were always brooms to keep their surroundings clean. This led some people to believe that witches used their magic to fly on broomsticks.
The "sabbat" that took place on the vigil of All Saints' Day was considered of special importance. For this reason, according to popular belief, no witch stopped going to the meeting on her broom.
How did the custom of "trick or treat" begin?
Trick or treat "means something like: If you don't give me a gift, I'll play a trick on you." It is the phrase that children in some countries pronounce on Halloween when they go from house to house in search of gifts. It started in Ireland. The beggars began such a custom who once knocked on the doors of the All Saints Day vigil.
Who was "Jack-o'-Lantern"?
To the Celts, "Jack-o-Lantern" (ie, "Jack the Lantern") was the spirit of the pumpkin. The Celts carved pumpkins so that they showed a pleasant face. They did it to show that Jack was a good spirit and not a bad spirit.
The Irish pretend that "Jack-o'-Lantern" was a man who couldn't get into heaven because he was too greedy, but who couldn't go to hell either because the devil didn't want him either. This is why he has to wander the world forever with a flashlight in his hand.
The Irish didn't have pumpkins. This forced them to carve Jack's face on turnips and potatoes to follow the tradition related to the unfortunate character.
In some countries they dress up on Halloween?
The indicators of this custom were a group of Irish Celts called Druids. The Druids, who were a kind of priests, believed, like all ancient Irishmen, that spirits roamed the earth on Halloween.
For this they wanted to scare them away by making them believe that they too were spirits. Hence, they dressed up as ghosts, goblins, witches, zombie etc.
In Venezuela it is not a custom that has lasted a lifetime, but a few years ago the respective celebration began to be held.
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