On the night of 31 October, Halloween takes place, an amusing popular celebration to worship the dead. This pagan feast originates from a Celtic festival known as Samhain, which means “end of summer”. This celebration was held in late October and consisted of a large ceremony to commemorate the end of the harvest and to bid farewell to Lugh, the sun god. The Celtic year ends on 31 October and the main characteristic of autumn is the leaves falling from the trees, which for them signifies the end of death or the beginning of a new life. This was taught from generation to generation in the regions of Ireland, Scotland and France, where the Celts lived.
With the rise of Catholicism, the feast was Christianised and became known as the Eve of All Saints Day. The English translation is “All Hallows’ Eve”, hence the term “Halloween”. In 1840, the feast arrived in the US and Canada thanks to the Irish immigrants, who spread their customs. For this reason, at night on 31 October, in countries of Anglo-Saxon culture or a Celtic history, this feast is celebrated with all the past customs for remembering their ancestors.
Over the years, Halloween has become popular worldwide, especially in the United States. Many curiosities are associated with this feast that make it possible for us to learn about Halloween as it is today. In honour of an ancient legend, pumpkins became a symbol to keep the devil at bay. Nowadays, on the night of 31 October, the houses are decorated with cut pumpkins.
On the other hand, the Celts believed in the return of spirits to the world of the living during Samhain. For this reason, the custom is to leave food and sweet treats outside their houses in the way of an offering, and to light candles to help the souls of the dead find their way towards the light. Today, both children and adults dress up, especially as the living dead or as witches, to attend parties, imitating the presence of spirits and ghosts in the street mentioned in Celtic folklore. They also go out asking for sweets in the street and in houses, knocking at the door and asking the question: “Trick or treat?”.