Scary costumes, haunted houses, trick or treating: how did all these things come about? Well, it started in Ireland around 2000 years ago. Halloween originally began as the Celtic festival of Samhain. In this festival, people would light bonfires and get dressed up in scary costumes to ward off ghosts. Usually celebrated on October 31st to November 1st, this festival was to commemorate the spiritual world breaking down and spirits returning to the physical world. These days were marked and celebrated as the end of summer and the beginning of the cold, dark winter. 

Samhain traditions have formed what our Halloween looks like today. Instead of carving pumpkins, Celts would carve scary faces into turnips in order to protect them from the spirits. Once Irish imigrants traveled to the United States, they starting carving pumpkins instead of turnips because they’re native to the region.What we now call trick or treating used to be called humming. Celts would go door to door, dressed up in costumes singing to the dead. Cake would often be received as a reward.  People would also go door to door begging for food during this festival which eventually evolved into trick-or-treating. Since Celts believed ghosts walked the Earth during the Samhain festival, ghost stories arose and have been associated with Halloween.

The Celtics not only began Halloween for us in America, they also started traditions throughout the world. Halloween is celebrated by different cultures all over the world. Mexico celebrates Día de los Muertos, also known as Day of the Dead. In this time families are briefly reunited with the souls of their deceased relatives. Similar to the festival of Samhain, Día de los Muertos believes that the border between spirits and the living disband, giving them the opportunity to spend time with their past loved ones. In Japan, their typical quiet trains turn into a place of celebration with spooky themes. It’s uncommon for the trains to be decorated or lively at all but it completely changes for Halloween. They also have street parties, parades, and home gatherings to express their creative skills through unique costumes and decorations. Guatemala holds the Festival de Barriletes Gigantes where they hand-make vibrant kites as their way of communicating with the deceased. There are so many different traditions that cultures celebrate for Halloween that have shaped what we celebrate in America today. Whether it’s ghost stories, dressing up in costumes, or even communicating with the dead, Halloween wouldn’t be the same without it.