25 Things You Didn’t Know About Halloween Every October 31st people all over the world (or at least in most parts of Europe, North America, and Latin America) celebrate the ancient holiday of Halloween, also known as All Hallows’ Eve. Although today it features costumes, trick-or-treating, and ghost stories it wasn’t always that way. Read on to find out 25 things you didn’t know about Halloween.
25. Samhainophobia
Samhainophobia is the fear of Halloween.
24. Samhain
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In case you were wondering, Samhain is actually an ancient Celtic celebration during which people would dress up as ghouls and spirits in order to escape the notice of what they thought were real spirits wandering the streets.
23. Pomona
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Samhain wasn’t the only ancient festival to influence modern day Halloween. Pomona, an ancient Roman festival had a strong influence as well, especially with events like bobbing for apples.
22. Numerous Names
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Halloween has been called a number of things throughout the years including All Hallow’s Eve, Lamswool, Samhain, Summer’s End, and Snap-Apple Night.
21. Hallowe ‘en
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The modern name of “Halloween” derives from “Hallowe ‘en”, a contraction of the phrase All Hallows’ Eve.
20. Trick-or-Treating
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Trick or treating comes from an ancient Celtic tradition where people would put out treats to appease wandering spirits during the festival of Samhain.
19. An Owl’s Call
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Owls are popular halloween images. In medeival europe they were thought to be witches and hearing an owl’s call meant death was near.
18. Jack’s Lantern
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According to Irish legend Jack O’Lanterns get their name from a stingy man known as Jack who after trying to trick the devil several times was denied entrance into both heaven and hell. Since then he has been condemned to wander the Earth waving his lantern to lead people from their paths.
17. Souling
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“Souling� could be considered the medeival equivelant of trick or treating. Every November 1 on Hallowmas the poor would go from door to door offering prayers on behalf of the dead in exchange from soul cakes.
16. Irish Roots
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Although Halloween has certainly been influence by numerous ancient holidays and festivals, Ireland is widely considered to the be its birthplace.
15. Fire Cats
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Cats hold a prominent place in Halloween folklore and during the ancient celebration of Samhain Druids supposedly through them onto fires in wicker cages as part of their divination proceedings.
14. Fire Sheets
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According to tradition Scottish girls believed that if they hung wet sheets in front of the fire on Halloween they would see images of their future husband.
13. Days of the Dead
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In Mexico, rather than celebrating Halloween they celebrate the Days of the Dead on November 1st and 2nd during which all the townspeople dress up as ghouls and parade through the streets.
12. Ten Chieh
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In China people celebrate Teng Chieh, or the Lantern Festival. Lanterns in the shape of dragons are hung around town in order to lead spirits back to their earthly dwellings.
11. Capital Confusion
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Salem, Massachusetts and Anoka, Minnesota are both the self-proclaimed Halloween capitals of the world.
10. Festival of the Hungry Ghosts
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In Hong Kong Halloween celebrations are known as Yue Lan or “Festival of the Hungry Ghosts�. During the festivities fires are lit and food is offered to angry spirits seeking revenge.
9. Not So Scary
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Although Halloween today is considered a relatively scary ordeal, in the past this wasn’t the case. The ghosts that were celebrated during Samhain were actually the spirits of loved ones. The main reason fear became such a factor was because people believed that on October 31st the lines between this world and spirit world became blurred and if spirits could come here it meant that people could be transported there.
8. Trick-or-Treat
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The first incidence of the phrase “trick-or-treating” in print appeared in a Chicago newspaper in 1927.
7. That’s So Gross
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After Christmas, Halloween is the highest grossing holiday of the year
6. An Unwelcome Influence
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In many countries it is seen as an unwelcome, excessively commercialized American influence.
5. A Word to the Wise
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Children are over 2 times as likely to be killed in a car/pedestrian accident than any other night.
4. Pumpkin Carving
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Pumpkin carving comes from a method used by the Celts to ward off evil spirits during Samuin. They would hollow out turnips, carve faces in them, and then put candles inside to keep the spirits at bay.
3. A Serious Sweet Tooth
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Americans purchase roughly 600 million pounds of candy every Halloween.
2. Not Just For Kids
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Although modern day Halloween is typically thought of as a kid’s holiday, adult costume sales account for 62% of total costume sales every year.
1. Pricey Pets
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Americans will spend $310 million to dress up their pets on Halloween this year.
Read more: http://list25.com/25-things-you-didnt-know-about-halloween/ Futhermore: 25 Things You Didn’t Know About Halloween
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