HALLOWEEN

ORIGINS 

The English term Halloween, of Irish origin, literally means All Saints' Night. The original term was "All Hallow's Eve" that is, eve of all saints and that is why it was celebrated on October 31.

In those days, most people, were farmers and their trade was based on agriculture. The color orange symbolized the harvest and black, the darkness of winter. This festival was named "Samhain".

It was also believed, that on the night of October 31, spirits could return to earth and take possession of the living. A myth that was able to terrorize all the villagers.
To prevent possession, the villagers would turn off the lights in their homes and uncover their faces and bodies with masks and ghastly clothing to be unappealing to the spirits.

As time went on, less and less was heard about the myth but people continued to dress up as a tradition.
 
IN AMERICA

Irish and Scottish immigrants brought their traditions with them to the United States in the 1800s. The ancient reason for celebrating All Saints' Day and The Day of the Dead became less and less important, making way for fun. A widespread holiday in America and Canada, where children dress up and leave their homes, knocking from door to door, reciting the famous phrase "trick-or-treat" in search of candy.
 
IN ITALY

For centuries people in Puglia have celebrated All Saints' Eve with decorated pumpkins to light the way for the souls in purgatory.
Disguising oneself in scary ways and believing that the dead return to earth are centuries-old beliefs in Friuli, Veneto and Abruzzo. Calabria, Sardinia also have their "trick or treat" formula in dialect to ask for sweets.


 
Did you know that...?

On Halloween people used to carve turnips? Immigrants to America, they did not find turnips big enough to carve but only great pumpkins.