The History of Halloween
-Emma Brown

The night of ghosts, spookies, and candy is widely loved by people of all ages, but where did the trick-or-treating holiday begin?

Over 2,000 years ago, the ancient Celts would celebrate the end of the summer, called Samhain, on October 31st. They believed the line between the living and dead were blurred that day, causing spirits to come among them. In order to scare off those spirits, they would wear masks, and costumes.

Years later, around the 8th century, All Saints’ Day was created by the Catholics in order to honor saints and martyrs on November 1st. The night before became known as All Hallows’ Eve, later shortened to Halloween.

In medieval times, trick-or-treating started. Poor families would go around, door to door, offering prayers for dead loved ones for food. Sometimes, people would even go around in disguises to perform tricks or sing songs to get even more food.

In the 20th century, the rise of our modern day halloween began. After World War II, candy companies began promoting trick or treating as a family friendly tradition, causing more families to participate in taking their children around. Movies that came out in the 1970’s began to make the holiday more commercial, leading to traditions today.