Halloween, History And Where You Can Experience The Festivity


Search our Article Directory:
Home \| Culture And Society Halloween, History And Where You Can Experience The Festivity By: Jose Felix Lisbon, 28th of October 2006. According to historic manuscripts, Halloween dates back to traditions and customs of the civilization that occupied Gaul from the years 600 a.c to 800 a.c, where today is Portugal, Spain, Italy and Britain's Islands. The lit up pumpkins and door to door trick or treating became popular in the United States. Traditionally, Halloween was not related to witches. It was a festival marked on the Celts calendar, today a land we call Ireland, by druid priests, who joyfully commemorated their Gods and the dead - The Samhain festival, Lord of the dead, celebrated on the 1st of November. The festival also marked the end of summer, the coming of a new year and the abundance of crops. They believed that on the eve of October the 31st, Samhain summoned all the spirits that for the past twelve months had been doomed to live in the bodies of animals. On that very night, the community would gather around a fire offering their crops and animals, they were sure that it was then that the earth and the spiritual world collided. So they wore animal heads and skin as disguises to scare the spirits that were looking for human bodies. To get ride of the spirits, the druids had to offer them food or other gifts. If the spirits were happy with what they got, they would leave the population alone, but if they were not, they would play a trick or cast a spell, destroying the people who lived there. As Samham was a pagan celebration, it was not allowed in the rest of Europe during the Middle Ages; those who insisted on celebrating were tracked down and condemned to the fire by the Inquisition. The trick or treating began in Ireland just a few centuries back, naturally based on the druid's customs. A group of farmers of a small village got together and decided to honor their Gods by throwing a Halloween party. They went door to door begging for food to have at the party, the kind givers were whished good luck, but the ones that didn't give any food were threatened. As the celebration takes place over night, 31st of October to November the 1st, the name Halloween is believed to have come from the combination of Hallow Evening, taken to America by Irish emigrants (Celts) during the 19th Century. For over two thousand years Halloween has become a tradition in many countries because of the American cultural influence. This date is now a celebration where children and adults dress up in the scariest costumes and go out trick or treating. Black, orange and purple are the colors that symbolize Halloween. The main impersonations are of ghosts, witches, vampires, Jack-O-lantern, pumpkins, bats, skulls, skeletons, monsters, demons, spiders and other elements related to fear and magic as well as places our imagination takes us like cemeteries, haunted houses and other dark places. The icon symbol is the sculpted pumpkin, lit by a candle on the inside and put on our door steps. Legend has it that an Irish folk man, named Jack, was forced to walk alone and never to let the candle blow out so that his path always had light. In order to do so he sculpted a turnip and put the candle in. And because there are no turnips in the Unites States, people started using pumpkins instead, hence the world's famous symbol! They are the so called Jack-O Lantern. Article Source: http://www.articlekingpro.com Jose Felix is the Marketing and Communications Manager for ARTEH, the Best Independent Hotel Chain - Publituris Awards. To visit the Hotels or make your reservations please go to ARTEH - Hotels and Resorts. Please Rate this Article Not yet Rated Click the XML Icon Above to Receive Culture and Society Articles Via RSS! Additional Articles From - Home \| Culture And Society Canadian Online Shopping Tax Breaks? - By : Daniel Millions Stylish Watches Make You Feel Cool - By : Daniel Millions Menangle And It's History - By : Donna Mathews Serene Country Living in Cobbitty - By : Donna Mathews Tips For Buying Military Gifts - By : U.S. Military7 U.S. Military7 Applying For Immigration To New Zealand; An Extremely Rewarding Process - By : Thomas Pretty A Guide To The Career Of Sylvester Stallone - By : Dominic Donaldson Central Heating Jackets Are the Way Forward - By : Musa Aykac Worst Tattoo Ideas Seemed Good at the Time - By : jonathan scott That's How It Begins - Needles and Pins - By : jonathan scott	Sign Up for a free Article King Pro account or learn more. Submit Articles Member Login Top Authors Most Popular Articles Submission Guidelines Ezine Notifications Article RSS Feeds About Us Link to Us Contact Us Copyright & DMCA Privacy Policy Terms of Service This Website is Optimized for Firefox! Browse the Web Faster with Firefox for FREE! Most Recent Articles Canadian Online Shopping Tax Breaks? - By : Daniel Millions Stylish Watches Make You Feel Cool - By : Daniel Millions Menangle And It's History - By : Donna Mathews Serene Country Living in Cobbitty - By : Donna Mathews Tips For Buying Military Gifts - By : U.S. Military7 U.S. Military7 Applying For Immigration To New Zealand; An Extremely Rewarding Process - By : Thomas Pretty A Guide To The Career Of Sylvester Stallone - By : Dominic Donaldson Central Heating Jackets Are the Way Forward - By : Musa Aykac Worst Tattoo Ideas Seemed Good at the Time - By : jonathan scott That's How It Begins - Needles and Pins - By : jonathan scott