While you are nibbling away at the children’s Hallowe’en candy, you might want to give a thought to the origin of the holiday, which in many cultures extends to Nov. 1 and 2 as well. It is a period known as the Day of the Dead in many countries, especially Mexico and South America. We call them All Saints’ Day or All Souls’ Day. They are meant to be days to honor departed loved ones, and in some places include great frivolity. Some of us might find it peculiar to throw parties — some literally at the gravesite — but we have to remember that even when we gather for funerals, food appears as if for a feast. It may be intended just to meet a need, but sometimes wakes themselves become essentially parties.
Hallowe’en, or All Hallows’ Eve, dates back about 2,000 years when pre-Christian Celts celebrated Samhain, pronounced “sah-win” in Gaelic meaning “summer’s end.” It was a community event, occurring at the end of the harvest. It was also considered a time of communing with the dead. It was intended as an occasion to pay tribute, not to play tricks.
Dressing in costume probably goes back to the practice of “mumming,” when people would disguise themselves and go from door to door asking for food and performing skits. In Britain and Ireland poor people would knock on doors, begging food in exchange for prayers for the dead.
Samhain was considered to be a time for contacting the dead. Frequently times of transition in the year have been associated with the supernatural. The practice of mumming and the prospect of departed spirits roaming around easily explains the use of costumes, which morphed from ghosts and skeletons to all kinds of characters.
Among ancient people, Samhain was a time to pay tribute to conquerors and when old mounds were thought to reveal magical palaces of the underworld. It was less about death and evil than about the changing seasons and winter dormancy.
By the late 1800s Hallowe’en tricks were well established. By the 1920s and ’30s acts of vandalism became more serious. I, myself, can remember when the emphasis of the night was only on tricks, not treats. Around the time of World War II, youngsters began bargaining for treats against the threats of tricks. To keep pranks from getting out of hand, civic leaders began to promote trick-or-treating.
One of my favorite memories of our children’s Hallowe’ens was standing on the corner of our house lot and watching the brave little goblins scampering to the neighbors’ doors. In our neighborhood the best place to go was MSCW’s Dean Nellie Keirn’s house. She always invited the children in where she served them punch from a big black pot smoking with dry ice, homemade popcorn balls and all kinds of other goodies.
Beth Sims had an intercom connected to her doorbell. When it rang, her “witch’s voice” cawed, “Who’s that ringing my doorbell?”
When our preschool daughter Diana first heard it, she fled and did not stop until she had climbed to her daddy’s shoulders.
Apples have been associated with Hallowe’en as a treat and for fortune telling. Bobbing for apples predicted that the first young person to succeed in getting an apple from a water-filled bucket without using hands would be the first to marry.
Sadly, there is always a serpent in the garden. When our trick-or-treaters got to be 6 feet tall, we had to retire from the big progressive party. Still, Hallowe’en has left us with some of our most colorful memories.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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