Why Do People Celebrate Halloween?

Carved pumpkins, known as "Jack-O-Lanterns", are some of the most well-known symbols of Halloween.
Carved pumpkins, known as "Jack-O-Lanterns", are some of the most well-known symbols of Halloween.

Introduction

Each year children and adults in some parts of the world celebrate Halloween on October 31. Although the holiday brings about an esteemed hype and revered happiness, there is a lot that many who celebrate the holiday may not know.

Description

Halloween straddles a significant transition between two seasons (fall and winter) or, life and death. It is characterized by unique dressing which is broad enough to include a wide range of historic personalities, spiritual beliefs such as ghost, as well as current prominent pop culture. During the holiday there are a lot of activities which take place which include playing pranks, divination games, visiting haunted attractions and more.

The History of Halloween

The holiday is thought to have originated from one of the ancient Celtic festivals which was famously known as Samhain. The Halloween holidays involved an event where people would light bonfires and wear costumes to chase away roaming ghosts. However, during the epoch of Pope Gregory III, there was a slight change in the Catholic calendar. The pope added a date in the church calendar which would acknowledge all the saints in the church. The date was chosen to be November 1st every year, which coincidentally or incidentally almost coincided with the then already ongoing Samhain celebrations. However, a perfect and informed mash up between the two different traditional and religious background gave rise to Halloween as we see it today.

Halloween in America

Today, Halloween is one of the most cherished holidays throughout much of the western world. The holiday has taken a twist since its inception in 1745. The culture has evolved to span an array of activities which includes both commercial and fashion-related events. For children in the United States it is an opportunity to dress up in costumes and visit houses to be given goodies, including candy and chocolate. The youth and other young adults take the events a notch higher by playing pranks to their neighbors as well as friends. In South America, the day is mostly known as the day of the dead, and it involves praying for the departed souls and honoring whatever they stood for.

Why is Halloween Celebrated?

Halloween has evolved to cover an array of different activities as one goes down the historical lane. The reason for its celebration has been an ever changing subject since it began in the 18th century. In Celtic, the day marked a period between fall and winter where it was believed that the ghosts of the departed souls would descend the face of the earth hence people wore masks to avoid being seen at night. However, the Christians believe that it’s a day for remembering the departed souls and praying for all the saints especially in the Catholic religious beliefs hence the name Hallowe’en or All Hallows’ Eve which implies the evening before “All Hallows”, or Halloween as it’s popularly known today.

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