On the night of October 31 to November 1, many countries around the world celebrate Halloween, or Witch's Night - a holiday of evil spirits. This is one of the most popular mystical holidays in the world. collected Interesting Facts about this holiday.
Halloween is a Celtic pagan holiday.
The tribes living in what is now Ireland, Scotland and England divided the year into two seasons - winter and summer, and October 31 was the last day of the year. According to traditions, it was on the night of October 31 to November 1 that evil spirits came to the world of people. In order to protect themselves from them, it was customary to dress up in scary costumes.
When many Irish, Scots and English emigrated to America in the 19th century, the holiday migrated with them. It is one of the most popular holidays in the USA today.
According to legend, evil spirits do not harm people - they just wander between them, but there are also aggressive creatures that need to be coaxed with gifts and sweets.
In contrast to this holiday, the Catholic Church began to celebrate the Day of All Saints on November 1, and on November 2 to honor the memory of all the dead.
The name Halloween was first mentioned in 1745. The word comes from the English Hallowe'en - an abbreviation of the expression All Hallow's Eve - the evening (eve) of All Saints' Day, which in turn stands for All Hallowed Souls Eve - literally: Evening of all holy souls.
Halloween in Ukraine
In Ukraine, the holiday began to be celebrated relatively recently. Young people celebrate it most actively, but there are many skeptics who consider the holiday to be a foreign tradition. In nightclubs, traditionally on the night of October 31 to November 1, Halloween parties are held, where a mandatory dress code applies. They also hold various competitions - for the best costume and for the most terrible makeup.
How Halloween is celebrated in different countries peace
So, in Austria there is a festival “Pumpkin holiday”. On November 11, Austria celebrates Saint Martin's Day. People walk the streets in costumes and with lanterns in their hands. Some Austrians believe that if they leave bread, water and a lit lantern outside the door of their house, then dead souls will return to earth that night.
In Belgium, some villages celebrate Halloween, while others celebrate All Saints' Day more. On Halloween night, Belgians usually light candles in memory of a deceased relative.
Halloween was brought to Canada by Scottish and Irish immigrants who arrived on the mainland in the early 19th century. Canada actively celebrates Halloween every year on October 31st. Everything is traditional for this holiday, bright orange pumpkins, awesome costumes, treats, parties.
Halloween was brought to China by foreigners. In places where many emigrants live, the atmosphere of this pagan holiday is usually felt. Nevertheless, China also has its own holidays for the remembrance of the dead - the festival of hungry ghosts, for example.
In England, on Halloween, children carve scary faces not only in pumpkins but also in beets.
Since Halloween is not traditional French holiday, periodically there are disputes related to the celebrations of October 31. This holiday is a new trend for some French people. Nevertheless, young people are happy to arrange costume parties.
In Germany, Halloween became popular in the 1990s. People start preparing for the holiday from mid-October. On November 11, the Germans, like the Austrians, celebrate Saint Martin's Day. People arrange festivities, dressing up in costumes.
Halloween in Hong Kong is getting more and more popular in last years. Hong Kong uses Halloween to commercialize its theme parks such as Disneyland and Ocean Park. Hong Kong residents also decorate their malls to reflect the eerie atmosphere.
The birthplace of Halloween is Ireland. It is a custom among Irish children to knock on neighbors' doors and run away before the owners open them. In addition, the Irish play a Halloween card game in which children choose a card and receive any prize for it. On this day, the Irish traditionally eat fruit cake - barnbrack. In barnbrack, when baking, it is customary to hide various surprises, and, depending on what gets inside the one who eats the cake, this will be the prediction for the future.
Halloween in Japan became popular when Tokyo Disneyland and Universal Studios Japan began to popularize the celebration. In 2000, Halloween was celebrated at Tokyo Disneyland for the first time. Now the Japanese also decorate their homes and dress up in costumes.
Halloween is not celebrated in Korea. However, Korea has a harvest festival called Chuseok (Korea Thanksgiving). During Chuseok, Koreans visit places where their ancestors lived.
Halloween Attributes
People who celebrate Halloween decorate their homes with pumpkins, artificial cobwebs, candles and dry leaves. Halloween has orange and black colors. Housewives often prepare treats in the form of spiders, ghosts, “witch fingers”.
Halloween and kids
According to tradition, it is customary to distribute sweets to children who go from house to house and say the phrase “Trick or Treats” (Sweets or nasty things).
Pumpkin - Jack's O'Lantern
The tradition of carving a scary face from a pumpkin has existed for many centuries. So, according to the legend of the greedy blacksmith and drunkard Jack, who deceived the devil three times and bargained for himself long years of carefree life, as well as a promise not to claim his soul after death. When Jack died, his soul did not go to heaven. Jack is forced to wander the earth in anticipation of Judgment Day, lighting his way with a piece of coal, which he put in an empty pumpkin head. Thus, according to the Celtic tradition, Jack's lamp was considered a lantern that helps souls find their way to purgatory.
Today it is believed that a gourd lantern will ward off evil spirits.
Photos from open sources
Position of the UOC-MP
Archpriest of the UOC-MP Georgy Kovalenko believes that modern Christians should think not about whether they should celebrate Halloween, but about how best to do it.
The clergyman proposes to rename this day the Day of All Non-Saints, so that "the form corresponds to the content."
According to him, the church does not approve of flirting with evil spirits, but believers themselves give Halloween a religious connotation.
Position of Catholics and Greek Catholics
In the Catholic Church of the Roman Rite, on November 1, All Saints' Day is celebrated, and the next day is the commemoration of all the dead believers, which originates along with the cult of the first martyrs. Christians celebrated "Birthday in Heaven", which was the day of Christian martyrdom.
The Eastern Church also honors All Saints' Day. This emphasizes the connection between holiness and the Holy Spirit. The dead, in the Eastern Church, are commemorated every Saturday. IN church calendar there are several Saturdays during the year when the ecumenical commemoration of all the dead takes place.
However, despite the fact that the majority of our fellow Ukrainians who are baptized believe that the celebration of Halloween is normal and harmless to society.
“It hurts to watch our children from Christian families when, through the mouth of their godparents in the sacrament of baptism, they renounced Satan three times and promised to serve Christ as many times, they begin to revere all evil spirits, and their own parents, with enthusiasm and perseverance, help turn the faces of their children into the faces of ghouls, witches, sorcerers and the like. They vied with each other to joke about what, in fact, it is necessary to sound the alarm ... How can we call ourselves Christians and do something that is contrary to Christianity? We can confidently conclude that Halloween is a holiday of evil that glorifies demons, promotes cruelty, idolatry, and immorality,” the diocese of the UGCC said in a statement.
All Saints' Eve, known to most as Halloween, is celebrated all over the globe. On the night from October to November, children go to beg for sweets, young people arrange parties, putting on themed costumes, and decorative pumpkins are bought up in stores.
history of the holiday
halloween has long history. Ireland is considered the birthplace of the holiday. The tradition of celebrating All Saints' Day originated with the ancient Celts. Samhain is considered the most distant relative of Halloween. This pagan holiday was associated with the end of seasonal agricultural work. Samhain was celebrated at the end of October and lasted for a whole week. The Celts believed that at this time the door to the world of the dead opened, and the souls of the dead wandered on earth.
In the 8th century, the Celts had a holiday known as All Saints' Day. This celebration has similarities to modern Halloween. Since then, both holidays began to be celebrated simultaneously, until they became one.
The festival has been called Halloween since the 16th century. The name came from English version the name of All Saints' Day All-Hallows-Even, which received the Scottish abbreviation. Over time, the holiday began to take on more and more similarities with modern Halloween. People began to go from house to house and beg for sweets from the 16th century. In the 19th century, the custom of dressing up in scary costumes appeared. At the same time, for the holiday, they began to carve faces on pumpkins.
Halloween Traditions
This mystical celebration is known for its special customs. Like Halloween itself, its traditions are rooted in other festivities. On the night of October 31 to November 1, it is customary to guess and tell horror stories. Famous entertainments include catching apples from the water without the help of hands. But the most common traditions are begging for sweets, as well as preparing themed costumes.
Asking for sweets, moving from house to house, began in the Middle Ages, but the tradition was more connected with Christmas. Poor people knocked on doors and begged for Christmas cookies and other goodies. In exchange for this, the poor promised to read prayers for the deceased relatives of the owners. The tradition was widespread in England, and according to some sources, also in Italy.
The custom of begging for sweets began to relate to Halloween only in the 20th century in the United States. Then the famous phrase “trick-or-treat” appeared in Russian, known as “trick or treat”. This means a frivolous threat to the owners if they do not give sweets.
The second well-known tradition - themed outfits and costumes - originates from carnival or costume parties. Halloween costumes began to be worn at the very end of the 19th century in Scotland. In other countries, the custom began to spread by the beginning of the 20th century.
The original costumes were monotonous and consisted of black clothes and masks with pale, thin faces. The costumes have changed over time. People began to portray monsters, evil spirits and supernatural beings. Often dressed up in costumes of vampires, witches, zombies. These days, during Halloween, people in costumes do not only portray monsters. It can be an image of a celebrity, a magical creature, or a character from comics or movies.
Symbols
The main and well-known attribute of Halloween is a pumpkin with a scary muzzle carved on it and a candle inside. Not everyone knows that this lamp has a name - "Jack's Lantern". This festive attribute got its name because of the old Irish legend about the cunning blacksmith Jack. He was able to deceive the devil, and he had to promise Jack that he would not take him to Hell after death. When the blacksmith died, the road to heaven was closed to him. Then Jack went to hell, but the devil wouldn't let him in. The road from hell was dark, and the devil gave the blacksmith a burning coal to help him. Then Jack put it in a carved turnip in the form of a lantern. Such lanterns began to be made on All Saints' Day, however, the material then most often served as a swede, and not a pumpkin. It was believed that the lamp helped souls reach purgatory. They also believed that a lantern near the house would drive away evil spirits.
Halloween symbols include costumes of monsters, mainly Frankenstein, witches, zombies, vampires and mummies. The colors of the holiday are black and orange. Garden scarecrows are also considered decoration symbols.
halloween dishes
Halloween is famous for its themed holiday table, and more specifically for its sweets. Most of the goodies are made from apples, which are presented in various forms: baked apples, apples in caramel, apples in syrup, sweets and candies with apple flavor. A frequent ingredient for dishes is pumpkin. They bake pies or make cookies from it. Candies in the form of pumpkins are also not uncommon. In Ireland, a bread called barmbrack is prepared for the holiday. The peculiarity of bread is that a small little thing is baked in it. She can predict the future of whoever gets caught. For example, the ring spoke of the upcoming wedding, and the pea, on the contrary, meant that the marriage was still a long time to wait.
Music
Like Halloween itself, its theme music is known for its mystical mood. The two most popular songs of the holiday, "This is Halloween" and "Monster Mash", are Halloween anthems of sorts. "This is Halloween" is the soundtrack to Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas. It was written by Danny Elfman and the song has been translated into several languages. "Monster Mash" was written by Bobby Pickett in 1962. The music of the duo Midnight Syndicate is also often associated with Halloween. The group even has an album written specifically for the horror holiday.
halloween celebration
Widely celebrate the modern Halloween began, of course, in his homeland - England, Ireland and Scotland. Very quickly in the 19th century, the holiday spread throughout Canada and the United States. Then the custom began to be adopted by many countries, primarily English-speaking ones. Halloween has long been celebrated in Europe and Central Asia. Many of these countries developed their own "folk" Halloween traditions over time. So, for example, the Irish are known for putting on pyrotechnic performances during the holiday. In Russia, Halloween, as a rule, is not celebrated with all its traditions and customs. There was even an initiative to ban Halloween, as it is considered a pagan holiday of evil. However, every year the traditions of the celebration more and more penetrate the country. Halloween is popular with the younger generation. By the end of October, shops are selling themed costumes, and clubs and bars are hosting nightly parties in honor of the holiday.
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Halloween is considered an American holiday. In the countries of the former Soviet Union, a rather interesting celebration began to be celebrated recently. Every American knows what date Halloween is held in the USA. In our country, the date of this holiday is known mainly by the younger generation.
Halloween is a celebration of various evil spirits: witches and vampires, ghosts and spirits. At first glance, the holiday is a little creepy and not quite familiar to the Slavic people. The triumph of evil spirits is very ancient, it is already more than a thousand years old. It combines Celtic and Slavic traditions: you need to honor evil spirits and worship all the saints.
So, when is Halloween celebrated all over the world? This is the night from October 31st to November 1st. Every year, everyone who wants to dress up in costumes of evil spirits and go to the houses of relatives and neighbors with a request to give them food and drink. People are sympathetic to this custom, happy to give sweets. It is believed that such a treat will propitiate the spirits. The most important Halloween item is the pumpkin. The inside of the vegetable is cleaned, a burning candle is inserted. Eyes, nose and mouth are carved on the front side. What date does Halloween end? Yes, on the same night, from October 31 to November 1.
Motherland of celebration
Back in the sixteenth century in Scotland and Ireland, everyone knew what date Halloween was celebrated in their country. It is these states that are considered the birthplace of the triumph of evil spirits. The word Halloween is an abbreviated English phrase "All Hallows Even". Her translation sounds like "the evening of all saints."
Nicholas Rogers (historian) has a suggestion that Halloween originated after the celebration of Saiman (a pagan Celtic holiday). Samhain is an old Irish word meaning "end of summer". The celebration has always been considered something unusual and mystical. Over time, instead of Sayman, a celebration called All Saints' Day appeared. It was with him that the formation of Halloween began. So, quickly the triumph of evil spirits became popular in the USA and Europe. Currently, more and more Russian and Ukrainian people know what day and month Halloween is celebrated all over the world. 16th to 19th centuries spread new tradition: on the night of evil spirits, wander around houses in costumes and masks and beg for sweets.
fancy clothes
The Halloween holiday (what date is held above) is now very popular among Americans. Ukraine and Russia are just beginning to learn more about all the intricacies of this celebration. One of the traditions of the holiday is the costume. Unusual clothes can now be bought not only in a specialized store, but simply in the market. On the night of November 1, you need to be in a suit of evil spirits. Usually people choose characters from horror movies. For example, it can be vampires or mummies, witches or ghosts. There are also color preferences. Very fashionable - black and orange.
At the Halloween masquerade, there is music that is made up of frightening sounds: the howl of a wolf, the creak of a door, the cries of unknown creatures. This genre is called "ambient". What date is Halloween, now many people of the countries of the former USSR know. The traditions of this holiday are becoming more and more popular in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus.
The song "Monster Mash" by famous musician Bobby Pickett is played at the annual celebrations. In a way, it has become a Halloween anthem. Popular compositions are created for this holiday. The Midnight Syndicate band released an entire album four years ago under the grandiose name "Halloween Music Collection". The work of this group is associated with Halloween for many people.
All Souls' Day
In the United States, the holiday of evil spirits was brought by settlers and emigrants from Ireland and Scotland back in the twentieth century. It quickly spread throughout America. Millions of people accepted the celebration with great joy. It's called Memorial Day. Some traditions are reminiscent of Slavic holiday- Easter. Relatives of the dead clean near the graves, carefully lay out sweets and cookies on them, light candles. All these actions are carried out so that the souls of the dead can return to their homes.
For the Russian and Ukrainian population, Halloween is just a bright and interesting show. It is not associated with any traditions or reading of ancestors. People just love fun celebration, which has the context of American culture.
A fairly large number of people already know what date Halloween is held in Russia and Ukraine. This is the night from October 31st to November 1st. This year, the Russian state also plans to celebrate the original Scottish holiday. The noisy and bright show is to the liking of the Slavic youth.
Celebration Attributes
In countries where Halloween has a special meaning, it is customary to decorate the house and cook festive table. The most important is the presence of attractions.
In America, they organize huge rooms that are inhabited by ghosts and monsters. It is important to scare the guest - this is the main entertainment. Such a place of attractions in one night of Halloween can be visited by half a million visitors. Inside the ghost house, everything is high-tech equipped, there are labyrinths.
Also people celebrating Halloween prepare interesting dishes from apples (because the holiday falls at the time when apples are harvested). For example, it is syrup or caramel. It is also important to bake "magic" bread called "Barmbrek". In Ireland, it was used to predict the future. When the dough was kneaded, several items were placed there: a ring and a small piece of cloth, peas and money. If a person comes across a ring, this is a sign that a wedding will take place soon, while peas are the opposite. If there is fabric in a piece of bread, it means that poverty awaits ahead, money - wealth.
Bright show
With each onset of autumn, the question becomes popular: "What date is Halloween celebrated in Russia and Ukraine?" According to social polls, very few people know when this celebration takes place. But every second person heard about the holiday itself.
For Russia, Halloween is another bright and interesting show. He especially likes children. After all, it is on this holiday that the guys paint their faces, put on costumes and masks of fairy-tale and mystical characters. For children in Russia and Ukraine, Halloween is celebrated on October 31, but for the older generation it is all night: from October 31st to November 1st. Moscow nightclubs invite you to have fun even for several days, offering their customers a special program.
Preparation for the holiday
In England, America, Ireland, Spain and many other countries, Halloween is prepared in advance. People grow or buy huge pumpkins. They make lanterns out of them (they insert a candle inside) that will scare away evil spirits. Light bulbs are hung inside and outside the house, they symbolize the sacred fire. In shops and markets on the eve of the mystical holiday, a large number of sweets are sold, mainly sweets and pastries.
Another favorite tradition, including among Russian and Ukrainian youth, is bright costumes. Every year the images become more interesting and extravagant. Witches and ghosts, monsters and evil spirits are replaced by clown faces and cat whiskers.
Special programs
Apparently, in Russia and Ukraine, Halloween will be delayed for many years. Every new season more and more attributes for this holiday appear in stores. The choice of masquerade costumes is simply amazing with its wide variety.
For children under the age of eighteen, special programs are prepared in zoos and water parks. The store also has a wide range of accessories. In some Russian cities, whole crowds of colorful and interestingly dressed children walk the streets and ask adults for treats.
Halloween is a holiday traditionally celebrated on the eve of the Catholic Day of All Saints, on the night of October 31st to November 1st. It is especially common in English-speaking countries.
It is widely celebrated in the UK, Northern Ireland, USA, Australia and New Zealand, although it is not a public holiday. The characteristic paraphernalia and mystical background gradually make this holiday popular in most countries of the world, including Russia.
History of occurrence
Halloween, like many other modern European holidays, has its origins in the pre-Christian era. It was then that the people of the Celts were settled by many tribes in the territory of present-day France, Ireland and Great Britain. The ancient Celts had their own language, pagan beliefs and a calendar that divided the year into two halves - summer and winter. The dark part of the year, winter, when agricultural work was impossible, began in November, and October 31st was the last day of the outgoing year. The same number was also the last day of harvesting.
The celebration of the New Year and the completion of the field work lasted a whole week. The middle of the holiday was the night of the first of November. This day the Celts called Samhain, which means "end of summer" in the local language. In addition to sharing the harvest, it was customary to especially honor the dead on this day. It was believed that on the night between the last and the first day of the year, the door to the other world magically opens, and souls of the dead, ghosts, go out to people.
In order not to become an accidental victim of the inhabitants of the underworld, the Celts dressed in animal skins, left their dark dwellings at night, near which tasty gifts were left for ghosts, and gathered around huge, two-row bonfires lit by druids. Between these bonfires, it was customary for the whole tribe to pass, with children in their arms, and also to jump over smaller bonfires. It was believed that the power of fire purifies people and allows them to enter into New Year with a pure soul. On the holiday, part of the cattle was also slaughtered, the bones of the killed animals were thrown into the Sacred Fire, and the future was predicted from the drawing left by the fire on the bones.
At the same time, there was a tradition of carving faces expressing various emotions on the harvested vegetables. Most often, the carving was done on the turnip, a type of fodder turnip grown for livestock. Leaving the main night of Samhain celebration, everyone took with them a hollow “head” of turnips, inside of which red-hot coals from the Holy Fire were placed. Such a lamp drove away evil spirits roaming the streets until the morning. It was he who became the prototype of the Jack-O-Lantern.
The original traditions of the celebration of the Celtic New Year were passed down from generation to generation almost until the beginning of our era. Only after the conquest by the Romans, the Celts adopted Christianity and were forced to forget about their pagan customs. But with the advent of Catholicism, Samhain suddenly received a new round of development - the ancient Celtic traditions of its celebration were reflected in the church holiday of All Saints Day, celebrated on November 1st. The eve of this day, called in English language Hallows-Even - Hallows Evening or "Evening of the Saints", over time acquired an abbreviated name inherent in modern holiday, Halloween (Halloween). At the same time, Halloween received an ominous reputation as a black pagan celebration only in the Middle Ages, when it was described in this way by Christian monks.
Holiday symbols
The night before the holiday, All Saints Day is celebrated according to the changed times, but still retaining the main features, Celtic beliefs. On Halloween, the celebrants dress in carnival costumes, arrange parties and festivities. The main symbol of this day is a lantern carved from a large pumpkin. The Celts made such lamps on the occasion of the harvest, and also so that the lost dead souls would quickly find their way to the other world with the help of a lantern. The traditional vegetable used to be fodder turnip, but with the advent of the holiday in the United States, pumpkin has become more popular as a vegetable, more common and cheaper in the autumn season.
Among the costumes made for Halloween, frightening characters are traditionally considered the most popular: vampires, werewolves, monsters, witches, ghosts and other mystical heroes. Celebrants decorate their homes with an autumn motif, pumpkin lamps are placed on the porch and window sills. In addition to vegetable lanterns, garden scarecrows, paper and plastic skeletons, cobwebs, candles, and dried plant and leaf arrangements are popular decoration items. By tradition, the main colors of the holiday were all shades of orange and black.
Lamp Jack
A large ripe pumpkin, with a very frightening face carved on it, which is illuminated by a candle lit from the inside, has become the main symbol of Halloween. This homemade lantern was given the name Jack Lantern or Jack Lantern. An ancient Irish legend is connected with the history of the emergence of this brightest symbol of the holiday.
It is believed that Jack was a blacksmith, very greedy and hungry for money and booze. The inhabitants of his village are so tired of the importunate drinking companion that there are simply no people who want to miss a glass with him. Then Jack offered to drink a bottle in a local eatery to Lucifer himself. The devil agreed to keep him company. And when it was time to pay for the drink, Jack suggested that the naive Satan turn into a coin, to which he also agreed. The cunning blacksmith, without thinking twice, immediately hid the coin in his pocket, where a pre-prepared cross was already waiting. Lucifer fell into a trap and could not get out of the trap where the image of the Savior was. Jack surrendered to Satan's persuasion to release him in exchange for a promise to help the blacksmith in every possible way in business.
The devil fell into Jack's trap for the second time, when the cunning blacksmith begged him to get apples from the very top of the tree. Lucifer, who climbed to the top, simply could not get off it, since Jack depicted a cross on the crown of the apple tree. This time, Satan managed to escape by promising Jack not to take his soul after death. The blacksmith-drunkard released Lucifer and lived a carefree life, and when the hour of death came, they refused to accept his soul in both Paradise and Hell. Unnecessary to either the Devil or God, the blacksmith began to wander in search of Purgatory. He illuminated his path with a lantern carved from a hollow turnip, in which the remains of coals smoldered.
Lamps made of vegetables, traditionally from turnips, the British left on the porch of their houses on the feast of All Saints' Day in order to drive away unfriendly spirits from their homes. In North America, this tradition did not spread until the nineteenth century, when European emigrants settled the country. At the same time, the Jack Lamp became a direct symbol of Halloween only at the very end of the 19th century.
halloween music
The ancient Celts did not accompany the Samhain holiday with any music, so the traditional musical accompaniment this day has not. But Halloween, as a holiday that gained the greatest popularity already in the twentieth century, found its own theme songs and melodies. Since the main leitmotif of the celebration is mysticism, the theme of the other world and its inhabitants, the corresponding music is played. So, the song “Monster Mush” performed by Bobby Pickett is considered the anthem of Halloween. The soundtrack from The Nightmare Eve Christmas Musical is also very popular at Halloween parties. The theme of this holiday is also imbued with the work of the Midnight Syndicate (“Midnight Syndicate”), many of whose compositions are filled with a mystical theme.
Mixes of frightening sounds, such as howling wolves, ominous creaks, mysterious howls and evil laughter, are often used in Halloween attractions and fun. At youth parties on the occasion of the holiday, popular cheerful and dance music is used. In the clubs - remixes and tracks specially created by DJs.
Holiday traditions
The main tradition of the holiday was the dressing in fancy dresses, visits to specialized attractions, games, begging for sweets and parties with a festive table.
Suits
Putting on carnival costumes for this holiday originates in the tradition of the Celtic peoples to dress in animal skins on Samhain to protect themselves from evil spirits and ghosts. In modern history, it was not until the late nineteenth century that dressing up in a scary costume for Halloween became accepted. For the first time such a case was described in the UK, 1895. Local kids dressed in masks and outfits fairytale heroes, went to the neighbors' houses to collect goodies and small coins. In the rest of Europe, as well as in North America, such a tradition did not exist until the beginning of the 20th century.
Today, carnival costumes for the celebration of Halloween begin to be sold in the summer. In the US, there are specialized stores and shops for these purposes. And if a hundred years ago baby suit included only an ugly mask depicting a haggard, disfigured face, now any factory-made Halloween costume looks really festive and bright. As a rule, adults and children dress up in the image of fantastic movie characters, fairy-tale characters, both evil and frightening, for example, zombies, and good ones.
With the advent of the 21st century, Halloween parties began to turn into real fancy-dress shows. So, in 2014, the images of the heroes of the Harry Potter saga became the most popular costumes for the holiday. At the same time, people use not only the masks and clothes of the characters, but also completely recreate the image of the chosen character, using makeup and accessories.
Begging for a treat
The traditional entertainment on Halloween, oddly enough, is primarily reminiscent of Christmas. Just like in Russia at Svyatki, children dressed in costumes go from house to house and hope to receive sweets or coins from their neighbors. But on Halloween, this tradition has its own characteristics.
Children dress up in clothes and masks depicting monsters or other unkind characters, go from house to house in the neighborhood, begging for various sweets. At the same time, they ask the owners the question “Trick or treat?”, Which means “Trick or Treat?” in translation. This question contains a joking threat to cause some kind of trouble to the owners if they do not give the children coins, sweets or other treats.
This tradition has spread in Western Europe and America since the beginning of the twentieth century. At the same time, neighbors who want to see costumed children on the threshold of their house decorate the porch with Halloween symbols - Jack Lamp, candles, artificial skeletons and other frightening things. And those who do not want to participate in the general fun simply put out a basket filled to the brim with a sweet treat.
Despite modern distribution, the tradition of begging for food during church holidays has its roots in the Middle Ages. At that time, it was commonplace that the poor on this holiday come to sing prayers and mournful songs under the windows of the townspeople, hoping to receive food or money. With Halloween, this tradition was first combined in the UK in 1895, when children in one of the villages dressed up in costumes and went through the houses of their neighbors, begging for sweets.
Most common in modern world the tradition of asking for sweets from neighbors was received in the USA, Great Britain, Northern Ireland, countries of Latin, Central America and Western Europe. However, the details vary from region to region. For example, in the Caribbean, children instead of the question "Disgusting or sweet?" they ask the question “Where is my little skull?”, and the neighbors give them sweets made in the form of a sugar or chocolate human head.
Halloween games
Like any holiday that has an ancient background, Halloween has a number of characteristic games, rituals and fortune-telling. They are most widespread in Ireland and Scotland. So, girls in Scottish villages tell fortunes using the peel of an apple. To do this, they cut off the skin from a ripe fruit, while trying to keep the skin as long as possible. They then throw it over their left shoulder. On the skin that fell to the floor, you need to see the first letter of the groom's name.
Another divination game was common in England. Unmarried young ladies had to enter a house unlit by light with their backs forward and lead a burning candle in front of a mirror. It was believed that in this way they would be able to see the face of the betrothed. If a young girl sees a skull, then this means that she will remain unmarried until her death.
Halloween attractions
The organization of spooky rides and carousels, dubbed "ghost rides", is a staple of Halloween celebrations in the West as well. The first such entertainment was equipped in 1915.
In the United States, where such attractions are mainly spread, they are held every autumn. At the same time, the technical equipment of these peculiar frightening parks is constantly growing. Thick fog, ominous sounds and rustles, mysterious music, squeaks and special effects are used here for one purpose - to scare customers. Visiting "ghost attractions" is undesirable for pregnant women, children, people who are especially impressionable or with an unstable psyche.
In addition to seasonal theme parks, Halloween theme is widespread at Disneyland. This holiday is celebrated in all the parks of the Disney corporation, thematic attractions are set up, where the scenery changes every year.
Traditional holiday table
On Halloween, which in its origins has cooled down to the harvest festival, sweets are traditionally served from fruits, mainly apples. Apple caramel and sweet chocolate covered apples sprinkled with colorful confetti and nuts became the main delicacies of the holiday. You can either cook them at home or buy them at the Halloween market or in the park with scary rides.
At the beginning of the 20th century, there was a tradition in Great Britain to make sweets from apples and distribute them to children begging for sweets in their neighbors. But she quickly went out of use due to cases when evil townspeople stuffed such sweets with needles. In order not to avoid the occurrence of traumatic situations, the authorities banned the distribution of such delicacies.
Now in North America, special sweets are made for Halloween, called "candy corn" and "candy pumpkin". These are sweets in the form of a pumpkin or an ear of corn. Since the beginning of the century, the recipe has not changed much, as has the manual method of preparation. Sweets are prepared mainly from molasses, gelatin, sugar and natural juice.
In Ireland, a special bread is traditionally baked for Halloween, "barmbrek". This is a sweet bun with raisins, in which various objects are hidden - a ring, a coin, a pea, a piece of wood and a piece of cloth. According to the item you got, you can find out your fate, so the ring means a quick wedding, a piece of wood - loneliness or divorce, a pea - celibacy, fabric - failure in money matters, and a coin - wealth. Now similar bread, cut into toast with butter, can be found throughout the United Kingdom. In its factory versions, objects denoting the future are made of plastic or edible material.
Halloween in Russia and the world
Initially, Halloween was celebrated only in countries that inherited the Celtic culture. Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales are the regions where this holiday was formed. Since the end of the nineteenth century, emigrants have spread the tradition of celebrating Halloween in the United States, where it has become especially widespread and has taken on its modern look. In the twentieth century, when boundaries have become a very elusive concept, this cheerful and bright holiday gradually began to spread throughout the world. Today, in addition to the countries of America and Europe, Halloween is popular in Asian countries.
The holiday came to Russia in the nineties and is still considered very exotic. For the Russians, Halloween is primarily an opportunity to have a fun carnival party, with the opportunity to dress up in costumes of mystical characters.
IN Russian Federation Halloween is not officially a holiday, but every year it is celebrated by many people in the country. Mystical Halloween is eagerly awaited not only by lovers of traditional European and American culture, but also simply by young people who are interested in the idea of this celebration. In 2019, Halloween will be celebrated on Thursday, October 31st.
It is on this evening at the end of the week on New Year's Eve that costumed holidays will be held throughout the country and around the world, where anyone can be at least for a few hours whoever they want. In Russia, the harvest festival appeared recently - only at the end of the 20th century, and became widespread even later - about ten years ago. And, as a result, despite the fact that Halloween is a holiday with a very long, centuries-old history, every time people have a question about the date of its celebration.
Halloween prototype
Halloween is one of the most ancient holidays, which originates in paganism, namely, in the beliefs of the ancient Celts. It is believed that the prototype of Halloween is a holiday that simultaneously begins the new year and ends the outgoing one, and it is called Samhain. His cult is intertwined with the image of everything otherworldly and incredible. The real Halloween continued these traditions.
The sinister story of Halloween
Now Halloween is celebrated in the evening and at night on the eve of the Catholic All Saints Day, which is celebrated annually on November 1 (in Orthodoxy, All Saints Day takes place in the summer, on the first Sunday after Trinity). According to legend, on this night, the line that exists between the world of the dead (spirits) and the world of the living is slightly opened, as a result of which all evil spirits and undead gain freedom, and witches and various monsters acquire special power. And in order to survive and not suffer among this bacchanalia of dark forces, it is necessary to pretend to be one of them, that is, to dress up in costumes of evil spirits, among which you can often find a ghost, a mummy, and some kind of monster, as well as skeletons and vampires. Undoubtedly, no one has thought about the significance of dressing up for a long time, and Halloween has turned into just a fun costumed holiday.
Children's tradition for Halloween
Apart from outlandish outfits, this holiday notable for begging for sweets such as Trick-or-treat. With such ominous words (translated as "Joke or Treat") on Halloween evening, children in many English-speaking countries, going out into the streets and visiting neighboring houses, beg for candy. Therefore, on the eve of the holiday, every inhabitant of these countries prepares for such jokes by buying large quantities of sweets for little petitioners. The kids even arrange a competition among themselves, the winner of which must collect the most candies. In such cases, the counting of sweets and their division takes place after going around all the neighbors.
Pumpkin lantern as a symbol of Halloween
Without a doubt, one of the symbols of Halloween is Jack's lantern, made in the form of a pumpkin with a smiling face carved on it, inside of which a candle is placed. Such an ominous lantern is an indispensable attribute of the holiday. It is believed that Halloween lanterns are lit for lost souls so that they can find their way home in the darkness of the night. Previously, not only lanterns, but also oil bowls and torches acted as lamps. But, since Halloween is also a harvest festival, lamps from turnips, turnips and pumpkins appeared over time. It was the pumpkin that took root everywhere and became a real symbol of the holiday. Even one of the official colors of Halloween is, in addition to black, pumpkin orange. Also, this vegetable is part of most dishes of the festive menu. Pumpkins act as decor when decorating not only residential buildings, but also shops, as well as premises in public places, offices, studios. And even some sweets are made in the form of small pumpkins.
Features of Halloween in Russia
For the people of our country, Halloween is a special holiday. Despite the fact that it is not approved by the church and officials, Halloween occupies too much place in European and American culture, and therefore Russians in our age of universal globalization simply cannot help but pay attention to it. After years of celebration in Russia, it acquired its own characteristics. He did not family holiday, in contrast to the United States, where Halloween is celebrated primarily with relatives, and this mainly happens in clubs and shopping centers, the premises of which are decorated with bright paraphernalia of this holiday.
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