Do you have any idea what is the history behind Halloween?

[jeffjohnson]

Do you have any idea that what is the history behind Halloween‏ and who celebrates it?

[Miss Monster]

I've heard a lot of different variations but I think it's a known fact that it started with the irish celts.
november 1st, all saints day (christian) was thought to be the only day where the dead could walk among the living. so the night before (all hallows eve, based on samhain) they dressed up as ghosts to protect themselves from the spirits.

I know pumpkins were carved in an attempt to trap harmfull ghosts (or satan), and trick or treating was originally pranks which progressed to vandalism, and finally turned to hading out candy as bribes in exchange for leaving in peace

sorry this is blotchy, I'm using no reference, thats just what I remember

[Castle]

I remember something about turnips or something else used before pumpkins. Anyone know what it was?

[Miss Monster]

you're right, that was in Europe. when the settlers came to America they found pumpkins worked better

[MacPhantom]

You guys got it all wrong. The true history of Halloween is as follows:

Once upon a time, a guy called Hobo Jim was digging around a garbage heap (this was back in the 1600's, mind you), looking for sommat to quell his hunger. He couldn't find much of anything, but he did find a shabby old pilgrim's hat, a ratty old black cape, and some scraps of old leather that he stitched together to make a mask. He decided to put the whole outfit together, and go rob some people so he could buy a loaf of bread. As he was walking towards the town that he lived near, he passed a pumpkin patch, and thought that maybe he could eat one of those instead of turning to a life of crime. So he picked a pumpkin, and using a sharp stone he found in the road he cut the top off and dug in. Unfortunately, it didn't taste very good, and he didn't have any way to roast the seeds. So instead, for a lark, he carved a face into it, and named it "Jack", because Hobo Jim didn't have any other friends, mostly because he was a hobo but also because he was a nutter. So, wearing his costume and carrying his pumpkin, he made his way to the first house he came to. He banged on the door, and when the farmer who lived there opened up, Hobo Jim started screaming at him to give him some money. But the farmer stabbed him with a pitchfork instead, thus starting the tradition of blood and gore at Halloween.

Well Hobo Jim thought he'd give it one more go, so he went to the next house. But this time, when the people who lived there opened their door, he was too weak from blood loss to threaten them. So instead he just asked for a cookie. They didn't have any, but they did have some mini-Snickers bars, and Hobo Jim was like "It's all good." So after that, he went to the rest of the houses in town, and got all sorts of tasty 17th century treats (but mostly mini-Snickers bars, because Puritans weren't allowed any other form of satisfaction that wasn't packed with peanuts). Well when the kids of the town heard about Hobo Jim's haul, they decided to do the same thing the next year. And it was such a hit, it spread from town to town, like Herpes, until the entire New World was doing it. And then someone brought it back to the UK, and someone else took it north to Canada, and pretty soon, it was in every country. Like Herpes.

And that is the history behind Halloween.

[Miss Monster]

right and wrong is relative. but I like your version better anyway

[Nostalgiascape]

You can search the history on the main page. History channel has a pretty solid hold on it.

http://www.history.com/topics/halloween

[SpookyBlackKat]

I was just talking about this with a coworker last week. She had no idea that Halloween had any relation to the Celts and Ireland. I watched a really informative show last year on the origins and traditions. It's so weird to see why we do some of the things we do to celebrate the holiday. Just like with the people that make up America, Halloween is really a melting pot holiday in the United States. Bits and pieces of our traditions can be traced all over the world. That's kind of neat but it's kind of sad because that's how history gets distorted. I agree that the History Channel has good research on the history. Although I don't recall any hobos in thier story?

[Miss Monster]

I think there might have actually been something about a vagrant... but I don't remember where it fits in (if at all)

[Miss Monster]

ah, wait I think it's coming to me. If there was a vagrant, it was the guy that started the turnip carving. I think the story was he was a trickster.. and he played a trick on the devil one night, and made him climb a tree... then carved it to trap his spirit? does that sound like anything anyones heard before? I'm pretty sure I didn't make it up lol

[Corvus Kulde]

All of the above and more. After all ,even this sort of conversation is a part of the history of Halloween in America. The eternal "where did it come from" conversation. Call me old fashioned, but I believe in one god. He lives in the lake near my home and is called Zorgon. I think he may have started it. I'll ask.