Answering The Kids — Why We Celebrate Halloween

My kids love Halloween.  If forced to choose between giving up Halloween or Christmas, it would be a close-run thing.  So, when they asked me why we celebrate Halloween, I had to stop and think about it.  The question reminded me of a conversation I had with my graduate chemistry advisor about Halloween, when he explained to me why he didn’t allow his kids to celebrate Halloween.

Why We Celebrate Halloween

Back before I had kids, when I was a graduate student studying chemistry, I had a conversation with my advisor about Halloween, and I inadvertently stuck my foot in my mouth over Halloween celebrations.  I had asked him what his kids were dressing up for at Halloween, and he explained to me that they didn’t celebrate Halloween in his home.  Being a European transplant to the U.S., he had a much different perspective on Halloween, and considered the holiday to be a pagan celebration.

The Origins Of Halloween

Halloween has its roots in ancient Celtic beliefs.  The Celts, who lived around 2000 years ago in northern Europe, celebrated their New Year on what is now November 1.  The celebration was intended to mark the end of the summer harvest, when the sun god had ruled, and a transition to the season of darkness.  They believed that the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and dead thinned, allowing spirits to cross the boundary.  This was called Samhain (pronounced “sow-in”), or summer’s end.  They built huge bonfires, dressed in costumes, and the Celtic priests (Druids) would make predictions about the future.  Since not all the spirits that could cross into the earthly world were friendly, fruits and treats were left to pacify evil spirits.

After the Romans conquered the Celts, two of the Roman religious holidays were incorporated into the Celtic celebrations.  The Romans commemorated the passing of the dead on Feralia.  Shortly thereafter, the goddess Pomona, whose symbol was an apple, was honored.  This may explain the origins of bobbing for apples.

As Christianity spread across Europe, religious leaders tried to stamp out pagan beliefs.  In 800 A.D., Pope Boniface IV declared November 1 All Saints’ Day in honor of saints and martyrs.  It was also called All Hallows Day, making the night before, All Hallows Eve.  Two hundred years later, the Church declared November 2nd to be All Souls’ Day, and it was celebrated similarly to All Saints’ Day.  Together, the three days were called Hallowmas.  Notice the similarity to Christmas?

In many parts of the world, Halloween is still viewed as a religious holiday, with as much solemnity as Christmas.

Halloween Today

In the U.S., Halloween is pretty much secular holiday, and I see little reason to keep my kids from celebrating the holiday.  However, there’s value in teaching them the history.  I do find it interesting that this is one of mankind’s oldest holidays, and that its celebrity has survived the test of time.

Resources

• Holidays.net
• Halloween-website.com
• History.com

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