What are the Origins of Halloween?
Most of the elements in Halloween derive from the ancient Celtic end-of-year festival of Samhain (pronounced Sau-wen). In many agricultural societies across the Northern Hemisphere, the year ends just after the Fall harvest, and many formal activities involve unfinished business from the old year and preparations for the new, which begins with the long harsh winter. The spirits of people who died during the past year are given their final recognition at this time. Other spirits, good and bad, and the various dangerous, supernatural creatures of the night are openly acknowledged and treated with offerings, lest they interfere with the serious end-of-year business that people must conduct. At Samhain, sweets and other food items known to be favorites of spirits were left at rural crossroads and at the edges of villages, and bonfires and large fearsomely carved turnips with candles inside kept the carousing supernaturals outside the village. We must remember that over most of its 2,000 ye
