Halloween is a very popular holiday in the United States (US) and Canada, and in some parts of Europe too. Halloween was not widely celebrated in the United States until the 19th century, and kids didn’t trick-or-treat until the 1930s.
However, Halloween is a much older holiday than that. Before that, it was celebrated in Ireland, and Irish immigrants of the 19th century brought their traditions over to the US.
Halloween originates from a Pagan holiday called Samhain, which was celebrated by the Celtic People, who lived in Central and Western Europe thousands of years ago.
Pagans, who worship nature and natural cycles, believed that during Samhain, the barrier between the physical and spiritual world would weaken, allowing visits from the paranormal.
When Catholic people conquered the land where Pagans lived, their cultures combined, which led to the eventual concept of Halloween.
According to Brittanica, Irish people used to carve turnips instead of pumpkins. This is said to be because of the Irish legend of Stingy Jack, who tricked the Devil for money.
Because of this, he was not allowed into either heaven or hell, causing his spirit to roam the Earth freely. Therefore, Irish people carved scary faces into turnips to keep away the evil spirit of Stingy Jack.
The word “Halloween” is derived from the Middle-English word “Alholowmesse”, which meant “All Saints’ Day”, which was a Christian holiday celebrated the day after Samhain, history.com says.
This makes Samhain “All Saints Day eve”. Because of this, people started calling it “All-Hallows Eve”, and eventually Halloween.
Modern-day Halloween sounds extremely different from its Pagan origin, Samhain, yet, many people today still celebrate it in similar ways. People who do celebrate Halloween usually celebrate it by dressing up in costumes and going trick-or-treating for candy.
“Every Halloween, … I get pumpkins, and I like to carve them out, and then I help my family decorate the house, and I help … pass out candy.” Cory Heckman (11) said.
Many also do things such as pick apples or pumpkins, visit orchards or farms, or go on hayrides. Some places to do these activities near Freedom are Yeck Farms and Soergel Orchards.
“[At Yeck’s] I went in the cornfield, on the hayride…I bought some candy from “The Shack,” and I bought pumpkins to paint with my friends,” Zoey Vida (10) said.
There are also fall festivals that feature many activities associated with fall, such as hayrides, corn mazes, bonfires and costume contests. There are fall festivals happening in many locations near Freedom. Visitpittsburgh.com has lists of locations and dates of fall-related things happening now.
Many students go to haunted houses for Halloween, such as Zombies of the Corn, Freddie’s Haunts and Cheeseman Fright Farm, having walkthroughs of decorated pathways and buildings, often featuring actors who dress up and scare people.
“Many people also decorate their homes with decorations associated with Halloween or decorations that are scary such as bats, skeletons, rats, ghosts, cats, and jack-o-lanterns. “Halloween is my favorite holiday because of all the decorations people put up,” Madison Bailey (11) said.