Today, 31st of October, we celebrate Halloween.
Where does the holiday come from?
The holiday originally
comes from a people called the Celts. The Celts lived in Europe more than 2000
years ago. On November 1st they celebrated the end of summer. They
thought ghosts visited the living on October 31st. They dressed up
like ghosts so the spirits would not harm them.
Today, many countries still remember the dead on November 1st.
It is called All Saints day. Another name for it is All Hallow’s Day. The day
before, October 31st, is called All Hallow’s Eve, or Halloween for
short.
Halloween is an old tradition in Ireland and Scotland. In those countries,
people dressed up and carried lanterns made of turnips. When people moved from
Ireland and Scotland to the United States, they started using pumpkins. This is
where the jack-o’-lantern comes from.Halloween has changed a lot since its origins. New people have brought new traditions, and changed the old ones. What do you think Halloween would be like in another two thousand years?
And you, do you celebrate Halloween in your country?
