In honor of October this article is going to be on the origins of Halloween! Halloween started around 2,000 years ago and it was called Samhain. Samhain was celebrated by the Celts and it marked the end of the harvest, to prepare them for a new year and a frigid winter. On the night of Samhain it was believed that spirits would come to visit the earth, but they weren’t very friendly and it was believed they destroyed crops and caused trouble all around town. While spirits were in town the Druids; or priests had their senses at their highest. It was believed they could now see your future more clearly. Everyone wants their fortune told right? This is why Druids built sacred bonfires, to sacrifice plants and animals so they could tell your fortune. During the gathering at the bonfire Celts wore animal skins and heads and waited for their future to be revealed by the other peoples.
After many years of celebration the Romans came and conquered the Celts around 43 C.E. Over the course of many years the Roman festivals were mushed together with Samhain. Feralia, the Roman version of Halloween was a day to honor the passing of the dead. On the day after Feralia, the Roman goddess, Pomona, was honored. Pomona was the goddess of the harvest and her symbol was the apple, which is why at Halloween parties you often go bobbing for apples.
Overall Halloween is a great holiday, and because of all of these interesting things that have happened, we have an amazing holiday on October 31st! Happy Halloween!
-Ashlynn Garza '20
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