Dive into the history of Halloween, tracing its roots back to Ireland’s Samhain festival. Discover the tales, rituals, and how it became an American tradition.
Halloween, now a mostly American celebration, traces its roots back to Ireland's Samhain festival, which was a new year's celebration for the Irish Celts.
Unlike the friendly fairies in popular culture, Irish lore describes malicious creatures that could bring harm, especially during Samhain.
The Catholic Church tried to merge Samhain with Christian holidays, but the eerie elements of the Celtic tradition remain a part of Halloween to this day.
While many countries have their own ways of remembering the dead, like Japan’s Bon Festival or Madagascar’s Famadihana, Halloween stands out as a uniquely American way of celebrating. But did you know its deepest roots actually come from Ireland? We’re talking about Samhain (say it like “SOW-in”), the Irish Celtic festival.
Samhain was the Irish Celts’ way to welcome the new year, long before Christianity showed up in the 6th century. The word itself means “summer’s end,” and according to Halloween historian Lisa Morton, this festival marked a time when the boundary between our world and the spirit world was super thin.
“During Samhain, all kinds of beings could cross over into our world, including the malicious sídh (say it like ‘she’),” said Morton. But don’t think of cute Tinkerbell-type fairies; these were mean creatures that could ruin your crops or even set your house on fire!
When Samhain came around, folks gathered in the ancient capital of Rathcroghan, in what is now County Roscommon. It wasn’t just about spooks and spirits; there was also an official side to it. This was the time to bring animals in for the winter and pay taxes to the king.
We can’t say for sure how they celebrated, as the Celts didn’t write stuff down. But according to later accounts and some digging in the ground, it seems they had big feasts. “And at those gatherings, they would sacrifice animals and share ghost stories,” added Morton.
Dive into the history of Halloween, tracing its roots back to Ireland’s Samhain festival. Discover the tales, rituals, and how it became an American tradition.
One of the spookiest stories is about the “hell caves,” also known as Oweynagat (“Cave of the Cats”). This cave was believed to be a gateway for those nasty fairies to enter our world. One such story tells of a hero named Nera, who followed an army of fairies into another realm where it was summer. He returned with summer flowers to prove his tale was real.
When it comes to dressing up, the history is a bit foggy. Some say that the original Samhain festival-goers wore costumes to blend in with the spirits, while others think this part came later when Halloween crossed the ocean to America.
The Catholic Church wanted to blend Samhain into its own holidays. At first, they moved All Saints Day to November 1st to overlap with Samhain. But that didn’t really work, so they added All Souls Day on November 2nd, and that seemed to do the trick.
The mash-up was so good that even though not many Celts outside of Ireland celebrated Samhain, both All Saints Day and All Souls Day spread across Europe. As for Halloween, its dark and spooky elements stayed, making it the eerie festivity we all know and love today.
If you are interested in spooky and horror stories – check out our Halloween haunted houses collection.
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