I Love this time of year! The falling leaves, the cool crisp air and the otherworldly feeling that makes your hair rise. The veil between worlds is suppose to become thinner this time of year and magic seems to dart in the shadows. This made me wondering, how did Halloween begin? Halloween started out as a religious festival of the Celtic people. This Pagan religious festival celebrated Samhain, the end of the harvest season. “Samhain” is Gaelic (Celtic language) for “end of Summer”. [The “m” is silent. The word is pronounced “sowin”. The Celts believed that there is a material world that we live in, and a supernatural world. Twice a year (end of February and end of October), the borders between these worlds become thin, and you can pass between the worlds. Now that we have looked into the background of Halloween, let us move forward to the fun facts.
- The first Jack-o-Lanterns were carved from turnips.
- On average, kids who trick or treat will bring home a bag of candies worth 11,000 calories.
- In Alabama, wearing a nun or priest costume for Halloween is illegal.
- Walnut Creek, California prohibits Halloween masks without permits.
- The fear of Halloween is called Samhainophobia.
- Statistical studies found that 50% of children prefer to receive chocolate on Halloween.
- The word witch comes from the Old English word ‘Wicce’.
- The world record for the heaviest pumpkin weighed at 2,624.6 pounds.
- The world record for the fastest pumpkin carving is 16.47 seconds.
- Halloween is the second highest-grossing commercial holiday.
- Halloween scarecrows symbolize the ancient and agricultural roots of the holiday.
- Pumpkins classify as a fruit, not a vegetable.
- In Hong Kong, Halloween is known as The Festival of the Hungry Ghosts.
- It is believed that if a child is born on Halloween, they will be able to talk to the spirits.
- The Halloween tradition of dressing up as ghosts comes from ancient Celtic traditions.
- China holds Halloween festivals by lighting dragon-shaped lanterns.
- Candy corn was originally named Chicken Feed due to its shape and color.
- On average, Americans buy 600 million pounds of candy for Halloween annually.
- America spends half a billion dollars on Halloween pet costumes each year.
- Men are more likely to spend more on Halloween than women.
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