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– Jessica

In honor of Halloween, check out our post on Scary Credit Facts

Halloween Fun Facts

Halloween is among the world’s oldest holidays and is celebrated in various forms throughout most modern societies. However lighthearted and whimsical Halloween may be today, it’s rooted in a combination of many influences. Amid the commercialism, costumes and candy, All Hallows Eve is in fact a holiday with a rich and interesting history.

Here are some things you may not know about the most bewitching night of the year.

• Ireland is believed to be the birthplace of Halloween. The essential elements of the holiday such as costuming, trick-or-treating, lighting bonfires, telling ghost stories and attending community parties can be traced back 2000 years ago to the ancient Celtic festival called Samhain.

• Some Christians have expressed concern that Halloween is satanic because of its roots in pagan ritual. However, ancient Celts did not worship anything resembling the Christian devil and had no concept of it.

• “Souling” is a medieval Christian precursor to modern-day trick-or-treating. On Hallowmas (November 1), the poor would go door-to-door offering prayers for the dead in exchange for soul cakes.

• The owl is a popular Halloween image. In Medieval Europe, owls were thought to be witches, and to hear an owl’s call meant someone was about to die.

• According to Irish legend, Jack O’Lanterns are named after a stingy man named Jack who, because he tricked the devil several times, was forbidden entrance into both heaven and hell. He was condemned to wander the Earth, waving his lantern to lead people away from their paths.

• The first Jack O’Lanterns were actually made from turnips.

• America’s first incarnations of Halloween were called “play parties”, public gatherings where people would sing, dance and tell stories of the dead.

• In the late 1800s, the tradition of playing tricks on Halloween was well established. Pranks included tipping over outhouses, opening farmers’ gates and egging houses. But by the 1920s and ’30s, the celebrations more closely resembled an unruly block party, and the acts of vandalism got more serious.

• Halloween is now the second highest grossing commercial holiday after Christmas. Consumers spend over $2.5 billion during Halloween. That’s a lot of candy, costumes and decorations.