What is Halloween?
Quick answer
Halloween is a holiday celebrated every year on October 31. Its roots go back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, which marked the end of harvest, and to All Hallows’ Eve, the night before the Christian feast of All Saints’ Day on November 1. The name is short for “All Hallows’ Evening.”
- c. 2,000 years agoCelts in Ireland, Britain and France celebrate Samhain, when the boundary with the spirit world was believed to be thin
- 8th centuryThe Church places All Saints’ Day on November 1; the evening before becomes All Hallows’ Eve
- Middle Ages“Souling”: the poor go door to door offering prayers for the dead in return for soul cakes
- 1800sIrish and Scottish immigrants bring Halloween customs to North America
- 1950sTrick-or-treating becomes a widespread family tradition in the US
Where the traditions come from
| Tradition | Origin |
|---|---|
| Costumes | People wore disguises at Samhain so wandering spirits wouldn’t recognize them; “guising” in Scotland and Ireland |
| Trick-or-treating | Medieval souling and guising, revived in 20th-century America |
| Jack-o’-lanterns | Originally carved turnips in Ireland; immigrants switched to the larger, easier-to-carve pumpkins |
| Bonfires | Samhain fires to ward off spirits and mark the start of winter |
| Apple bobbing | Harvest-time games linked to fortune-telling about future marriages |
Halloween today
Halloween is biggest in the US, Canada, Ireland and the UK, and it has spread worldwide. Americans spend billions of dollars each year on candy, costumes and decorations. In Mexico and other parts of Latin America, the Day of the Dead (Día de Muertos) on November 1–2 is a separate tradition honoring loved ones who have died.
Planning ahead? Check how many days are left until Halloween, and get ideas for drawing a pumpkin or roasting the pumpkin seeds.
Still curious?
Jump to a random question from the archive.