WattMag: Spooky November Issue

Getting to Know the Halloween

Title: Getting to Know the Halloween

Topic: Trivia and Fun Facts

by: forfatter

 

Because of the unknown, Halloween is one of the most captivating holidays, often celebrated by both adults and children. The element of surprise makes it fun and unpredictable. Enlighten yourself with Halloween trivia and fun facts to enjoy the holiday even more.

·         Trick or treating comes from the Middle-Age practice of the poor dressing up in costumes and going around door to door during Hallowmas begging for food or money in exchange for prayers. The food given was often a Soul Cake, which was a small round cake which represented a soul being freed from Purgatory when the cake was eaten.

·         Halloween is also know by other names: All Hallows Eve, Samhain, All Hallowtide, The Feast of the Dead, The Day of the Dead.

·         Halloween is the second most commercially successful holiday, with Christmas being the first.

·         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.

·         Halloween is Oct. 31 – the last day of the Celtic calendar. It actually was a pagan holiday honoring the dead.

·         Trick-or-treating evolved from the ancient Celtic tradition of putting out treats and food to placate spirits who roamed the streets at Samhain, a sacred festival that marked the end of the Celtic calendar year.

·         Halloween is correctly spelt as Hallowe'en.

·         If you see a spider on this night, it could be the spirit of a dead loved one who is watching you.

·         Halloween is one of the oldest celebrations in the world, dating back over 2000 years to the time of the Celts who lived in Britain.

·         More than 93 percent of children go trick-or-treating each year. (source: NCA)

·         Black cats get a bad rap on Halloween because they were once believed to be protected their master's dark powers.

·         Halloween was brought to North America by immigrants from Europe who would celebrate the harvest around a bonfire, share ghost stories, sing, dance and tell fortunes.

·         Orange and black are Halloween colors because orange is associated with the Fall harvest and black is associated with darkness and death.

·         Scottish girls believed they could see images of their future husband if they hung wet sheets in front of the fire on Halloween. Other girls believed they would see their boyfriend’s faces if they looked into mirrors while walking downstairs at midnight on Halloween.

·         Harry Houdini (1874-1926) was one of the most famous and mysterious magicians who ever lived. Strangely enough, he died in 1926 on Halloween night as a result of appendicitis brought on by three stomach punches.

·         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.

That’s it for now and I hope you learn something new about the Halloween but we must also remember (if you’re a Christian or Catholic) our loved ones who no longer with us, may they rest in peace.