The origin of Halloween

Halloween, also known as Pumpkin Festival, is a traditional festival in the English-speaking world, which is mainly popular in North America, the British Isles, Australia, Canada and New Zealand. That night, children will put on makeup clothes and masks and collect candy from house to house. Chinese-speaking areas often mistake Halloween for Halloween. Halloween is called "Halloween" in English, which is the abbreviation of "Halloween". It refers to Halloween, similar to Christmas Eve. "Hallow" comes from Middle English halwen, which is very close to the etymology of holy. In some parts of Scotland and Canada, Halloween is still called "Halloween Mass", which means a mass held in memory of all saints. Halloween is usually associated with supernatural things. Traditionally in Europe, Halloween is considered as the closest time to the world of ghosts and gods, similar to the Orchid Festival in China. Anoca, Minnesota, USA is called "Halloween Capital of the World", and a large-scale parade is held every year.

[Edit this paragraph] The origin of Halloween

More than two thousand years ago, the Catholic Church in Europe designated 1 65438+1October1as "Halloween". "Saint" means saint. Legend has it that since 500 BC, the Celtics (Sugejek Jack-o-lanterns) living in Ireland moved the festival forward by one day with funny expressions, that is, 65438+1October 3 1. They think that this day is the day when summer officially ends, that is, the beginning of the new year and the beginning of the severe winter. At that time, people believed that on this day, the dead souls of the deceased would return to their former homes to look for all beings, so as to be reborn, which was the only hope of being reborn after death. Living people are afraid of dead souls to take life, so people put out fire and candlelight on this day, so that dead souls can't find living people and dress up as monsters to scare away dead souls. After that, they will rekindle the candlelight and start a new year's life. Legend has it that Celtic tribes also had the custom of killing the living to commemorate the dead on June 3 10. By the 1 century, the Romans who occupied the territory of Celtic tribes gradually accepted the custom of Halloween, but the barbaric practice of burning the living to sacrifice the dead was abolished. Roman festivals celebrating harvest were combined with Celtic rituals, wearing terrible masks and dressed as animals or ghosts to drive away demons wandering around them. This is why most people in the world celebrate Halloween with strange costumes today. With the passage of time, the meaning of Halloween has gradually changed, becoming active, joyful and festive. The idea of the deceased seeking the reincarnation of body double was gradually abandoned and forgotten. Today, most images and pictures symbolizing Halloween, such as witches and black cats, have friendly, lovely and interesting faces. After the Roman emperor Constantine believed in the Lord, Christianity was established as the state religion. At that time, Christianity actually turned into Catholicism. Constantine ordered the whole country to convert to Christianity. As a result, stubborn pagans joined the church and brought various pagan styles, including the Day of Death. They want to make this festival a part of their lives. Because the church can't eliminate the pagan customs of the people, it has to sanctify some customs, especially1October 3 1 day. In the eighth century, the Pope designated 1 1 month 1 day as Halloween to commemorate all the martyrs in the history of the church. In this way,1October 3 1 day is Halloween. The Catholic Church allows people to celebrate festivals on 1 October 3 1 day, because 1 1 month1day is sacred. Later, Halloween became Halloween, and Halloween means "sacred".1October 3 1 day is Halloween night. Even was later simplified to Eve and een. The former means "Eve" and the latter is the abbreviation of even, meaning "night", which became Halloween today, representing the eve of Halloween. China people simply call1October 3 1 day Halloween, but it should actually be translated as "All Souls' Day".

[Edit this paragraph] Halloween logo

The theme of Jack-o-lantern Halloween is ghosts, scary people, and things related to death, magic and monsters. Things usually associated with Halloween include ghosts, ghouls, witches, bats, black cats, owls, elves, zombies, skeletons and demons, as well as fictional characters such as vampires and Frankenstein.

Ghost profile:

The legend of ghosts and ghosts has spread all over the world, and Ghost Festival is essential. The face of a zombie is white or injured, and the image of a zombie is whatever you want. Elegant, noble and cold vampire blood clan has always been a frequent visitor in mysterious midnight stories. Witches, black cats, brooms, magic hats ... are very powerful, but be careful of the wrinkles on your face. Frankenstein, a classic in the history of science fiction, often appears on Halloween now. Elves Everyone has their own elves in their hearts. What do you think the elf looks like? Centaurs have different origins in Greek mythology, so centaurs also have good and evil points. Werewolves are sometimes deadly enemies of vampires, and sometimes they spread terror and plague. Devil, I can satisfy your wish, mortal, but you must mortgage your soul to me. In different legends and stories of goblins, these little things are sometimes evil and sometimes funny. The immortal bird bathes in the sun and nirvana in the flame, symbolizing immortality and rebirth. The Minotaur legend in Crete made this monster famous all over the world. Medusa's legendary gorgon, which can turn people into fossils, was once as beautiful as Athena. Titan, an ancient protoss who once ruled the world in Greek mythology, is a representative of giants. Is Gargoyle sitting on the roof of a Gothic building all day, looking up at the sky or thinking? Lizard people are covered with thick green scales, and each hand has only three fingers. A mummy is a mummy after makeup, and a poor COS is a serious illness. Some people think that the behemoths recorded in Bessemer's Old Testament are the incarnation of Satan. Bigfoot, a giant monster, has never been proved, but the legend has a long history. The legends of Bahamut and Bahamut represent the views of the Arab world. Wizards use magic to gain eternal life, and learn magic with eternal life. Dwarf minerals, wine, beards, you have to learn about dwarves from these. Trolls No matter where troll legends are, their magic regeneration ability is indispensable. Sleepy Valley, a ghost in Irish folklore, is an indispensable role in Halloween. Pumpkin lantern pumpkin is the representative of Halloween. Put a pumpkin on your head and remember to leave some holes. Skeletons are also terrible things. Black and orange are the traditional colors of Halloween. Modern Halloween products also use a lot of purple, green and red. Autumn elements such as pumpkins and scarecrows have also become symbols of Halloween. Jack lamp is the most famous symbol of Halloween. In Britain and Ireland, locals used to light candles in hollowed-out turnips to make jack-o'-lanterns, but American immigrants soon replaced them with pumpkins, because pumpkins are bigger and easier to carve patterns on. Many families carve scary faces on pumpkins and put them in class at the gate. Traditionally, this is to scare away demons or monsters. Pumpkins are orange, so orange has become a traditional Halloween color. Carving pumpkin lanterns with pumpkins is also a Halloween tradition, and its history can be traced back to Ireland. Legend has it that a man named Jack was so stingy that he couldn't go to heaven after his death, and he couldn't go to hell because he made fun of the devil, so he had to wander around with lanterns until the judgment day. Therefore, Jack and Jack-o-lantern became the symbols of cursed wandering souls. In order to scare away these wandering souls on Halloween, people carve terrible faces out of turnips, beets or potatoes to represent Jack holding lanterns. This is the origin of the ghost fire. After the Irish moved to the United States, they began to carve pumpkins, because pumpkins are more abundant than turnips in autumn in the United States. Now, if people hang jack-o-lanterns on the windows on Halloween night, it means that those who wear Halloween costumes can knock on the door and ask for candy. In the jack-o'-lantern, people usually put candles or some sweets.

Pumpkin lantern making

Cut the top/bottom of the pumpkin, and cut a piece on the surface of the pumpkin with a knife so as to reach in and empty the pulp. The cross section should be as flat as possible. You can also use a special spoon or a daily spoon to make it hollow and thin, and carefully take out the melon seeds and pulp. Select the place you want to carve and scrape the melon skin to 1 inch thickness. Stick the paper mask on the selected place, and stick or nail the paper mask prepared in advance. When using pushpins, be careful to nail them on the dotted line of Facebook to avoid small holes in the melon surface. Draw along the dotted line along the edge of the paper mask, and draw the mask on the pumpkin skin with a small cone or thumbtack. When finished, tear off the paper. Finally, the viewing effect is corrected point by point with a small awl. Picasso is far behind!

[Edit this paragraph] Halloween activities

Trick or treat

The main activity of Halloween is trick or treat. The children dressed up as scary people rang their neighbors' doorbell door to door and shouted, "Trick or treat!" " "(meaning trick-or-treating), the host family (who may also wear scary clothes) will take out some candy, chocolate or small gifts. Some families even use sound effects and cigarette makers to create a horrible atmosphere. Children often get candy in a night by the number of bags and take it home in the whole bag. Trick or treat originated in Ireland. Ancient Irish pagans believed that on Halloween, ghosts would gather near their homes and receive banquets. So, after the "banquet", the villagers dressed up as ghosts and wandered outside the village to guide the ghosts away to avoid evil spirits and disasters. At the same time, villagers will also put some fruits and other foods in the front yard and backyard to feed ghosts so that they will not harm people and animals or plunder other crops. Later, this custom continued and became a "trick or treat" game for children to make fun of ungrateful businesses or families. In Scotland, when children ask for candy, they will say, "The sky is blue and the grass is green. We can celebrate Halloween.". "(The sky is blue and the grass is green, so we can celebrate Halloween together), and then they will sing and dance to win candy. Usually when children are playing trick-or-treating, teenagers will go to various parties, such as masquerade. Traditional Halloween costumes include zombies, ghosts, witches and demons. Typical costumes are disguised as ghosts with Halloween costumes and a piece of cloth with two holes cut. In Scotland and Ireland in the19th century, people at that time thought that ghosts would come to the world on Halloween, so they would dress up as ghosts and let them think of themselves as the same kind. In recent years, Halloween costumes are not limited to horror, but can be dressed up in any way, such as TV dramas or movie stars, public figures, such as politicians. In 2004, coinciding with the US presidential election, George Bush and Kerry became popular Halloween costumes in the United States. After the attack on May 38, 2006+0911,firefighters and policemen became the targets of children. It is estimated that about 265,438+05,000 American children dressed as Spider-Man in 2004, which was the most popular dress in that year. This is common in the United States, Canada and Mexico. It is planned to go online at 1950, and the donation boxes will be distributed to children through the school, so that children can raise money smoothly when begging for candy. It is estimated that since its launch, it has raised more than1.1.90 billion USD. BIGresearch conducted a survey for the National Retail Federation of the United States, and found that 53.3% of customers would shop on Halloween in 2005, with an average consumption of $38.65438 +0 1, which was $65438 +00 higher than last year. Based on this, it is estimated that American consumers spent as much as $3.3 billion on Halloween in 2005.

Swing for apples

Participants managed to pick up apples floating on the water with their mouths only.

Other games

In Ireland, there is a traditional divination game in which participants blindfold and choose one from the table. For example, if the touched CD contains dirt, it means that the people related to the participants will die in the coming year. For example, water means they will travel far, money means they will be rich, and beans mean they will be poor. In Ireland in the19th century, girls would put slugs on a plate sprinkled with flour, and the traces of slugs crawling would be like the girl's future husband. In North America, it is said that if an unmarried woman sits in a dark room on Halloween, she can see her future husband in the mirror. But if they are going to die before marriage, a skull will appear in the mirror. This custom has been very popular since the late19th century, and related greeting cards are also sold. Telling ghost stories and watching horror movies are common activities at Halloween parties. Halloween-themed TV special programs are usually broadcast on or before Halloween, and most of them are aimed at children.

[Edit this paragraph] Religious views

Most Christians believe that Halloween has no important religious significance and only regards it as an ordinary "festival". However, some churches and institutions (such as the Audiovisual Mission) regard Halloween as Satan's festival and strongly oppose believers' participation in any Halloween activities.

[Edit this paragraph] Halloween culture

Celtic Savin Festival

In ancient Celtic belief, the New Year began at 165438+ 10/month 1, or Samhain. Just as a shorter day symbolizes the beginning of a new year, so does a sunset. Therefore, the annual harvest festival begins on the evening of June 3 1. Druids in the British Isles burn crops as sacrifices. When they dance around the fire, the sun season ends and the Sawin Festival begins. Celts believe that Samhain, the god of death, will return to Earth with a ghost on the night of June 3rd1to look for body double. So they lit torches and burned animals as a gift from death. They will also dress themselves up with costumes made of animal heads or fur, making strange noises, so that death can't recognize themselves and avoid disasters. This is the origin of today's Halloween masquerade. After that night, the ghost returned to the underworld and everything was calm. 1 65438+1October1In the morning, the druids distributed the burning embers in the fire to all families and lit a new kitchen flame. These flames are used to keep the home warm and drive away evil spirits. Because this time is considered to be the invisible door that connects the yin and yang in a year, the two worlds may communicate. The bonfire is an important program in the festival. The villagers threw the bones of the slaughtered cattle on the fire; It is said that the word "bonfire" comes from "bone fire". After the bonfire was lit, the villagers put out all the remaining lights. Then each family solemnly lit their fireplace with the same fire as a sign of the close unity of the whole village. So far, there are still hundreds of bonfires lit on Halloween night in Ireland. New pagans still hold Samhain's midnight ghost worship ceremony and other traditional festivals on Halloween.

Elvin Bot is in Norway.

In ancient legends (Norwegian religion) and today's restoration of traditional research (? Satrú) mentioned that Halloween used to be a festival of sacrifice, blót, where people slaughtered animals and offered sacrifices and food to the elves, praying for God's blessing. A poem about 1020, Sigvatr? Or? This was recorded by the arsonist ausrtfaravísur ("Poem of Journey to the East"). As a Christian, the author refused to stay with a pagan in Sweden, because × LFA blauth ("Elf Sacrifice") was being held there. However, we can't get more reliable information about "αfabót". However, like other ritual ceremonies (blót), there is a link of offering food, and later Scandinavians also retained the tradition of offering animals to elves. Judging from the date of sacrifice (near the autumnal equinox), and because elves are associated with fertility and ancestors, we can guess that the essence of these sacrifices is to pay homage to ancestors and pray for prosperity.

Halloween tradition

Since17th century, the tradition of celebrating Halloween has gradually disappeared in southern England, and was replaced by a gunpowder plot held on10.5. But Halloween is still very popular in Scotland, Ireland and northern England. It was not until the last decade that Halloween was celebrated again in southern England, but the way was completely American. Traditional celebrations have been almost completely preserved in Ireland. There, the last Monday of June 10 is a public holiday, all schools are closed, and the mid-term exam will be held the following week. This festival is usually called Halloween. Therefore, Ireland is the only country that gives students a holiday on Halloween, so they can celebrate freely and keep the ancient tradition.

[Edit this paragraph] Halloween food

As Halloween approaches the apple harvest, toffee apples have also become a holiday food. The method is to insert an apple with a bamboo stick, then hold the bamboo stick and put the apple in toffee syrup to rotate, sometimes sticking nuts on it. Once upon a time, every family would prepare toffee apples for their children, but the habit of giving toffee apples gradually disappeared when it was rumored that someone had put pins and blades in the apples. Although most cases are just pranks, in real cases, children are only slightly injured, but many parents still think it is common to put blades in apples. Other special foods include: corn candy corn, hot cider and roasted pumpkin seeds.

[Edit this paragraph] The Legend of Halloween

Halloween means "holy night". Nowadays, Halloween has become one of the most popular and popular festivals in a year, and many players celebrate it with great enthusiasm. Halloween is the night before June 3 1, and it is actually a festival to praise autumn, just as May Day is a festival to praise spring. Druids, priests of ancient Gaul, Britain and Ireland, had a grand festival to praise autumn, which started at midnight after Halloween and lasted all day until the next day. 1 1. They think that on that night, their great Shaman Church of Death summoned all the ghosts of those who died that year, and these evil spirits would be punished by being born as animals. Of course, just thinking of such a ghostly party was enough to make those simple-minded fools at that time tremble with fear and can't believe it. So they lit a bonfire and watched these evil spirits closely. This is the origin of the saying that Halloween is full of witches and ghosts. Until now, some people in some isolated areas of Europe still believe this is true. Now all over Europe, people regard Halloween as a good opportunity to have fun, tell ghost stories and scare each other. So people no longer just praise Qiu Guang with this festival, but make it a real "carnival". Facial makeup is one of the traditional Halloween programs. What Halloween always says: trick or treat.

Halloween songs

Halloween song "This is Halloween" This is the lyrics: Don't you want to see something strange for boys and girls of every age? The shadow of Siam comes with us, and you will see this, our Halloween Town Pumpkin Choir. This is Halloween, this is Halloween pumpkins screaming ghosts in the dead of night. This is Halloween, and everyone will make a big trick or treat until the neighbors are scared to death. This is our town, and everyone screams the creatures under the bed in this Halloween town. I am the person hiding under your bed with sharp teeth and glowing eyes. I am the person hiding under your stairs with fingers like snakes and spiders. Halloween! Halloween! Halloween! In this town we call home, everyone pays tribute to pumpkin. Song, the mayor of this town, don't we love it? Everyone is waiting for the next amazing corpse to sing in that corner. What people hide in the trash can is now waiting for an attack. How will you scream? The clown demon, the werewolf, and the melting person scream! This is the red and black of Halloween, the sticky green werewolf, aren't you afraid? Witches all right, say it once, say it twice, seize the opportunity, roll the dice and ride the hanging tree with the moon in the dead of night. Everyone screams, everyone screams. The clown who was hanged in our Halloween town. I am the clown with tears on my face and disappeared in an instant. The second ghoul is the "who". When you call, "Who is there?" I am the wind blowing through your hair OOGIE BOOGIE SHADOW. I am the shadow on the moon at night, which makes your dreams full of fear. Zombie chorus, this is Halloween, this is Halloween! Halloween! Halloween! Halloween! Halloween! Halloween! The children's corpse trio is full of gentle people. Life is not fun without a good corpse to scare parents. This is our job, but we are not stingy with the corpse choir in our Halloween town. Mayor, don't we like it now? The mayor and the corpse chorus everyone is waiting for the next surprise. The corpse chorus Jack Skellington may grab you from behind and scream like a banshee to make you jump out of your skin. It's Halloween, everyone screams, isn't it? Please make way for a very special guy. Our man Jack is the king of the pumpkin patch. Everyone pays tribute to the pumpkin king. Now it's Halloween for everyone. It's Halloween! Halloween! Halloween! Halloween! Zombie Child Trio In this town we call home, everyone cheers for the pumpkin song, everyone la la la, Halloween! Halloween! (and so on. )