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THE CELTIC ROOTS OF HALLOWEEN
If you celebrate Halloween the way many American children do, chances are you dress up as a monster, a princess, or your favorite super hero to trick-or-treat around the neighborhood. Maybe you go to a costume party with friends. But do you have any idea where those traditions began? Dressing up Two thousand years ago, the Celtic people of France and Great Britain celebrated a holiday called Samhain every October 31. Samhain, which means ‘end of summer,’ marked the last harvest and the storage of food for the winter. The Celts believed the change of season was a magical time when the veil between the world of the living and the world of the dead was very thin. They imagined all sorts of spirits, goblins and fairies walking among the people. The ghosts of the dead rose to play tricks on the living, causing sickness and other trouble in people’s homes, and even destroying crops in the field. People came up with a great idea in order not to be recognized by these spirits or ghosts: They wore masks or straw hats, painted their faces black, or dressed in disguises. Women put on men’s clothes, and men dressed as women – something they would never do at any other time of year! Feasts and Fires Celtic villages held feasts and made offerings of food and wine to the Lord of the Dead in hopes that he would be kind to the souls of the deceased. They also made offerings to the dead themselves, so they would be satisfied and cause less mischief to the living. If anyone dared steal or snack on this specially reserved food they would, upon their own death, become a hungry ghost that would not be allowed to share in future Samhain feasts. A different custom in some villages allowed the poor to go to the homes of the wealthy, receiving offerings in the names of their ancestors and collecting some of the food set aside for the dead for their own use. Another important part of the Samhain celebration was the burning of village bonfires, where the townspeople threw grain and even farm animals into the flames as a sacrifice to the Celtic gods. As night ended, people relit their household fires from the remains of the sacred bonfire. Games The evening wasn’t all solemn ceremony, though. People told stories, sang and danced around the fire. Children were allowed to stay up late. They played some of the same games you play, like bobbing for apples or trying to bite an apple hanging from a stick. Grown-ups held their breath in anticipation while Celtic priests, called Druids, told their fortunes. This was done by peeling an apple, throwing the peel over the person’s shoulder and reading its shape which might, for example, form the first letter of their future husband or wife’s name. Other methods made use of nuts and egg whites to predict things such as whether a couple would stay together or how many children a woman would have. Trick-or-Treat In the eighth century A.D., the Roman Catholic Church made November 1 an official holiday called All Saints’ Day. October 31 became All Hallows Eve. The church encouraged remembering the dead with prayers instead of sacrifices. Soul cakes, small sweet buns decorated with currants or other fruit were given to the poor people of the village, who in turn prayed for the dead. In some communities, peasants went from door to door, not for candy like you do, but for money, bread, cheese, eggs, nuts, and apples. The church insisted that there were no spirits or fairies to frighten away, yet allowed people to continue dressing in costumes to honor dead saints. When immigrants from Great Britain and Europe colonized America, they brought their traditions across the ocean along with their luggage. The practice of collecting food door-to-door became trick-or-treating. Bonfires became hearth fires, and ritual feasts became parties with snacks, fun and games. By the middle of the nineteenth century, the celebration of Halloween as you know it had been born. Easy Soul CakesIngredients Directions 3. Mix together the flour and spices. Add to creamed butter mixture, beating well. 4. Add milk to make a soft dough. 6. Form into approx. 3-inch round flat cakes, and cut each top with a knife to make a cross.
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