In the unlikely case you’re unaware, today happens to be Halloween, my favourite holiday of the year. I’ve enjoyed Halloween and its accompanying spooky season for as long as I can remember, and for good reason; Halloween involves a day of dressing up in costume and eating candy. What’s not to enjoy?
I thought I would share some fun facts about Halloween with all of you, with this information coming from goodhousekeeping.com. Check it out.
“1. The holiday dates back more than 2,000 years.
Halloween is even older than Christianity itself. It all started as a pre-Christian Celtic festival called Samhain, which means ‘summer’s end.’ Held around the first of November, the feast recognized the last day of the fall harvest and spirits crossing over, since they believed the veil between the living and spirit world grew thinnest at that time. People in Ireland, the United Kingdom and Northern France used to ward off ghosts by lighting sacrificial bonfires, and – you guessed it – wearing costumes to trick the spirits, according to History.com.
“2. Trick-or-treating has existed since medieval times.
Taking candy from strangers on one night a year (and one night only!) isn’t a new tradition. Back then, it was known as ‘guising‘ in Scotland and Ireland. Young people dressed up in costumes and went door-to-door looking for food or money in exchange for songs, poems or other “tricks” they performed. Today, the tradition has morphed into children to getting dressed up and asking for candy. Hardly anyone performs for their candy these days — but a simple “thank you” will go a long way.
“3. Some Halloween rituals used to involve finding a husband.
During the 18th century, single ladies devised Halloween traditions that were supposed to help them find their romantic match. According to History.com, women used to throw apple peels over their shoulder, hoping to see their future husband’s initials in the pattern when they landed. When they bobbed for apples at parties, the winner would supposedly marry first. Most spookily, they even used to stand in a dark room, holding a candle in front of a mirror to look for their future husband’s face to appear in the glass,” the web page states.
While I recognize Halloween is a one-day affair, check back tomorrow for more Halloween facts because I think it deserves more than one day of recognition.
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ontheedgeofeverything 
