Halloweenis the oldest holiday with origins going back thousands of years. Theholiday we know as Halloween has had many influences from many cultures overthe centuries. Hundreds of years agoin Great Britain and Northern France, lived the Celts.
TheCelts celebrated their New Year on November 1st. It was celebrated every yearwith a festival and marked the end of the "season of the sun" and thebeginning of "the season of darkness and cold."
OnOctober 31st after the crops were all harvested for the long winterthe cooking fires in the homes would be extinguished. The Druids, the Celticpriests, would meet in the hilltop in the dark forest . The Druids would light new fires and offer sacrifices ofcrops and animals. As they danced around the the fires, the season of the sunpassed and the season of darkness would begin.
Whenthe morning arrived the Druids would give an ember from their fires to eachfamily who would then take them home to start new cooking fires. These fireswould keep the homes warm and free from evil spirits.
TheNovember 1st festival was called Samhain (pronounced "sow-en"). Thefestival would last for 3 days. Many people would parade in costumes made fromthe skins and heads of their animals. This festival would become the firstHalloween.
Romansbrought with them many of their festivals and customs. One of these was thefestival know as Pomona Day, named for their goddess of fruits and gardens. Itwas also celebrated around the 1st of November. After hundreds of years ofRoman rule the customs of the Celtic's Samhain festival and the Roman PomonaDay mixed becoming 1 major fall holiday.
TheHalloween we celebrate today includes all of these influences, Pomona Day'sapples, nuts, and harvest, the Festival of Samhain's black cats, magic, evilspirits and death, and the ghosts, skeletons and skulls from All Saint's Dayand All Soul's Day.
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Halloweenis the oldest holiday with origins going back thousands of years. Theholiday we know as Halloween has had many influences from many cultures overthe centuries. Hundreds of years agoin Great Britain and Northern France, lived the Celts.
TheCelts celebrated their New Year on November 1st. It was celebrated every yearwith a festival and marked the end of the "season of the sun" and thebeginning of "the season of darkness and cold."
OnOctober 31st after the crops were all harvested for the long winterthe cooking fires in the homes would be extinguished. The Druids, the Celticpriests, would meet in the hilltop in the dark forest .
The Druids would light new fires and offer sacrifices ofcrops and animals. As they danced around the the fires, the season of the sunpassed and the season of darkness would begin.
Whenthe morning arrived the Druids would give an ember from their fires to eachfamily who would then take them home to start new cooking fires. These fireswould keep the homes warm and free from evil spirits.
TheNovember 1st festival was called Samhain (pronounced "sow-en"). Thefestival would last for 3 days. Many people would parade in costumes made fromthe skins and heads of their animals. This festival would become the firstHalloween.
Romansbrought with them many of their festivals and customs. One of these was thefestival know as Pomona Day, named for their goddess of fruits and gardens. Itwas also celebrated around the 1st of November. After hundreds of years ofRoman rule the customs of the Celtic's Samhain festival and the Roman PomonaDay mixed becoming 1 major fall holiday.
TheHalloween we celebrate today includes all of these influences, Pomona Day'sapples, nuts, and harvest, the Festival of Samhain's black cats, magic, evilspirits and death, and the ghosts, skeletons and skulls from All Saint's Dayand All Soul's Day.