October, the scariest month!

October 31st is Halloween! But do you know the origins of this festival?

It has Celtic origins. Originally, it celebrated the start of winter, which is the end of the year in Celtic calendar. During this festivity Druids, who were celtic priests, performed religious rituals and talked about future events. The night of October 31 was the night when ghosts , witches and other spirits were thought to come to Earth. For this reason, Druids wore frightening costumes and made fires to send them away.

What colours are the most representative of Halloween?

Well, whenever we are told to think about Halloween orange and black comes to our mind. The reason why those colours are so characteristic in Halloween are diverse. For instance, orange was the colour of the harvest, according to Druids. Furthermore, black was thought to be the colour of winter and black cat were animals who were thought to feel spirits when they were near.

Is Halloween celebrated nowadays?

As you already know, Halloween is celebrated in the USA, but it has become popular all over Europe too. People usually go to Halloween parties dressed up in scary costumes. In addition, houses and schools are decorated with pumpkins, ghosts, witches and bats. Of course, different games are played, as well. For instance: bobbing for apples and trick or treating. The last one is a popular Irish tradition, which began in the 19th century. Children go to their neighbours' houses to collect sweets or money.

Making a Jack-o-lantern

This is a traditional Halloween lantern which is made cleaning the inside of a a pumpkin and putting a candle inside it. People usually put this jack-o-lantern in front of their window to scare their neighbour.

Halloween food

Delicious American pumpkin pies are made during Halloween. Have a look at our glogster to know the recipe.

For further information click on this link: Halloween