Fun Facts About Halloween
Jonathon Andrews
1. Halloween originates from the ancient Celtic Festival known as Samhain that was celebrated around Ireland and the UK. October 31st was the eve of their new year. The Celts lit bonfires and wore costumes to protect themselves from spirits. They believed ghosts returned to earth on Samhain.
2. Jack-o-Lanterns come from the Legend of Stingy Jack. The legend goes, Jack tricked the Devil into not taking him when he died and he was certainly not being accepted into heaven. This left Jack wandering purgatory for all eternity with nothing but a burning coal in an empty turnip to light the way. The Irish called him “Jack of the Lantern” but it was shortened to Jack-o-Lantern.
3. We don’t make Jack-o-Lanterns out of turnips because they aren’t a common crop in the United States so we substitute them with pumpkins.
4. Halloween icons were chosen because they all have ties to Wiccans. Black cats, spiders, and bats were thought to be familiars of witches. Familiars were believed to be household pets that assist witches with their magic.
5. “Trick-or-treating” has been around since medieval times but it used to be called “souling”. Souling was the practice of children going door-to-door on All Souls Day. They offered prayers for the homeowners’ deceased loved ones in exchange for food.
6. Trick-or-treating was also inspired by a tradition known as “mumming” during the middle ages. People would dress up as ghouls or demons and would go door-to-door performing songs or scenes from plays and receive food or drinks in exchange.
7. Silly String is banned in Hollywood on Halloween. If caught using it you can be fined up to $1,000!
8. Chesapeake, Virginia doesn’t allow anyone over the age of 13 to go trick-or-treating, if caught the offenders can get up to six months in jail!
9. Candy Corn was initially called “chicken feed” and “butter cream candies” since feeding livestock corn was very common. It had no affiliation with Halloween or fall until after World War II, when advertisers started to market it as a Halloween treat based on the color scheme of the candy.
10. Some animal shelters disallow the adoption of black cats on Halloween to decrease the number of inhumane rituals done on black cats on Halloween night. Normally it takes up to three times as long for black cats to get adopted.
11. Trick-or-Treating was banned in the 1940s due to a shortage of sugar rations. This was because the recession WW2 caused, the government regulated the distribution of sugar and sugar-filled goods until the war ended.
12. A full moon on Halloween is extremely rare. The last one occurred in 2020, and the next won’t be until 2039.
For more facts check out our sources below:
Maci. (2020, December 22). 100 interesting Halloween facts about the spookiest time of the year. Facts.net. Retrieved October 22, 2021, from https://facts.net/lifestyle/halloween-facts/.
McAfee, T. (2021, July 7). 20 fun Halloween facts to impress everyone with this October. The Pioneer Woman. Retrieved October 22, 2021, from https://www.thepioneerwoman.com/holidays-celebrations/a36915963/halloween-facts/.
Willett-Wei, M. (2013, October 24). 13 facts you never knew about Halloween. Business Insider. Retrieved October 22, 2021, from https://www.businessinsider.com/13-facts-you-never-knew-about-halloween-2013-10.
