So every year MILLIONS of people celebrate Halloween, but who really know what they are celebrating? Yes, it is a fun time for costumes, candy and parties BUT there is a much deeper meaning in it’s origins!! So get the full story and this Halloween know what you are celebrating!

Halloween, or All Hallows Eve as it was originally known, dates back over 2000 years back to a Celtic pagan holiday celebrated in Ireland, Britain and Northern Europe as a day to honor the dead.

They believed that the dead roamed the streets at night, but not all of them were friendly. People would leave out gifts and treats to appease the ghosts so they would have a good harvest the next year.

FUN FACTS!!

• Orange and black are Halloween colors because orange is associated with the Fall harvest and black is associated with darkness and death.
• Jack o’ Lanterns originated in Ireland where people placed candles in hollowed-out turnips to keep away spirits and ghosts on the Samhain holiday.
• Halloween is the 2nd most commercially successful holiday, with Christmas being the first.

Folklore!!

• Signs of a werewolf are a unibrow, hair palms, tattoos, and a long middle finger.
• To this day, there are vampire clubs and societies with people claiming to be real vampires.
• Many people still believe that gargoyles were created by medieval architects and stone carvers to ward off evil spirits.

Watch Out For…

• If you see a spider on Halloween, it is the spirit of a loved on watching over you.
• The Ouija Board ended up outselling the game of Monopoly in its first full year at Salem. Over two million copies of the Ouija Board were shipped.

Have a SPOOOOKYYY All Hallows Eve!!

-Erin