{"id":9532,"date":"2020-10-14T11:41:32","date_gmt":"2020-10-14T10:41:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/?p=9532"},"modified":"2020-10-14T11:41:32","modified_gmt":"2020-10-14T10:41:32","slug":"halloween-10-things-you-didnt-know-about-halloween","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/halloween-10-things-you-didnt-know-about-halloween\/","title":{"rendered":"HALLOWEEN: 10 things you didn’t know about Halloween"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every year Halloween provokes controversy and divides opinions: what is the history of Halloween and when was it first celebrated? Why do we trick or treat? Why do we carve pumpkins? Most people see Halloween as just as a bit of harmless fun, while others say it marks an ancient pagan festival \u2013 and some evangelical Christians claim it is a celebration of dangerous occult forces. So what are the facts? Folklore expert, Dr David Clarke has written an article for\u00a0BBC History Extra<\/a> about the history (and mystery) of Halloween…<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

1. A religious festival?<\/h4>\n

Most people believe 31 October is an ancient pagan festival associated with the supernatural. In fact, it has religious connotations \u2013 although there is disagreement among historians about when it began<\/a>. Some say Hallowtide was introduced as All Saints\u2019 Day in the 7th century AD by Pope Boniface IV, while others maintain it was created in the 9th century AD by Christians to commemorate their martyrs and saints.<\/p>\n

What are the origins of Halloween?<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

In medieval Britain, \u2018Halloween\u2019 was the eve of the Catholic festival All Saints or All-Hallows (from Old English \u2018Holy Man\u2019) on 1 November, and was followed by the feast of All Souls on 2 November.<\/p>\n

<\/h4>\n

2. We didn’t always carve pumpkins<\/h4>\n

The tradition of carving a face on a turnip or swede (and more recently pumpkin), and using these as lanterns, seems to be a relatively modern tradition. On the last Thursday in October, children in the Somerset village of Hinton St George carry lanterns made of mangel-wurzles (a type of root vegetable). The light shines through a design etched on the skin. They are carried around the streets as the children chant: \u201cIt\u2019s Punky Night tonight, It\u2019s Punky Night tonight, Give us a candle, give us a light, It\u2019s Punky Night tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n

5 historic hauntings for Halloween<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/h4>\n

3. We didn’t ‘trick or treat’ in England until the 1970s<\/h4>\n

Much of the modern supernatural lore surrounding Halloween was invented as recently as the 19th century. Scots and Irish settlers brought the custom of Mischief Night visiting to North America, where it became known as \u2018trick or treat\u2019. Until the revival of interest in Halloween during the 1970s, this American tradition was largely unknown in England. The importation of \u2018trick or treat\u2019 into parts of England during the 1980s was helped by scenes in American TV programmes and the 1982 film E.T.<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/h4>\n

4. Halloween wasn’t always about the supernatural<\/h4>\n

There is no evidence the pagan Anglo-Saxons celebrated a festival on 1 November, but the Venerable Bede says the month was known as \u2018Blod-monath\u2019 (blood month), when surplus livestock were slaughtered and offered as sacrifices. The truth is there is no written evidence that 31 October was linked to the supernatural in England before the 19th century.<\/p>\n

9 haunted historic houses<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

3 curious medieval ghost stories<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/h4>\n

5. Nor was it always scary<\/h4>\n

The idea of Halloween as a festival of supernatural evil forces is an entirely modern invention. Urban legends about razor blades in apples and cyanide in sweets, hauntings by restless spirits and the use of 31 October as the date of evil or inauspicious events in horror films, reflect modern fears and terrors.<\/p>\n

<\/h4>\n

6. A festival of the dead?<\/h4>\n
\n
\n

In pre-Christian Ireland, 1 November was known as \u2018Samhain\u2019 (summer\u2019s end). This date marked the onset of winter in Gaelic-speaking areas of Britain. It was also the end of the pastoral farming year, when cattle were slaughtered and tribal gatherings such as the Irish Feis of Tara were held. In the 19th century the anthropologist Sir James Frazer popularised the idea of Samhain as an ancient Celtic festival of the dead, when pagan religious ceremonies were held.<\/p>\n

10 historical superstitions we carry on today<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Spooky Stuart ghost stories<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n
\n
\"\"

This Halloween postcard with a witch, black cats and pumpkins, Worcester, Massachusetts, circa 1910. (Photo by Transcendental Graphics\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/h4>\n

7. Prayers, not pumpkins<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n

The Catholic tradition of offering prayers to the dead, the ringing of church bells and lighting of candles and torches on 1 November provides the link with the spirit world. In medieval times, prayers were said for souls trapped in purgatory on 1 November. This was believed to be a sort of \u2018halfway house\u2019 on the road to Heaven, and it was thought their ghosts could return to earth to ask relatives for assistance in the journey.<\/p>\n

\n
\"\"

This lithographic Halloween postcard is published circa 1910 in New York City. (Photo by Transcendental Graphics\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/h4>\n

8. We used to go \u2018souling\u2019<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n

Popular Halloween customs in England included \u2018souling\u2019, where groups of adults \u2013 and later children wearing costumes \u2013 visited big houses to sing and collect money and food. Souling was common in parts of Cheshire, Shropshire, Lancashire and Yorkshire on 1 and 2 November. In parts of northern England, special cakes were baked and left in churchyards as offerings to the dead.<\/p>\n

\n

<\/h4>\n

9. Bonfires were lit on Halloween<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n

Until the 19th century, bonfires were lit on Halloween in parts of northern England and Derbyshire. Some folklorists believe the enduring popularity of Guy Fawkes bonfires on 5 November may be a memory of an older fire festival, but there is a lack of written evidence for these in England before the late 17th century.<\/p>\n

A royal ghost tour: 5 haunted sites around Britain<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

A brief history of witches by Suzannah Lipscomb<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

<\/h4>\n

10. Halloween was once romantic<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n

Love divinations on Halloween spread to England from Scotland as a result of the popularity of Robert Burn\u2019s poem Halloween<\/em> in Victorian times. One love divination mentioned by Burns includes placing hazelnuts in the fire, naming one for yourself and the other for your partner. If they burned gently and then went out, this indicated a long and harmonious life together; if they coughed and spluttered or exploded, this was a sign of problems ahead.\u00a0Apples were also used for divination purposes: the skin was thrown over the shoulder, or the fruit floated in water or hung upon strings, to be seized by the teeth of the players.<\/p>\n

\"\"

31st October 1886: Irish Halloween celebrations, including the party game ‘bobbing for apples’. (Photo by Hulton Archive\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Every year Halloween provokes controversy and divides opinions: what is the history of Halloween and when was it first celebrated? Why do we trick or treat? Why do we carve pumpkins? Most people see Halloween as just as a bit of harmless fun, while others say it marks an ancient pagan festival \u2013 and some evangelical Christians claim it is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20701,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"wds_primary_category":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[139],"tags":[1610,1612,172,1608,593,1609,1611],"class_list":["post-9532","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-bbc-history-extra","tag-contemporary-legend-and-folklore","tag-david-clarke","tag-dr-david-clarke","tag-folklore","tag-halloween","tag-history-of-halloween"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8oFHo-2tK","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":12249,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/clarke-historyextra-podcast-ufos\/","url_meta":{"origin":9532,"position":0},"title":"David Clarke features in HistoryExtra podcast discussing the history of UFOs","author":"Amy Lander","date":"31\/07\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"David Clarke featured on a recent HistoryExtra podcast to discuss the history of UFOs. In the podcast, David explored how recent interest in UFOs fits into the longer history of our fascination with visitors from above, and what society\u2019s shifting view of aliens tells us about the cultural and political\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":11972,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/clarke-bbc-radio-ufo-sightings\/","url_meta":{"origin":9532,"position":1},"title":"Dr David Clarke speaks to BBC World Service Radio about government-reported UFO sightings","author":"Amy Lander","date":"05\/05\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Associate Professor Dr David Clarke spoke to BBC World Service Radio about government-reported UFO sightings, and his role in sorting through the reports. The recording is available here - Listen back from 14:11. Dr David Clarke is one of the UK's leading authorities on contemporary legend and folklore. He is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8967,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/dr-david-clarke-featured-in-bbc-article-on-the-rendlesham-forest-ufo-sightings\/","url_meta":{"origin":9532,"position":2},"title":"Dr David Clarke featured in BBC article on the Rendlesham Forest UFO sightings","author":"Laura Hetherington","date":"16\/03\/2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Dr David Clarke has been quoted in a BBC Online article discussing one of the most famous UFO sightings in the UK, Rendlesham Forest. As the new documentary Codename Rendlesham is released, he says that researchers are at an 'impasse' and the longer this goes on 'the more it becomes\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2020\/03\/david-clarke.jpg?fit=890%2C290&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2020\/03\/david-clarke.jpg?fit=890%2C290&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2020\/03\/david-clarke.jpg?fit=890%2C290&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2020\/03\/david-clarke.jpg?fit=890%2C290&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10686,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/new-book-co-authored-by-dr-david-clarke-shows-sheffield-is-true-home-of-robin-hood\/","url_meta":{"origin":9532,"position":3},"title":"New book co-authored by Dr David Clarke shows Sheffield is true home of Robin Hood","author":"Phoebe Bolton","date":"13\/12\/2021","format":false,"excerpt":"A new book co-authored by Sheffield Hallam's Dr David Clarke exploring the region\u2019s Robin Hood folklore has been published. Dr Clarke, from the University's Culture and Creativity Research Institute, is one of the authors of\u00a0Reclaiming Robin Hood: Folklore & South Yorkshire\u2019s Infamous Outlaw.\u00a0It has been launched with Sensoria Festival and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"New book shows Sheffield is true home of Robin Hood","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2021\/12\/New-book-shows-Sheffield-is-true-home-of-Robin-Hood.jpg?fit=640%2C427&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2021\/12\/New-book-shows-Sheffield-is-true-home-of-Robin-Hood.jpg?fit=640%2C427&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2021\/12\/New-book-shows-Sheffield-is-true-home-of-Robin-Hood.jpg?fit=640%2C427&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8537,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/diane-rodgers-researcher-blog-adventures-in-folklore-with-the-bbc\/","url_meta":{"origin":9532,"position":4},"title":"Diane Rodgers Researcher Blog: Adventures in Folklore with the BBC!","author":"Amy Lander","date":"30\/01\/2020","format":false,"excerpt":"About the Author Diane A. Rodgers is a Senior Lecturer in Media, Arts and Communications at Sheffield Hallam University\u00a0and a C3RI PhD candidate\u00a0conducting doctoral research\u00a0relating to folklore and folk horror in \u2018wyrd\u2019 1970s British Film and Television. On either side of the festive period, I was lucky to have a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Doctoral research"","block_context":{"text":"Doctoral research","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/category\/doctoral-research\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2020\/01\/CCL-on-Radio-Sheffield-edit.jpg?fit=890%2C366&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2020\/01\/CCL-on-Radio-Sheffield-edit.jpg?fit=890%2C366&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2020\/01\/CCL-on-Radio-Sheffield-edit.jpg?fit=890%2C366&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2020\/01\/CCL-on-Radio-Sheffield-edit.jpg?fit=890%2C366&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10256,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/a-brief-history-of-ufos-by-dr-david-clarke\/","url_meta":{"origin":9532,"position":5},"title":"A brief history of UFOs by Dr David Clarke","author":"Phoebe Bolton","date":"09\/06\/2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Dr David Clarke,\u00a0co-founder of the Centre for Contemporary Legend, has written an article for\u00a0BBC History Extra outlining a brief history and a list of the top ten notable sightings of UFOs in the UK from the bast century. He says that the birth of the modern UFO era can be\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2021\/03\/David_Clarke_web3.jpg?fit=900%2C598&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2021\/03\/David_Clarke_web3.jpg?fit=900%2C598&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2021\/03\/David_Clarke_web3.jpg?fit=900%2C598&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/files\/2021\/03\/David_Clarke_web3.jpg?fit=900%2C598&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9532","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9532"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9532\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9548,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9532\/revisions\/9548"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9532"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9532"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.ac.uk\/c3riimpact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9532"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}