Halloween is approaching, and with it, everyone is getting ready for trick-or-treating, either looking for costumes to participate in it or getting the best candy for the kids that will undoubtedly arrive at our party on the last nights of October.
Surely as a child, you participated in this tradition, or maybe you still do no matter that you have grown up, but have you ever wondered where this practice comes from? If you answered from the United States, you would have half the answer, as it has an older origin in a religious ritual.
The Celtic Origins of Halloween
The Celts were people who lived in the territory of Europe between the 8th and 1st centuries BC. These people shared many customs and languages among themselves, and one of their traditions was Samhain, which we can consider the oldest ancestor of trick-or-treating.
Samhain was the Celtic celebration to honor the deceased. People would left food for the spirits that visited them on that date, much like Mexicans and even Chinese folk do during their Day of the Dead celebrations.
After some time, the celebration was joined by people dressed up as ghosts and ghouls who played tricks for food. The reason they dressed like that was to avoid being caught by the real demons. Thus was born the ‘mumming,’ a performance for food.
Appropriation of Tradition
Years later, when Christians began to dominate more territories and cultures, they decided to implement several pagan traditions into their own religious practices. Among them were several Samhain practices, especially one known as ‘souling.’
During the ‘souling’ period, poor people went to pray for the spirits at the house of the rich, and as payment, they received food known as ‘soul cakes.’ Little by little, the tradition was modified until the role fell more on the children than on the poor.
It was through the pilgrim immigrants that ‘souling’ arrived in America in the 19th century, but it took quite a while before food as payment was exchanged for sweets.
Trick or Treat
Before candy began to be given to children during Halloween on cute Jack-o’-lantern containers, the celebrations consisted more of pranks and parties that sometimes turned out to be very heavy, causing great commotions.
In search of a solution, it was decided to change these practices for something more peaceful and familiar, starting with a simple collection of food without the need for some mischief.
It was not until the 1930s that costumes were implemented at the time of this collection, while sweets replaced food until the 1960s. Before that, it was not unusual to hand out baked goods, nuts, and even money.
The switch to candy came because parents were concerned that the food they received might be infected or adulterated in some way, so candy was a more reliable option because of its sealed package.
After this long journey that began in Celtic Europe, we arrive at the present, where we are just a few weeks away from dressing up and going out to get some treats (or tricks). So, have you gotten your costume yet?
Story originally published in Spanish in Cultura Colectiva
