No one knows for certain about the true origins of the Hallowe’en festival
Some say its roots are in the early Middle Ages as a Catholic vigil observed on the eve of All Saints Day, November 1st. Remembering saints and martyrs and dedicating a specific day to them each year has been a Christian tradition since the 4th century AD.
The even earlier pagan festival of Samhain (summer’s end) marked the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter, and was celebrated with feasting, bonfires, sacrificial offerings, and homage to the dead.
Speaking of bonfires, have you ever given any thought to the origin of the word?
It is not from the French as Samuel Johnson believed (bon = good.) The word is a corruption of ‘bone fire’ deriving from a Celtic festival where sacrificial bones were burnt by Druid priests to ward off evil spirits….probably.
But who could possibly know for sure? If I’d been there at the time, then I might be able to verify the story that says all local homefires were extinguished, then relit from an ember from the priest’s bone fire. And why go to all that touble? To bring good fortune and ward off evil spirits (of course!) The embers might well have been carried home inside a carved out turnip.
In ‘A Dictionary of English Folklore’ (Roud and Simpson) the idea that the Church somehow ‘stole’ the pagan festival of Samhain and designated November 1st as All Saints Day is strongly rejected. But Roud goes on to say;
‘Certainly the festival of Samhain was by far the most important of the four quarter days in the medieval Irish calendar, and there was a sense that this was the time of year when the physical and supernatural worlds were closest and magical things could happen.’
Some of the earliest Hallowe’en customs grew from All Saints Day (or All Hallows Day; a day of prayer for saints and martyrs) and All Souls Day (November 2nd – a day of prayer for the souls of all the dead.) The night before All Hallows Day, was All Hallows Evening, shortened to Hallowe’en.
It’s important to note that when researching the origins of Hallowe’en, words such as ‘evidently’, ‘apparently’, ‘likely’, ‘possibly’ abound!
‘Evidently,’ the lighting of bonfires during the medieval period symbolized the plight of souls lost in purgatory. ‘Apparently,’ during this period, poor children went from door to door offering prayers for the dead in return for cakes and treats.
But that’s not to say for sure that the custom was the basis for today’s trick or treating. Shakespeare mentions the practice in ‘The Two Gentlemen of Verona’ (1593) when Speed accuses his master of ‘puling [whimpering, whining], like a beggar at Hallowmas.’
Lewis Spence, in The History and Origins of Druidism, writes ‘The outstanding feature of Samhain was the burning of a great fire.…Samhain was also a festival of the dead, whose spirits were thought of as roving the countryside, causing dread to the folk at large. To expel them from the fields and villages, lighted brands from the bonfire were carried around the district.’
The fires were believed to not only banish evil spirits but also to rejuvenate the sun.
On this night, evil or frustrated ghosts were also suspected of playing tricks on humans.
And there are still more legends! This one is without doubt the most fun! It is the story of an Irishman named Jack, who had a reputation of being something of a trickster. He used his wile to trick the devil so that he could not take his soul, but when Jack died, neither could he enter heaven. He was left wandering the earth, and to light his way and ward off evil spirits, he carved out a turnip and stuck a burning ember inside.
Irish immigrants brought the festival to North America in the mid-1800s, turnips were not commonly available, so instead they used pumpkins.
To this day, a carved out pumpkin with a candle inside is affectionately called a Jack-O’-Lantern, after poor Jack who might still be roaming for all we know!
Dressing up at Hallowe’en has become an established custom for many children. The origin of disguise lies in the aim of not being recognized as human, to avoid the attention of other worldly entities.
On the one hand there are many who view Hallowe’en as a secularized festival, with no religious meaning and simply as something fun for the children. On the other hand, there are those who take it more seriously and view it as an event which focuses almost entirely on the evil side of the spiritual realm.
How each side judges Hallowe’en determines whether they join in or not.
Pass me a tealight.
Jacky Long
writer in residence, Bay Life
all rights reserved
23 October 2013
