Harvest Festivals
What kind of fruit do people typically "bob" for at many harvest time celebrations?
Apples
What Halloween tradition started with beggars going door to door to say prayers in exchange for food?
Trick or Treating
What percentage of parents admit to sneaking goodies from their children's trick-or-treat bags?
90%
Is a pumpkin a vegetable or a fruit?
A fruit
Arachnophobia is the fear of what creatures?
Spiders
The full moon that occurs closest to the autumnal equinox is known as what?
The Harvest Moon
In ancient times, Druid priests lit fires at this time of year to ensure the sun would return after a long winter, and often tossed in cattle bones. What did these fires come to be known as?
Bonfires
The 1978 blockbuster movie "Halloween" was made on a very limited budget in only five months. True or False?
False.
(Correct answer: 21 days)
The world's largest pumpkin ever grown in the USA weighed in at over a ton. True or False?
True
(2,528 pounds - that's a lot of pies!)
What man-shaped figures were used to frighten pests away from crops at harvest time?
Scarecrows.
Indonesia, which is in the Southern Hemisphere, celebrates its harvest festival at the end of May. What important crop is harvested at the end of this month?
Rice
There are two countries that end in the word "land" that are widely credited with originating the idea of wearing costumes on Halloween. Name one of them.
Scotland or Ireland
What do the Halloween colors black and orange signify?
Orange stands for harvest and black stands for death.
In what fairy tale was the word "pumpkin" first used?
Cinderella
Black cats were once evil omens thought to be the spirits of what frightening creatures?
Witches
In honor of the festival "Lammas", which means "loaf mass" what did English and Scottish farmers bring to the church after harvesting the first of their wheat crop?
Bread
Halloween has its origins in which ancient Celtic Festival?
Samhain (pronounced "sah-win")
In the Peanuts Halloween TV special, every Halloween Charlie Brown helps his friend Linus wait for what character to appear?
The Great Pumpkin
From what region in the world do pumpkins originate?
Central America
Insects swarming around night-time fires attracted owls and these other nocturnal flying creatures. What are they?
Bats
Booths
In what country was the first written account of children using the phrase "Trick or Treat" on Halloween?
Originally known as Count Wampyr in Bram Stoker's 1897 novel, this famous vampire is more commonly known by what name?
Dracula
In late 19th century Ireland what vegetables were used to carve jack-o-lanterns instead of pumpkins?
Turnips
What is the fear of Halloween known as?
Samhainophobia