History
Who started the tradition of Halloween and when?
The Celts started these traditions over 2,000 years ago
What was the original reason for dressing up on Halloween?
Kids wore masks to disguise themselves while they played tricks on their neighbors
What is trick or treating?
The event on Halloween in which children go house to house in costume and knock on people’s doors asking them if they want to receive a trick or give them candy
When is Halloween?
October 31st
What was the original Halloween and how was it celebrated?
October 31st was the end of Harvest Season (aka Sauin/Samhain), as well as the Celtic New Year, and the Celts considered it a magical time between years when ghosts of the dead walked the earth because the veil between life and death was at its thinnest
What are some common Halloween costumes? Name 3
Ghost, skeleton, Pumpkin/Jack O’ Lantern, Witch, Vampire, Zombie, Cat
What are some common symbols of Halloween? Name 5
Black and orange, spiderwebs, pumpkins/Jack O’Lanterns, skeletons, black cats, bats, witches, ghosts, zombies, haunted houses, candy, evil spirits, darkness, spooky, nighttime
What is the Mexican holiday with similar themes to Halloween and which is celebrated shortly after?
Día de los muertos or Day of the Dead
What Holiday comes the day after Halloween and who started it?
The day after Halloween, November 1st, was designated All Saints Day, or Hallomas (Hallow = Holy or saintly, Mass of the saints), by the Vatican in the 7th century, to honor martyrs and the deceased faithfuls.
What famous musician did Siobhan (your language assistant/Auxiliar) dress up as once?
John Lennon
How would the Celts scare off the dead on Halloween?
They would light a large bonfire to drive the dead back to the spirit world
How do people in the US celebrate Halloween? List 3 minimum:
Carving Jack O’ Lanterns, going to the corn maze, dressing in costumes, going trick or treating (or to a halloween party), watching scary movies.
When and how did Halloween come to the United States?
The Irish brought their holiday customs to the US during the potato famine of the 1840’s.
What should you NOT dress up as on Halloween?
Someone else’s culture, especially when it involves something offensive
This superstition says that if this animal crosses your path it will bring you bad luck
Black cat
It's transparent and comes out at night
Ghost
How did Trick or Treating originate and how did it develop to what it is today?
Playing tricks was a common Halloween tradition in which children would steal and vandalize neighbors and businesses and wear masks so as to not be recognized. In the 1930’s it became almost dangerous, and neighbors and storekeepers began to bribe the children with candy to stop the vandalism. The original Trick or Treat began as a combination of extortion and bribery, in which kids would travel door to door asking for candy instead of pranking.
What is cultural appropriation and why is it harmful?
Cultural appropriation in the context of Halloween costumes ‘otherizes’ non-dominant, not western cultures to the point that their culture is a costume. Many, if not all, of these otherized cultures have been historically oppressed and punished for expressing their culture. When people, typically privileged white people, wear other peoples cultures as a costume, it doesn’t acknowledge the history, oppression and meaning attached to the “costume” thereby erasing and diminishing its meaning and people.
What is bobbing for apples?
The game is played by filling a tub or a large basin with water and putting apples in the water. Because apples are less dense than water, they will float at the surface. Players then try to catch one with their teeth.
The scent of what strong smelling food is often thought to keep vampires away?
Garlic