Trick or treat? Romanian children go caroling on Christmas, but in Great Britain and America, the little ones go “hunting” for sweets on Halloween.
In the next lines, let’s talk a little bit about the most interesting Halloween traditions around the Globe.
Halloween is a relatively “modern” inventions, but its origins are deeply rooted in the pagan Celtic festival of Samhain. The Christian Church transformed pagan festivities in religious celebrations as much as possible, so all around the Globe today, Halloween is associated with the Feast of all Saints (also celebrated in Romania.
It is fascinating to see how a feast transforms along time, but also to acknowledge the particularities of local traditions. It’s the same with Halloween!
As Great Britain is in fact the place where Halloween originates, many of the common traditions come from here. The scary costumes, the carved Jack-o’-lantern pumpkins and kids going “trick or treat”-ing are just a few examples. Also, in Englands, Ireland and Scotland, there was the custom of predicting the future by looking into a dark mirror or a water basin. They thought you could see the face of your fated man or wife if you looked hard enough. On the other hand, tradition claimed that if someone saw a skull reflected, that person would “marry death”.
In Scotland, a similar tradition encouraged girls to peel an apple and throw the peel behind their back. mmThe letter formed would be the initial of the future of your lover or husband.
In Mexico, Halloween was equivalent with El Dia de los Muertos. In the villages, people go out dancing dressed in skeletons and promenade a coffin carrying a living man around the place. A bit creepy!
In Germany, people hide knives so that the spirits that wander around freely don’t hurt themselves. (Or maybe they fear they may hurt the living…).
In Romania, Halloween is not an official celebration, but it has gained more and more popularity recently, at least for offering friends the opportunity to meet for a fun party!