Entry# 9

Halloween, or Hallowe’en, is a holiday celebrated on the night of October 31. Halloween activities include trick-or-treating, ghost tours, bonfires, costume parties, visiting "haunted houses", carving Jack-o'-lanterns, reading scary stories and watching horror movies. Irish immigrants carried versions of the tradition to North America in the nineteenth centurHalloween has its origins in the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain. The festival of Samhain is a celebration of the end of the harvest season in Gaelic culture, and is sometimes regarded as the "Celtic New Year".Traditionally, the festival was a time used by the ancient pagans to take stock of supplies and slaughter livestock for winter stores. The ancient Gaels believed that on October 31, now known as Halloween, the boundary between the alive and the deceased dissolved, and the dead become dangerous for the living by causing problems such as sickness or damaged crops. The festivals would frequently involve bonfires, into which bones of slaughtered livestock were thrown. Costumes and masks were also worn at the festivals in an attempt to mimic the evil spirits or placate them.The carved pumpkin, lit by a candle inside, is one of Halloween's most prominent symbols in America, and is commonly called a jack-o'-lantern. Originating in Europe, these lanterns were first carved from a turnip or rutabaga. Believing that the head was the most powerful part of the body containing the spirit and the knowledge, the Celts used the "head" of the vegetable to frighten off any superstitions.Halloween costumes are traditionally those of monsters such as ghosts, skeletons, witches, and devils. Costumes are also based on themes other than traditional horror, such as those of characters from television shows, movies and other pop culture icons.

when it comes to Halloween, the first thing i got in my mind are people walking down the street with a weird costume, go from door to door and collect candies and also a head carved pumpkins. but after reading this articles, i have know that Halloween is a celebration that means more than that. people in the past celebrate Halloween in other to survive. from my opinion, Halloween is an interesting celebration. you can wear any kinds of costume and doesn't need to afraid that people will complain it ugly or bad, walk from door to door to collect candies and play games, listen to ghost stories and wacth a horror movies. during this celebration, you can see various kind of costume that is sometimes beautiful,freaky and also weird. i am also impressed with their creativity carving the pumpkins into a freaky face. the presence of lantern during the Halloween night also make the street look beautiful. during this celebration, there are also special meals served such as candy apples and fruit cake or also known as king cake. for children who celebrate Halloween, I'm sure it is the moment that they are waiting for every years.