Halloween is one of the most popular nights a year, but there’s so many things we don’t know about it. For example, a lot of people don’t know that Halloween has been celebrated for more than 2,000 years, and that many of the figures and props we see today have been used a early as that.
Today, Halloween is seen as a celebration, but let’s not forget what Halloween is about: souls from the spirit world entering our realm disguised as humans. If that doesn’t scare you, I don’t know what will.
Here are 13 Halloween trivia and legends you may or may not know:
1. Halloween uses the colors orange and black because orange is the color of the fall harvest, and black is the color of death and darkness.
2. The tradition of putting up Jack o’ Lanterns started in Ireland when locals carved out turnips and put candles inside to ward off evil spirits during the season. It is also used to guide lost souls home. According to legend, a farmer named Jack tricked the devil, which resulted in him getting turned away from heaven and hell when he died. He used a hollowed turnip and a coal a devil gave him to guide his lost soul in purgatory.
3. Halloween began as Samhain, a 2,000 year old Celtic tradition also celebrated the end of October. The ancient Celts believed that evil spirits roamed the earth on Halloween night, so they wore costumes so they won’t be recognized as human.
4. Halloween is big business: it is the second most commercially successful holiday after Christmas
5. Yes, there is a fear of Halloween and it’s called Samhainophobia
6. Legend has it that if a bat flies inside your house on Halloween, it means your house is haunted. The ghosts are said to invite the bat in.
7. Another legend says that if you see a spider on Halloween, it means a deceased loved one is watching over you.
8. Today’s image of the witch traces its history to another Samhain tradition: the worshipping of a pagan goddess called the crone or the Earth Mother. She symbolized wisdom, change, and the passing of the seasons.
9. The cauldron is a popular Halloween sight, but it once symbolized the Earth Mother’s womb, where souls went to after death. The goddess stirs the cauldron, allowing new spirits to enter and old spirits to be reborn.
10. The witch’s brooomstick is another popular Halloween prop. Its association with witchcraft dates back to the medieval times, when the women who were accused of witchcraft were often poor, elderly women who used broomsticks as an alternative to a walking stick.
11. It is believed that during Samhain, the portal between our world and the spirit world is the thinnest. The spirits are said to walk the earth disguised as humans, often as beggars asking for food and money. Trick or treating began as a way to prevent these spirits from getting angry and cursing them.
12. Rumor has it that if you hear footsteps behind you on Halloween, do not turn around. It is said to be death following you.
13. If you hear a cat sneeze, you will have good luck, but if you see a white cat, you will have bad luck.
What other Halloween trivia or legends do you know? Share it below!
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