10. Halloween Is A Modern Version Of Samhain, A 6000 Year Old Festival
Modern Halloween is usually considered the modern combination of the ancient festivals of Hallowmas and Samhain, which are both celebrated around November 1st and both involve celebrating the spirits of the dead or the dormancy of winter. All Hallows' Eve and Hallowmas are around 2000 years old, begin a version of the much, much older Samhain (which is though to be around 6000 years old). Samhain is Gaelic for summer's end, and was a celebration of the end of summer and the beginning of winter. A celebration of all the food collected and stored in summer, ready for the harsh months of winter. The exact nature of ancient Samhain isn't fully known, as records from the time are either non-existant or very, very sparse. It was certainly a celebration at the end of the harvest, when all of a tribe or village would gather and celebrate the end of the harvest, and the safe return of animals from pastures and feeding grounds. The changing of the seasons also had a traditional component of spiritualism, with the change signifying that the walls that separate this world and the next would be thin, and spirits could come calling. All of these traditions piled in together, with a few others throughout the millennia and eventually formed the candy fuelled nightmare that haunts our streets every October. Spooky.
