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500 BCE
Samhain
The Celts believed the night of October 31 was a day when the living and dead overlapped, and the dead returned to earth. Fearing evil intent from the returned dead, festival-goers wore costumes and masks to appease them. -
43
Roman intervention
After four centuries of Roman rule, additional celebrations were added to the Celtic festival of Samhain. One was a day to honor the Pomona, Roman goddess of fruit and trees. As the symbol for this goddess is the apple, it is commonly believed that from this festival came the tradition of bobbing for apples on Halloween -
603
All Martyrs Day
All Martyrs Day, a day to honor all saints and martyrs, became a tradition in the Roman church each November 1. -
1000
All-hallows
The Roman church dedicated November 2 as All Souls Day in honor of the dead. This day was celebrated with dressing up in devil, angel and saint costumes, and with bonfires and parades. All Saints Day celebration was also referred to as All-hallows and the night before began to be called All-hallows eve which eventually became Halloween. -
1556
trick-or-treating
The tradition we now call trick-or-treating has its beginnings when the practice of “souling” was it name, in which peasants go door-to-door begging for food and treats given out in memory of the dead. -
Puritans intervention
Halloween is banned by the Puritans of New England, because they consider it a Catholic holiday. Then, for the next 200-plus years, Halloween is celebrated primarily by Catholics. -
Costumes
Many of the traditions still associated with Halloween today begin to develop. Celebrants begin to dress up and go door-to-door singing for treats, turnips are turned into lanterns, and tricks are frequently played on others to imitate the hijinks of evil spirits. -
Irish and Scottish immigrants
Irish and Scottish immigrants, fleeing the Irish Potato Famine, arrive to America and bring with them their Halloween traditions, making the celebration more popular. -
No more belief, Just fun
With the focus taken away from witchcraft and ghosts and instead placed on family and friend get-togethers, parties and parades. -
Commercial holiday
Costumes began to appear in shops, thus making Halloween a truly mainstream, money-making holiday. -
The Big screen
The first movie of a horror movie franchise, Halloween, is released, and Michael Myers becomes an evil mascot for the holiday. -
So many vegies
1.31 billion pounds of pumpkins were produced in the US alone.
