Halloween is celebrated on October 31.

In ancient Britain, the Celts celebrated the fire-festival of Samhain on October 31. This day marked the end of summer, the close of the harvest season and the return of the herds from pasture. It was also the eve of the New Year in both Celtic and Anglo Saxon times and the date when laws and land tenures were renewed.

For the ancient Celts, the turning of one year into the next was a magical time. The souls of the dead were believed to revisit their homes on this night. Fairies, who were dangerous and hostile to humans, were also believed to be especially active on this night, waiting to trick people into fairy mounds and keep them trapped forever. To protect themselves against such evil spirits, the ancient Celts lit huge bonfires on this night – which thus became a fire-festival. Over time, human imagination filled this night with all sorts of witches, hobgoblins, black cats, demons and fairies roaming around.

This night was also considered the best time to make forecasts about such important matters as marriage, health, luck and death. Many of the methods used to make these divinations have come down to us in the form of games that children still play today. One such game is ducking for apples. This was used as a marriage divination – the person to bite an apple first would be the first to get married that year.

The Christian festival of All Hallows’ Eve, a holy or hallowed evening, was also observed on the same day. This was influenced by the early Celtic rituals of Samhain. Gradually, the two festivals merged into Halloween, the secular festival that is celebrated today.

Irish immigrants carried the secular practices of Halloween to America in the 19th century, where mischief-making by young people on the night became part of the observances. This would often include turning over sheds, or breaking windows, and result in serious damage to property.

Today Halloween is celebrated mainly by small children, dressed up as their favourite evil character, going from door to door, demanding a treat or threatening a trick instead.

A popular symbol of Halloween is the Jack-O’-Lantern, a hollowed out pumpkin carved with a scary face, and with a lighted candle inside. In Scotland, a turnip was used, but was substituted by a pumpkin in America.