The Meaning of Halloween? Snickers and Twix!

Let’s start by saying this—Snickers, Twix, Kit Kat, and Whatchamacallit are undoubtedly the best. If you want to throw in Peanut M&M’s, I won’t argue. Plain Hershey’s, Mounds, and 3 Musketeers are overrated. And Mike and Ike, Sour Patch Kids, and Skittles—while good—are just straight up toxic. With that out of the way, we can move on to the meaning of Halloween (or something close to that).

 

History

What follows—largely paraphrased from Encyclopedia Britannica—is one version of history. There are probably others.

Halloween is thought to have its roots in a Celtic festival called Samhain. Sorry, I’m not talking about the Boston Celtics—the ancient Celts were prominent around 2000 – 2500 years ago and are generally associated with current-day Ireland (though their spread was broader). During what they believed to mark the new year—October 31/November 1 on the modern calendar—the Celts celebrated the end of summer/harvest and the beginning of winter. In that window, the line between the living and the dead was felt to be blurred, allowing for a close connection with the deceased.  Bonfires were used to ward off evil spirits, and disguises were used to avoid recognition by them.

When the Romans began taking over early in the Common Era, their own festivals recognizing the harvest and the dead became intertwined with the proceedings. And as Christianity rose to prominence, things really began to fall into place. In the seventh century, Pope Boniface IV declared All Saints’ Day to recognize the saints of the Christian Church. When that observance was moved to November 1, October 31 became the eve of All Saints’ Day. Because All Saints’ Day could also be called All Hallows’ Day (hallow=saint), October 31 became All Hallows’ Eve, shortened to Halloween.

Along the way, November 2 was declared All Souls’ Day to honor the dead. Halloween thus became the first day of Allhallowtide, a three-day Western Christian observance that overrode what were felt to be pagan traditions. Over the years, the concept of going door to door while singing and praying for souls in return for cake (soul cake) entered the mix. The practices of using lanterns and committing pranks (to deter and imitate evil spirits, respectively) were also adopted.

With regards to the US, early Puritan (English Protestant) settlers were opposed to the idea of Halloween, making it a relative non-factor for quite some time. (October 31 is actually Reformation Day in honor of the day in 1517 when Martin Luther nailed his Ninety-five Theses on the door of the All Saints’ Church.) It wasn’t until the 19th century, when a sizable number of Irish immigrants began to arrive, that the tradition began to take hold. By the 20th century, the meaning of Halloween started to resemble what we know today.

 

Today

In the modern US, Halloween revolves around a hodgepodge of the historical elements above. Customs include donning costumes, trick-or-treating (going door to door to get candy), carving pumpkins to make jack-o’-lanterns, attending parties, partaking in pranks, and indulging in horror-themed movies and/or events. Celebrations are secular, with the religious roots of the occurrence not being very apparent (or apparent at all).

Interaction with Halloween tends to vary by age group. When you’re a kid, you fully engage with the costume and candy thing, and you really hope your parents aren’t the types who hand out apples and toothbrushes as a statement. When you reach adulthood, you use the occasion as an excuse to ditch your low-carbohydrate diet and get drunk. And when you’re an empty nester, you get really good at sitting in the dark and pretending you’re not home.

Of course, any talk about the meaning of Halloween cannot overlook its economic impact. Annual consumer spending in the US on Halloween-related items—candy, costumes, and decorations—could be in the range of $10 billion. One estimate suggests that about 600 million pounds of candy are sold each year for Halloween, accounting for close to one-third of the $10 billion figure.

 

The World

If you’re interested in a thorough geographic breakdown of observances, Wikipedia—as always—has you covered. I’ll hit a few highlights.

Similar to St. Patrick’s Day, while Halloween celebrations didn’t originate in North America, the North American take on things has had an influence worldwide. This influence has probably picked up steam in recent times as technology continues to remove cultural barriers. Halloween has consequently gained traction in countries like Australia, Germany, and Japan.

Many cultures around the world have unrelated celebrations that commemorate the dead. One example is Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) in Mexico and other Latin American countries with large Mexican populations. The joyful celebration happens to take place on November 1 and 2, and cross-border connections have resulted in the sharing of traditions between this event and Halloween.

As a final point, it should be mentioned that some still view Halloween as pagan and/or too dark, i.e. not worthy of celebration.

 

In case you’re curious, I’m planning on dressing up as a middle-aged, graying, and somewhat overweight parent. Even though that may be missing the meaning of Halloween, it’ll save me a trip to the costume store.