Trick
or Treat.
It's Halloween!
Halloween, a relatively
new holiday in Costa
Rica, will be celebrated
today in mostly private
parties and get
together. In Costa Rica
the night is called "Noche
de Brujas" (witches
night).
Although primarily a
North American holiday,
it is slowly catching on
in Costa Rica.
This year more stores
are offering costumes
and Halloween
decorations, including
pumpkins in
supermarkets, although
mainly in Escazú and
Santa Ana, where a large
population of North
Americans reside.
The origin of Halloween
lies in the traditions
of the Celtic people.
The Celts coalesced as a
society circa 800 BCE.
They were located in
what is now the United
Kingdom, much of Western
Europe and an isolated
enclave in what is now
Turkey. They held a
major celebration near
the end of our month of
October, which they
called called "Samhain",
a festival to recognize
the end of summer. The
story that "Samhain" was
a Celtic God of the Dead
is a myth. However, it
has been repeated so
often by conservative
Christian and secular
sources that it has
taken on a life of its
own.
The Celts believed that
the veil between this
world and the next was
thinnest at this time of
year. Friends and
relatives who had died
would often return, with
their souls inhabiting
an animal - often a
black cat. Black cats
have remained a symbol
of Halloween down to the
present time.
In celebration of the
recently completed
harvest, Celts would
give offerings of food
to the Gods. They often
went from door to door
to collect food to
donate to their deities.
Also, young Celts would
ask the townspeople for
kindling and wood, and
take it to top of the
hill for the Samhain
bonfire. These are two
of the possible origins
of present day "trick or
treating."
Samhain was a fire
festival. Sacred
bonfires were lit on the
tops of hills in honor
of the Gods. The
townspeople would take
an ember from the
bonfire to their home
and re-light the fire in
their family hearth. The
ember would usually be
carried in a holder -
often a turnip or gourd.
They felt nervous about
walking home in the
dark; they were afraid
of evil spirits. So they
dressed up in costumes
and carved scary faces
in their ember holders.
They hoped that the
spirits would be
frightened and not
bother them. Children
continue to dress up
today in various
costumes. Pumpkins are
now the objects of
choice to carve faces
into.
Halloween in North
America
Halloween has become a
major folk holiday in
the US and Canada.
"Trick or Treaters" go
from door to door and
collect candies, apples
and other goodies.
Hallmark Cards reports
that 65% of Americans
will decorate their
homes and offices for
Halloween. This
percentage is exceeded
only by Christmas.
Some interesting facts
about the celebration of
Halloween:
- Halloween is the
holiday when the most
candy is sold; it is
second only to Christmas
in total sales. North
Americans spend $21
million on Halloween
candies yearly. 12
- Halloween is the
third-largest party
occasion next to
Christmas and New Year's
Eve.
- Halloween is the
Number 1 season for
selling humorous
greeting cards. In North
America, some 25 million
cards are sold annually.
12
- Rumors circulated some
years ago that some evil
people were distributing
adulterated food to
children: poison mixed
with candy; razor blades
and pins in apples.
Although these rumors
have generally been
shown to be hoaxes, the
fear persists. Many
adults now only give out
pre-packaged food; many
parents check their
children's collection
and discard anything
that could possibly have
been adulterated.
- For many decades, the
United Nations
Children's' Fund
(UNICEF) has distributed
boxes to children so
that they can collect
money at Halloween time.
During the 1950's, a few
US public schools banned
the UNICEF boxes, over
suspicions that it might
be a Communist plot. |
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