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Sorcerers and skulls invade the streets of many countries this Wednesday Halloween or "witches night".
Ghosts will fly from tombs, vampires will come out of their canvas sarcophagi and aliens from their saucers.
Monsters, fairies, superheroes and all kinds of costumes will also be paraded by the imagination or the economy allows it.
It's the feast of Halloween or "witches night", the famous American holiday that wins every year more followers around the world.
The houses decorated with "terrifying" forms, the children promise "tricks" to those who do not give them treats and meetings between young people and adults until the early morning with drinks and masks do not are that part of one of the most famous holidays of today.
the origins of the tradition are lost in time and mixed with a little religion, a lot of paganism and many -muuucho-fear (actually none, but that's Halloween so a dose of fright is not enough)
Here are some keys for you help to understand what is behind the "terrifying" celebration and its history
– Why is it called Halloween? –
The roots of Halloween are not really in the United States, but in the United Kingdom.
Its name comes from an English phrase "All Hallows" Eve, which would be t destroyed by "watch". of all the saints.
The Catholic Church has instituted as one of its celebrations the "All Saints Day", in honor of those who "enjoy eternal life in the presence of God" and who n & # 39; Do not appear in saints or his name is not known.
Up to the sixteenth century, the night before this celebration, a vespers service was organized, hence the name of the celebration.
– How did it become a "scary day"? –
Historians of the eighteenth century had already badociated Halloween with an ancient pagan festival: a Celtic ritual called Samhain celebrating the end of the summer and the arrival of short and cold days of autumn.
] Samhain lasted three days and began on October 31st.
According to some scholars, this tribute would be a homage to the "king of the dead".
More recent studies have shown that bonfires and the celebration of good harvests were also features of the pagan celebration
But this theory is based on little evidence and some historians have pointed out that the celebration changed from region to region. region, from country to country and, between silence and silence, it even changed its meaning.
VIII century, there was a turning point: Pope Gregory III changed the original date of "All Saints' Day" from May 13 to November 1.
It is not clear whether the movement, which also made it mandatory the religious celebration for all Catholics was an attempt at "Christianization" of Samhain.
The truth is that this movement united the pagan and mixed Christian celebrations and traditions.
– When did Halloween become the celebration we know now? –
It took shape between 1500 and 1800.
The bonfires were then very popular: they were used to burn the straw (remember that Samhain had celebrated the end of the harvest season), but also as a ritual to "repel" witchcraft and diseases.
Another tradition was futurology and divination exercises: people predicted the names of their future partners and even the date of their death.
These divination rituals took many different forms.
A cabbage removed from the ground could give clues to the work or personality of the future partner. They also read the nut peels.
Food is an important part of the celebrations and one of the most characteristic habits concerns children who go from house to house singing nursery rhymes or praying for the soul of the dead.
In return, they got cakes representing the release of a soul from Purgatory.
– How did the party come to the United States? –
During the Great Famine (1845-1849) in Ireland, then part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, more than one million people emigrated to the United States .
history and traditions, and it is no coincidence that the first mentions of Halloween on the American territory appeared soon after this exodus
In 1870, for example, a magazine for women published an article describing Halloween as "English Day".
Initially, the American version was very similar to that of the British campaign.
But there were some crucial additions, such as the introduction of scarecrows into the decorations: corn was a crucial crop in American agriculture
There were some of them. others, like the clbadic phrase "treatment or trick" of children or the use of pumpkins (the British tradition was to cut turnips).
For some historians, the feast grew after the Second World War, when food rationing ended.
– What about modern Halloween? –
Today, Halloween is the largest non-religious holiday in the United States: in fact, it surpbaded Valentine's Day and Holy Week as a peak period for the sale in 2010.
Over the years, it has been exported to other countries, many of them in Latin America
but it has also experienced some difficult times and not just because of the costumes.
In 1964, Helen Pfeil, an American housewife, gave poisoned candies to children she thought was "too old for play."
Fortunately, there were no casualties, but the episode is at the origin of several urban legends about the "tainted candy" that lasts until today.
Thus, although it has changed, over the centuries, Halloween remains a celebration that offers adults and children a space to play with their fears and fantasies and make fun of them.
Allows one to see a respite from social norms that prevent contact between strangers and religion, nature, death and romance.
It is probably for this reason that it is so popular.
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