- Jack-o-lanterns were originally made to ward off evil spirits.
- Halloween is the second most commercially profitable holiday. Can you guess what’s first??
- Salem, Massachusetts claims to be the Halloween capital of the world. Mainly due to it being the location of the 1962 Salem Witch trials.
- It is a believed superstition that seeing a black widow on Halloween means the spirit of a loved one is watching you (kinda creepy?)
- Impersonating souls of the dead, by dressing up in costume was believed to protect yourself from those very souls.
- Halloween is also called All Hallow’s Eve. And hallow is a synonym for the word saint.
- Tootsie Roll was the first wrapped candy in the United States (1907)!
- Before pumpkins became the more popular way to carve a jack-o-lantern, potatoes, turnips, and beets were also used.
- The word witch comes from the old English word: “wicce” which meant wise woman. In the beginning, witches were seen as well versed in natural remedies and people who worshipped nature. It was Christians who started the belief that witches were cursed people who cast spells.
- In Medieval Europe, owls were thought to be witches and hearing an owls call on Halloween meant that someone was about to die.
- Having a fear of Halloween is called Samhainophobia.
- Halloween is one of the oldest celebrations in the world, going back about 6,000 years ago.
- The boundary between our “world” and the spirit world is thought to be the thinnest on Halloween.
- Orange and black are classic Halloween colors because orange is associated with fall and with harvest while black is associated with darkness and death.
Did you know all of them? Which is the creepiest? I absolutely love learning the history of Halloween and have been reading where all these superstitions and beliefs originated from. It’s all so interesting!
xoxo,
Amanda
On Another Coast 
I only knew number 6 and 13. Very interesting! Fun, thanks for sharing!
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🙂
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Re no. 6: did you know that All Hallow’s Eve is followed by All Saints’ Day on 1st November and All Souls’ Day on 2nd November?
Also, way back when (the correct term when I can’t remember exactly!) Halloween was known as Mischief Night. I’m a little vague on it these days, but I think the ‘trick’ from trick or treat developed from this and this was possibly a Yorkshire custom taken to the U.S. by early settlers (on this I’m definitely a little vague, someone may know a little more and correct me).
I remember carving a swede instead of a pumpkin when I was a child and much harder than a pumpkin. 🙂
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I did not know that! Wow! Kinda crazy how a day dedicated to Saint’s follows a day such as Halloween! And I love the Mischief Night history! That’s amazing and I can definitely see how we got to “trick or treat” from that! What is a swede? I’ve never heard of it! But how cool! I’ve never carved anything other than a pumpkin! 🙂
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Amanda, this is SOOO interesting!! I need to re-read this list because every single one is blowing my mind & I’m not sure I can retain all the amazing facts at once. Also- I just love tootsie rolls. Oldies, but goodies ❤ Thank you for sharing this, soooo fascinating.
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And Christmas is the most profitable I would guess?!
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Nailed it! 🙂
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Well you see, All Hallow’s Eve means the eve of all saints, it being a really profound day in the Christian calendar. Halloween evolved into the spectacle we have today.
A swede is a root vegetable, larger than a turnip. I’m not that keen on it when it’s on its own, but mashed with carrot as a side to your roast dinner it’s divine!
In the UK, when I was growing up in the 70s and 80s, Bonfire Night, which followed Halloween, was hugely popular. People used to collect money (beg) calling ‘penny for the guy’ which would then be burned on a bonfire. The guy was an effigy of Guy Fawkes. You also have lots of fireworks. This festival celebrates the saving of Parliament on 5 November1605 when Guy Fawkes and his cohorts intended to blow it up when the King, his family and all the MPs were seated in the House. The treasonous gunpowder plot was foiled.
And think Guy Fawkes and Fawkes the phoenix in Harry Potter. Guy Fawkes intended Parliament to go up in flames and Fawkes the phoenix bursts into flames and is reborn!
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Holy cow! what amazing history! Thank you so much for sharing! That’s so interesting!!!
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I only knew #1, #3, & #6! These are all super interesting but, I think #10 is the spookiest!
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Right?!? Isn’t that the creepiest thing?!
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Wow, how fascinating! I didn’t know a lot of these! Definitely spooky regarding the line between our world and the spirit world being the thinnest on Halloween. Also, I never knew that hallow referred to saints! That gives an interesting perspective for Halloween! I also think it’s so neat that witches weren’t originally considered cursed or casting spells! ^_^
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