Halloween is on Friday, October 31, 2014

Halloween is on Friday, October 31, 2014

Halloween

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Halloween
A jack-o'-lantern, one of the symbols of Halloween
Also called	Hallowe'en All Hallows' Eve All Saints' Eve
Observed by	Western Christians and many non-Christians around the world[1]
Significance	First day of Hallowtide
Celebrations	Trick-or-treating, costume parties, making jack-o'-lanterns, lighting bonfires, divination, apple bobbing, visiting haunted house attractions
Observances	Church services,[2] prayer,[3] fasting,[1] and vigils[4]
Date	31 October
Next time	31 October 2014 (2014-10-31)
Frequency	annual
Related to	Totensonntag, Blue Christmas, Thursday of the Dead, Samhain, Hop-tu-Naa, Calan Gaeaf, Allantide, Day of the Dead, Reformation Day, All Saints' Day (cf. vigils)

Halloween or Hallowe'en (/ˌhæləˈwiːn, -oʊˈiːn, ˌhɑːl-/; a contraction of "All Hallows' Evening")^[5] also known as All Hallows' Eve,^[6] is a yearly celebration observed in a number of countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Hallows' Day. It initiates the triduum of Hallowtide, the time in the liturgical year dedicated to remembering the dead, including saints (hallows), martyrs, and all the faithful departed believers.^[7]

According to many academic scholars, All Hallows' Eve is a Christianized feast initially influenced by Celtic harvest festivals,^[8][9] with possible pagan roots, particularly the Gaelic Samhain.^[6][10][11] Other academic scholars maintain that it originated independently of Samhain and has solely Christian roots.^[12]

Typical festive Halloween activities include trick-or-treating (or the related "guising"), attending costume parties, decorating, carving pumpkins into jack-o'-lanterns, lighting bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted house attractions, playing pranks, telling scary stories, and watching horror films. Because many Western Christian denominations encourage, although no longer require, abstinence from meat on All Hallows' Eve,^[13] the tradition of eating certain vegetarian foods for this vigil day developed, including the consumption of apples, colcannon, cider, potato pancakes, and soul cakes.^[14][15]

 

Billie C