The History of Halloween:

Halloween is a holiday celebrated each year on October 31, and Halloween 2021 will occur on Sunday, October 31. The tradition originated with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts. In the eighth century, Pope Gregory III designated November 1 as a time to honor all saints. Soon, All Saints Day incorporated some of the traditions of Samhain. The evening before was known as All Hallows Eve, and later Halloween. Over time, Halloween evolved into a day of activities like trick-or-treating, carving jack-o-lanterns, festive gatherings, donning costumes and eating treats.

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Halloween Around the world:

Halloween in Britain

In Scotland and parts of northern England, Halloween traditionally went by the name of Mischief Night, named after the tradition of dressing up and playing tricks on unsuspecting neighbours. Mischief Night is still celebrated in many of the region’s communities, but recent decades have seen it rapidly eclipsed by American-style Halloween festivities.

Interestingly, however, parts of the north-eastern United States and Canada continue to observe Mischief Night as a separate entity from Halloween, under a variety of regional names such as Cabbage Night, Devil’s Night and Gate Night.

While British Halloween celebrations have increasingly followed the American lead, other nations have preserved their own traditions. Often these focus on a celebration of the dead and their effect on the living.

Mexico, Latin America and Spain:

Dia de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead, is a joyous celebration of lost relatives, who are believed to return to their houses on Halloween. 

Famous around the world, this three-day celebration begins on 31 October and involves building an altar at home before decorating it with sweets, flowers, photographs and samples of the deceased’s favourite foods.

Haiti:

People across the Caribbean nation flock to graveyards as part of the annual Voodoo festival of the dead from 1 to 2 November. Voodoo priests and priestesses honour the spirit Guede and their ancestors by lighting candles at their graves and offering them food and chilli-infused rum. Although the holiday celebrates ideas that have existed for centuries, the festival was only made legal in 2003, according to Mic.

China:

The Chinese equivalent of Halloween is Teng Chieh, which celebrates the connections between the living and the dead. Families traditionally place food and water next to photographs of deceased family members, while lanterns and bonfires are lit to guide home the departed.

Japan: 

Japan celebrates its version of Halloween, Obon or Festival of the Lanterns, in August. According to the tradition, dead ancestors return each year to the place where they were born, guided by red lanterns hung in doorways, and released into rivers and seas on the last day of the festival.

Europe: 

Different European countries have their own traditions and superstitions when it comes to Halloween. In the Czech Republic, extra chairs are placed by the fireside for the spirits of family members who have died, while Austrians leave bread, water and a lighted lamp out at night to welcome dead souls back to earth.

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