The ancient people of Roman, Greek, and Celtic descent used the term “wheel of the year.”  That was pre-discovery, and yet, because they were so focused and dependent on nature for their sustenance, they had a pretty good theory of how the Earth might turn around the sun.  The sun was the center, and the earth’s year was the outer rim of the wheel.

For some cultures, the celebration of the New Year occurs in the Fall.  Earlier this year the New Year Rosh Hashanah was celebrated around the world by Jewish families and communities.  Likewise, Islamic peoples began their New Year with the celebration of Ramadan.

For the early Celtic countries, November 1 was the beginning of the year, and the night before was celebrated also.  This celebration was known as Samhain (pronounced Sow-ehn).  Once these areas were converted to Christianity, this celebration became known as All Hallows Day and All Hallows Eve.  Today in Christian churches all over the globe, November 1 will be celebrated as All Saints Day.  It is a time for remembering not only the time honored saints of the church, but those in the church community who have passed in the previous year.  It is from the term All Hallows Eve that we have the word Hallow’e’en.  Samhain is still celebrated in certain areas.

The significance of celebrating at this time of year is directly related to the earth’s cycle.  It is Harvest.  Whatever food was gathered before the first frost was what the ancients had to eat until Spring.  It was also hunting season, coinciding with the “running of the deer.”  Sounds like a great time to celebrate, huh?

So many of the customs associated with Halloween are remnants of the ancient celebrations.  The Celts believed that on the eve of Samhain, all people who had died during the year were released from the underworld one last time to settle any differences, return to their homes, or wreak havoc.  To protect themselves from these haunts, they made lanterns out of turnips and gourds to hang all over their homes, so that there was no darkness, and they stayed up all night, making music, dancing, hitting pots and pans, and wearing masks so that they would not be recognized. 

These traditions have gone through many “morphs,” but we still make “Jack-o-Lanterns,” and we still wear masks, and there are still costume parties on Halloween night.