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Halloween Facts

Halloween Date (Day of Week Halloween Falls On):

Day of Week for Halloween in Any Year - Enter Year YYYY

Rule to Determine the Date of Halloween:
Halloween is always celebrated on October 31.

Alternate Names and Common Misspellings for Halloween
All Hallows Eve, Samhain, All Hallowtide, The Feast of the Dead, Haloween, Holloween, Holoween

More Halloween Facts Below

Traditional Observance of Halloween

• People decorate their homes and yards for Halloween. Some make their homes appear like haunted houses, while others decorate traditional jack o lanterns carved from pumpkins.
• Many people have Halloween parties around Halloween. (Free Printable Halloween Party Invitations)
• In the evening of October 31, people dress in costume and go in groups from door to door and say "Trick or Treat". The home owner gives people dressed in costume, a treat usually candy.
• Costume contests are customary, where a prize is given for best costume. Some contests have many categories for judging such as scariest. (Halloween Costume Ideas)
• Many towns have curfews for Halloween where people (or children under a certain age) have to be off the streets by a certain time because of vandalism. Unfortunately some people get carried away and cause property damage.

About Halloween (U.S):

Halloween is a strange holiday celebrated in the United States. Although American parents discourage talking to strangers and worship of the occult, parents allow their children to visit stranger's homes and accept candy and even allow children to dress up as ghosts and ghouls. The holiday and the way of celebrating has changed over the years because of the merging of cultures and celebrations.

Halloween has become a huge commercial success with enourmous sales.

History of Halloween:

• The Celts believed that souls of the dead visited the earth every October 31.
• All Hallows Eve was the evening before All Saints Day which is celebrated on November 1.
• In Mexico, they celebrate El Dia de los Muertos or the Day of the Dead starting the evening of October 31.
• Halloween also marks the end of harvest season. The end of October marks the time that pastures and fields dry up. The animals were brought in from the pasture to be butchered and the remaining vegetables left in fields and gardens were left to rot. This part of the season often brought about reminisce of loved ones that were lost.
• In 1800's people started to have parties. Part of the celebrations included costumes, fortune telling and games such as bobbing for apples.
• At the turn of the century, cities were overcrowded and Halloween marked the time to let off steam by playing practical jokes such as turning over out houses. By the 1930's things had gotten out of hand and serious damage was being done on Halloween. There was a movement to have children go door to door and ask for candy as an alternative to vandalism.