Halloween - 2025

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The night of October 31st each year is Halloween, a celebration on the eve of the Christian feast of All Hallows' Day and the beginning of the period of observance of AllHallowtide (incorporating álso All Saints Day and All Souls Day). This period of dedicated to remembering the dead including notably saints, martyrs and the faithful departed. Over the past 100 years the celebration was moved into more of a celebration of horror, supernatural events, spectres and the macabre. Now it's essentially a children's festival involving costumes, dressups, props and various ghoulish spectacles plus trick or treating. A very strong commercial element underpins the celebration of Halloween.

From where does Halloween originate ? Most likely Gaelic or Celtic festivals or a separate specified religious holiday for a vigil period. There is no one agreed origin for Halloween. What is known is that the celebration originates from Ireland and Scotland and was taken across to North America by immigrants ffrom these countries. Through American influence, the custom thereon gained wider practice to other countries in the 20th Century onwards.

Trick-or-treating is an activity where children vist homes in their residential area dressed in costumes asking for treats such as sweets and candies (although at various times it has included money). Children ask 'trick or treat? 'Treat' refers to sweets while the reference to 'trick' implies the threat of mischief to the householder or their property if there are no treats. 

Happy Halloween !

Retail shop display 2025 (c) Sentinel Owl