Halloween

Halloween• People in the United

States celebrate Halloween on October 31st.

• Children and adults celebrate Halloween through various activities, such as trick-or-treating, apple-bobbing, pumpkin-carving, throwing costume parties, and even lightning bonfires and telling scary stories.

How Do We Celebrate It?

• Children wear costumes and visit other homes in the neighborhood. At each house, they demand sweets or snacks. If the children do not receive their candy, they threaten to do some harm to the inhabitants of the house. This game is called “trick-or-treating”.

How Do We Celebrate It?

• Of course, these children do not harm the house or play nasty tricks on owners. Trick-or-treating is done in a friendly manner!

• Parents or older siblings always accompany the children to make sure they are safe.

How Do We Celebrate It?• Costume parties on

Halloween are popular with young adults. They are usually held by the owner of a house, but they could also occur at a club. Every person who attends has to wear a costume!

• Some costumes are traditional (Dracula, a werewolf, a superhero) while others are very original.

Some Original Costumes!

How Do We Celebrate It?

• Pumpkin Carving: Young adults and families carve pumpkins with scary or comical faces. They place candles in the pumpkins and then put them on the porches of their homes and gardens. These pumpkins glow in the dark and they are called a Jack O’Lanterns.

The Story of the Jack O-Lantern• Stingy Jack was an old drunk who

liked to play tricks on his family, friends, and even the Devil. One day, he tricked the Devil into climbing up an apple tree. Once the Devil climbed up the apple tree, Stingy Jack placed crosses around the trunk, so that the Devil could not get down.

• Stingy Jack made the Devil promise he would not take his soul when he died. Once the devil promised this, Stingy Jack removed the crosses and let the Devil down.

The Story of the Jack O-Lantern• Years later, when Jack died, he went

to Heaven but was told he was too mean and cruel to enter . He then went down to Hell. The Devil kept his promise and would not allow him into Hell. Jack had nowhere to go and he was scared to wander around forever in the darkness between heaven and hell.

• He asked the Devil how he could leave, since there was no light. Mockingly, the Devil tossed him an ember. Jack put the ember in a turnip, which was his favorite food. Since that day, Stingy Jack walked the earth without a place to rest, lighting his way with his "Jack O'Lantern".

Why Pumpkins and Not Turnips?• This story comes from

Ireland. The Irish used to put a light in turnips to keep evil spirits and Stingy Jack away.

• In the USA, Irish immigrants discovered that pumpkins were bigger and easier to carve. So, they started using them for Jack O'Lanterns.

Interesting Jack O’Lanterns

Other Ways to Celebrate Halloween• Apple Bobbing: The game is

played by putting apples in a container filled with water. The players try to catch one with their teeth. You can’t use your hands!

• Some people like to visit haunted houses. Others, if they are out in nature, make bonfires and tell scary stories.

• People also get creative and make their own games, especially for their children.

What is Halloween Like in Galicia?

• Do you carve vegetables? Do you use pumpkins for decorations or any other purpose?

• Are there certain foods people tend to eat?• Is there a spiritual significance to Halloween?• Do kids trick-or-treat? What type of costumes do

they wear?• Do you and your friends get together to

celebrate Halloween? Are there any festivities in your community?