History of Halloween
Did you know that Halloween is the U.S.'s second most commercial holiday? Seems hard to believe, but when you consider all the bags of candy, costumes, accessories and decorations bought every year, you can see why.
Americans love Halloween, and despite the fact that the holiday has religious and European origins, we Americans have put our own unique spin on Halloween.
Halloween dates back thousands of years to the ancient Celtic peoples in England and Ireland who lit large bonfires to herald the coming of winter and the increase in darkness. When the Romans conquered England and Ireland, their custom of commemorating the passing of the dead in late October became intermingled with the holiday.
Although the English and Irish had previously carved faces into turnips or potatoes to ward off evil spirits, it was Americans who first carved pumpkins, which are native to North America, and placed them on their doorsteps.
Today, devils, ghosts and goblins are still an important part of Halloween, but it has lost much of its original religious undertones. People now use Halloween as a time to get together as a community and the holiday is now geared more at children than adults.
Americans spent nearly $2 billion on Halloween candy in 2002, according to the National Confectioner's Association -- an awful lot of treats. But how about the tricks? Well, most people regulate that to Mischief Night, or the night before Halloween.
Sun-Sentinel More articles 
Candy corn Photo 
Bobbing for apples Photo Pumpkin patch Photo (above)
posted by LadyIrene @ 9/27/2007 04:41:00 PM
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