The eve of All Saints Day, or how many Halloween

Before asking the question of what number of Halloween, consider what it is. So, it is a modern holiday, which came to us from the traditions of the ancient Celts of Scotland and Ireland. Its prototype originated with the appearance of a pagan celebration called Samhain (translated "late summer"), which later became the name of the month of November. It was a holiday for all the peoples living on the British Isles, and it was associated with the supernatural, because on the night of the celebration, the door between the worlds (alive and dead) was flung open and the otherworldly forces could easily find themselves in our world. Later, there will be Halloween, whose number will fall on Saiman.

In order not to suffer from uninvited guests, the Celts put on animal skins this day, and bonfires were made on the street, sacrificed, left various sweets near the houses to appease the souls of the deceased. The pumpkin was a symbol of the end of the summer, but at the same time it served to scare away the spirits with the fire that was dissolved inside it.

The perception of Samayna people as a dark holiday, which is associated with the dead, was spread by Christian monks. So, they, two centuries after the Day of All Saints, first mentioned it in their records.

And in the eighth century, the Day of All Saints gradually begins to replace Samhain due to the penetration of the ancient culture of Catholic rites. So originated rudiments of Halloween.

Thus, revealing the question of what number of Halloween, it should be noted that this celebration takes place on the night of the thirty-first of October to the first of November. Traditionally it is celebrated in English-speaking countries, but recently it has spread in the CIS countries and Europe. To this day, rituals for the repose of the souls of the dead have been held in Ireland and Scotland , and on the night of Halloween He, we already know) there it is customary to tell legends about ancestors.

In the eighteenth century, there was a tradition to beg for sweets on this holiday. So, children put on colorful masks and went to different people, demanding from them a treat. And at the end of the nineteenth century, the custom of putting on role-playing suits appeared.

It should be said that there are several regional differences in the celebration of Halloween. So, if in Ireland this celebration has a ritual character and is accompanied by the cultivation of fires and salute shots, then in those countries where the descendants of the ancient Celts do not live, it has a commercial character.

Considering the number of Halloween, it should be noted that, identifying him with Sayman, on October 31, the descendants of the Celts make offerings to their ancestors and gods. Rituals that are held on this day, from childhood, accustom people to the fact that the evil must be reconciled, and in some cases even cooperate, to give him tribute.

Thus, having established the number of Halloween, we can conclude that this festival dates back to the eighteenth century, when the ancient Celts, meeting the winter, performed various ceremonies to placate the evil spirits that, in their opinion, came to our world Through the doors opening on the night of the first of November.