halloween mp3 free download Halloween mp3 free download. Free Halloween Mp3 Songs, Chants and More! Halloween is a great time of year to have a lot of fun with your students, and teach them about a fun holiday. Halloween is most popular in the USA, but is celebrated to different degrees around the world. On this page you will find free download Halloween Chants, Songs, and links to free worksheets, coloring, listening exercises and more! Click on a Song title below to be directed to the page with the Free Mp3 Song or Chant, Free Printables, and more! Free Song For Young Kids: Free song for older kids: Halloween Chant 1: Simple Halloween Chant that matches the MES-English Free Flash Card Set! Visit the 2017 New Halloween Songs and Videos Page HERE! Download 3 Free New Songs! New Halloween Song and Video: What Do You See? Halloween: Download the Free Song click here! More Free Halloween Song Downloads! Let's Go Trick or Treating Halloween Characters Song! Click here! Young Learners: Halloween Numbers Song! Click here! Elementary Students: I Love Halloween! Click here! Free Ready to Print Halloween Worksheets: Click on the worksheet name to download the pdf Worksheet 1: Trace the Halloween Words and Match to the correct candy picture! Worksheet 2: Count how many pumpkins and Match them to the correct number! Worksheet 3: Count how many apples, candy corn and more! Worksheet 4: My Favorite Pumkin- Make Your own- see above for the My Favorite Pumpkin Song! New Video in 2018! Halloween Are You Scared? Song. New Video! Halloween Walk with Matt. Walk Like a Ghost: My Favorite Pumpkin Original Halloween Song and Dance: Watch my video on an intro to teaching Halloween: Listen to a Podcast on a Fun Halloween Lesson Plan for Kids: Like this page? Please help us by telling a friend! Halloween listening exercises and worksheets : 123 Listening has 4 different levels of free downloadable listening exercises that will be great for your Halloween classes! All exercises have matching free downloadable worksheets. For listening exercises and worksheets that match this vocabulary, please go to 123 Listening. Flashcards, and coloring: The images below are from the MES English free Halloween flash card sets. You can also find word searches, coloring sheets and more at MES English. Have any game or teaching ideas? Please send me an email and let me know! If you like this page and song, please tell a friend! Also, feel free to email me with any questions! email: matt (at) dreamenglish.com change (at) with @ all content on this page is copyright Dream English 2010. The songs and chants may be used for personal and eduacational use only. thank you. Halloween Tips, Great Party Ideas and Halloween Themes. Scoop out mini pumpkins and use as candle holders. They are inexpensive and look great. You can even carve faces in them! You can also use apples for taper candle holders. Choose shapely apples that will sit stable on a flat surface. Cut a small, round but deep hole on the top of each apple so that it can securely hold a taper candle. Click here for details on how to carve a pumpkin for Halloween. Great Party Ideas. Grabbing up the perfect mood is the trick behind every successful party. And a theme driven party like that of the Halloween is no exception to this as well. So plan beforehand. Is this is a simple fun party? Or a fun party filled with scary ideas? Or to make them feel creepy and have fun at the same time? Here are some theme ideas you could suggest to your guests: Start right from the stage of invitation. While the theme is frightful, things should be made for sheer fun of your guests. The atmosphere might have a spooky touch. Yet everything should be in a lighter vein. While decking the whole of the house or only the party room with traditional Halloween themes, like Jack-o-Lanterns, trick or treat candy boxes, paper skeletons, carved pumpkins are usual, being innovative impresses the guests in a better way. Unleash your imagination right from the sending of invitation card to seeing them off. The invitation card may be shaped like a spread winged bat, a goblin, or a phantom's mask or in the shape of a skull. It may feature any character from any of the ghost movies. You can also take help from our Halloween humor page to prepare a fun open quiz for your guests, and read out the answers for pure fun. Simple Fun Party: Ask your guests to come dressed in a costume that is in sync with the desired atmosphere. If it is a historic theme party wrap yourself with some medieval period jackets with golden buttons and wigs and foiled sticks as the swords. If that doesn't fit with your persona dress in a lavish Victorian ball gown or as a can-can dancer for a reception. Supply the partygoers with hats and other gears to wear at the door. If it is a theme from the Western paste characters like Django, or Dirty Harry or any of the favorite heroes on the invitation cover and feature western decor and costumes. You could hand out tin foil sheriff's stars and tiny Western hats. You could also ask your guests to dress as outlaws or cowpunchers, native Indians or preachers or Sunday school teachers. You can dress in a legend's attire. Say, for instance, the likes of Elvis Presley, Jim Morrison, or John Lennon. You could ask your guest to dress like those in the era of Rock 'n Roll. Think poodle skirts, cool cars, sock hops. Or early rock 'n roll stars wearing suits and thin ties! Even wigs can be sported liberally. Suggest your guests to dress in colonial times complete with powdered wigs and rich embroidered fabrics, tights and buckled shoes. Scary Party: You could send out a bat or coffin or vampire or Frankesteine (or his bride) shaped invitations. Decor your house with cobwebs, coffins, bats, skeletons and bugs! And ask your friends to come dressed as their favorite movie monster. Like a vampire looking dastardly with the hidden fangs and tiny drops of blood at the corner of the mouth. Use dark interior, like deep red flooring. Cover your walls with red, blue or bottle green. Illuminate the hall or room with dark colored microwatts. Use plenty of dry ice, cob webs, plastic bats stuck on the walls or hanging loose from the ceiling. For a dramatic effect keep the door of the party room shut until all the guests arrive. Lead them to the door front and open the door of the pre-decked room. You could also use timer lights and sound effects like screeching door, blood curdling howls of werewolves, or the grinning of witches taped in your sound system. Don't forget to keep the remote hidden in your palm so that guests cannot guess what is going to happen. Creepy Party: You could paint the face like the face of a famous celeb - dead, or use masks of a skull, a witch or a fanged red eyed vampire. Or you could use an all white robe and white long gloves. Ask your guests to come dressed in creepy characters according to their choice. Sling spooky masks from the walls. You could also fill your party room with elegant china and silver, candle bras, trays filled with fake pearls and jewels, drapes of fancy fabric from the fabric store. Use candles and soft lights, or shaded lamps in a way that creates longer than usual shadows. The party will indeed be creepy with the use of colored lightings, potted plants covered with dark colored robes. You can also use candles for a creepier ambience. Ask your guests to talk in a very soft or whispering voice for the first ten minutes or so. You could also use a creepy music as a final touch. Serve food in trays and on tables that match with the party mood. And arrange for some competition like story telling, the spooky ones of course, and award the scariest one. Or a separate 'ghost-as-you-like' costume contest. Finally make sure that everyone leaves the place content with a fun filled heart. Ghosts and Goblins Party. Give your guests a chill thrill with a Ghosts and Goblins party! Improvise your garage or your backyard into either a haunted house or a scary cemetery. Remember, the party should not be anything less than frightening. Invitations. 1. Make masks from stiff cardboard, cut to fit the faces. Decorate the masks with puff paints, sequins, stickers and feathers to turn them into whatever you like- Frankestein, Wolfman, Freddy, Jason, foe example. Write the party details on the other side of the masks. Attach an elastic string through holes on either side of each mask. Send the masks to guests for an inviting scare. Have the guests wear wear their masks to the party. 2. For added fun, fill the invitation envelopes with a few plastic bugs, ants, or gummy worms. Graveyard Cake. 1. Bake a chocolate cake; cool. 2. Top with softened chocolate wafer cookies to look like finely ground dirt and sprinkle over ice-cream. 3. Stick lolly snakes into the cake, half-in and half-out. 4. Stick oval cookies into the cake to make gravestones. Write funny names on the "graves" with piping bags. 5. Refreeze before serving so the ice cream doesn't melt. Costumes. 1. Ask the invitees to come dressed as a favorite monster, creepy creature or bad guy. 2. Award prizes for all kinds of costume categories, such as Scariest, Funniest, Hardest to Make, Hardest to Wear, Most Creative, Most Authentic, Most Disgusting and so on. 3. When the kids arrive, provide them with sheets of colored crepe paper, tape, string and a stapler, and let them design their own costumes. Decorations. 1. Create a haunted house in the garage or party room. Cover the windows with black paper and set up scary stations. Have the guests weave through the haunted house one at a time. 2. Set up a Mad Scientist Laboratory. Have someone dress as a Frankenstein monster and lie on a table among bubbling concoctions (use dry ice and colored water in clear bowls). Add kitchen utensils, such as tongs, basters and a garlic press, to serve as bizarre scientific instruments. 3. Make a Deadbody Storehouse. Dress friends as accident victims, with torn clothes and fake blood and scars. Have them lie on the floor and come to life from to time, by sitting up, grabbing a passing foot or something. 4. Make a Witches Cauldron. Dress the witches in long, grey wigs and black dresses, color their fingernails black, black out a tooth or two and have them stir a cauldron with a broom. Inside the cauldron place wet noodles or jelly. Costume Ideas for Halloween. Super Cool DIY Halloween Costumes to look spook-tacular in the Halloween 2017 party! This year finds the latest costumes for Halloween along with their images which are going to be so hot in part. Here are a few of them for your reference: Say Boo! With this Snapchat Ghost costume: White bed sheet Black mesh fabric Fabric scissor Fabric glue Black and pink fabric paint Black marker Paintbrush. Begin with the bedsheet on and make two guides where your eyes are. Just like the snapchat ghost, draw your eyes in the oval shape. Cut out the eyes. Try the sheet on to to make sure you can see through the holes. You can make the eyeholes bigger if needed. Now put the mesh cloth over the eyes and draw oval shapes one size bigger than the eye holes. Cut out the shapes and paste them on the eye holes using fabric glue. Now turn the bed sheet to the other side. Make a thick border along the eyeholes using black paint. Next paint a smile with black paint and add a tongue sticking out using pink paint. Your snapchat ghost costume is ready to rock the Halloween party! All Eyes on Me! Turn an old expression into a fun Halloween costume. A black t-shirt, some Ping Pong balls and a few craft materials are all that you are gonna need! black t-shirt green wide-tip marker 40-50 Ping Pong balls black medium-tip marker hot-glue gun and glue sticks. Make a circle on one side of the Ping Pong balls with the green marker, about 3/4" wide, leaving the center unfilled. Fill in the center of the circle with a black marker for the pupil, leaving a small white circle in the center as a highlight. Lay a solid black t-shirt on a flat surface and insert parchment paper between the front and back layers of the t-shirt covering any space where you will be attaching eyeballs. With a hot-glue gun, place a dab of hot glue on a Ping Pong ball and press in place on the t-shirt. Continue Eyeing the T-Shirt positioning them very close together for stability and effect. Attach a few Ping Pong balls randomly further up the t- shirt, to create a more dramatic look. When the glue has cooled, remove the parchment paper. Minion Costume. Don't be despicable! Say "bello" — that's "hello" in Minion language — to a perfectly cute costume for Halloween. All you need is blue denim dungarees and a canary yellow, tight fitting, full-sleeve pullover t-shirt. Make a pair of oversized glasses with cardboard, craft papers, paint and glue. Attach the glasses to a black hairband to fit perfectly around your head. You can also paint your face yellow for the added effect! The Beast. Based off the new hit movie, the Beauty and the Beast, and now you too can be a part of it with the Beast Costume. Hunt your wardrobe and find yourself a padded jacket which you can embellish with gold-colored embroidery. You will also need a vest, cravat and pants, to recreate the costume seen on-film. The lynchpin to all of this is the mask which portrays the Beast's intelligence and thoughtfulness. Use your creative skills to make yourself one using craft items. Wonder Woman. She officially crushed the summer box office. Look like your favourite badass superhero in the costume fit for a warrior. Use a red t-shirt and an old denim skirt to recreate the look. Make some transformation to match the costume. Use gold paint to paint the ‘W’s and gold papers to make the head band. A pair of red boots and you are ready to save the world! Game of Thrones Cosumes. Daenerys Targaryen. Dress as Daenerys, Princess of House Targaryen, and you'll be ready to take back the throne. You can DIY it making some transformation to your old top and long skirt lying in the wardrobe. If you are not blonde, invest in a wig and buy or borrow a pair of boots. Make sure you bring your (toy) dragons. Jon Snow. Winter is here in season 7 and the Jon snow costume is perfect for any Game of Thrones fan. Use black tee or leather wear and black pants to create the look. You will need a big belt to wear it Jon Snow style. Use faux fur and black cloth to make yourself the cape. Batman Costume. Batman costumes have always been one of the most popular costumes to wear during the Halloween season. Batman rules the roost when it comes to costumes. People of all ages can wear them to get indulge in Halloween which comes once in a ye. Batman costume merchandise will definitely be seen everywhere this coming year with the release of the Dark Knight Rises. For group or couple costumes, you can choose to bring the Batman’s entire gang as there are authentic Batgirl and Robin costumes. You will need: A complete headpiece that has an attached cape, boot tops, Jumpsuit, trunks and belt. The Muscle chest piece. You can also get the Batman Collector’s Grade Costume with an additional accessories such as cowling, shoulders, leg pieces, crotch piece and boot covers. You can also add some weaponry such as a utility belt, grappling hook and Batarang. Catwoman Costume. This is another most popular Halloween costume for 2017.Catwoman is a costume that captures the class and style of the character. A wide variety of Catwoman Costumes are available for you to choose from. They range from being super sexy to fairly conservative. You will need: A Mask, Catwoman Jumpsuit, Belt and Gloves. Bane Costume. The Release of a Dark Knight Rises increases the popularity of a Bane Costume . This year Bane was the most hated villain to hit the screens. The Bane costume for 2017 may be the perfect costume . This Dark Knight Rises Costume is also available in children’s sizes. You will need: The Jumpsuit belt, Gauntlets and the unforgettable mask. You can also either pair your costume with your own boots or dark sneakers. To complete your Bane costume, you need to have a crazed look on your face and robotic voice. And if you really want to take it to the next level, add on a voice changer to wear underneath your mask. Tarzan and Jane. You will need: There are currently a variety of different Tarzan and Jane Halloween Costumes available to choose from. There are currently 4 different total officially licensed Tarzan and Jane Costumes though. (a) The Deluxe Version comes with a muscle chest to give the 6 pack of abs and biceps. (b) The standard Version is good for guys that wish to show off their own muscles. (a) The Sexy version comes with a sexy leopard top and matching mini skirt. (b) The Jungle Jane version features a mini dress and safari hat. Evil Fairy. With just a little imagination and a few inexpensive accessories, it is easy to transform an ordinary black dress into a fantastic and fun Halloween costume. You will need: A Pair of black wings, a pair of fishnet stockings, a layer on thick eyeliner and mascara. A tear holes in the black dress. Wizard. If the weather is uncertain or changing, wizard costume can be the best costume to wear. You will need: A cool black dress with short sleeves, a warm purple cape. You have to put lots of sparkle gel on your face and in hair. A Pointy hat embellished with glitter, sequins and other sparkly objects. Hamburglar. You will need: A white pajamas and you need to make a wide horizontal stripes on them with a black marker or tape. You will need to add a wide brimmed hat black in color and a hat-band yellow in color, a black cape, some red sneakers, red gloves, and a red tie with hamburgers on it. A bandit mask (cut eye holes in a piece of black fabric and tie it around your face). Kids Halloween costume Ideas. Baby Halloween and Toddler Halloween Costume Ideas are some of the most creative costume ideas for kids. For Halloween 2017, the baby Super Hero Costumes like Baby Hulk for infant-toddlers and Captain America bunting infant costume will be loved by everyone. On the other hand, the amazing Spider Man muscle chest toddler and Captain America Muscle chest toddler are the two costumes grouped in toddler will also be loved by everyone this year. Trick or Treat in Halloween. Its origins, history, practices and traditions. "Jingle bells, Batman smells, Robin laid an egg." Trick or Treat! The custom of 'trick or treat' probably has several origins. Again mostly Irish.An old Irish peasant practice called for going door to door to collect money, bread cake, cheese, eggs, butter, nuts, apples, etc., in preparation for the festival of St. Columbus Kill. Yet another custom was the begging for soul cakes, or offerings for one's self - particularly in exchange for promises of prosperity or protection against bad luck. It is with this custom the concept of the fairies came to be incorporated as people used to go door to door begging for treats. Failure to supply the treats would usually result in practical jokes being visited on the owner of the house. Since the fairies were abroad on this night, an offering of food or milk was frequently left for them on the steps of the house, so the houseowner could gain the blessings of the "good folk" for the coming year. Many of the households would also leave out a "dumb supper" for the spirits of the departed. Irisleabhar na Gaedhilge, ii, 370, states that in parts of Count Waterford: 'Hallow E'en is called oidhche na h-aimléise, "The night of mischief or con". It was a custom which survives still in places -- for the "boys" to assemble in gangs, and, headed by a few horn-blowers who were always selected for their strength of lungs, to visit all the farmers' houses in the district and levy a sort of blackmail, good humouredly asked for, and as cheerfully given. They afterward met at some point of rendezvous, and in merry revelry celebrated the festival of Samhain in their own way. When the distant winding of the horns was heard, the bean a' tigh [woman of the house] got prepared for their reception, and also for the money or builín (white bread) to be handed to them through the half-opened door. There was always a race amongst them to get possession of the latch. Whoever heard the wild scurry of their rush through a farm-yard to the kitchen-door -- will not question the propriety of the word aimiléis [mischief] applied to their proceedings. The leader of the band chaunted a sort of recitative in Gaelic, intoning it with a strong nasal twang to conceal his identity, in which the good-wife was called upon to do honour to Samhain. " According to Tad Tuleja's essay, "Trick or Treat: Pre-Texts and Contexts," in Santino's previously mentioned anthology,Halloween's modern trick or treating (primarily children going door-to-door, begging for candy) began fairly recently in the US, as a blend of several ancient and modern influences. In 19th Century America, rural immigrants from Ireland and Scotland kept gender-specific Halloween customs from their homelands: girls stayed indoors and did divination games, while the boys roamed outdoors engaging in almost equally ritualized pranks, which their elders "blamed" on the spirits being abroad that night. Its entry into urban world can probably traced back in mid-19th Century New York, where children called "ragamuffins" would dress in costumes and beg for pennies from adults on Thanksgiving Day. Things got nastier with increased urbanization and poverty in the 1930's. Adults began casting about for ways to control the previously harmless but now increasingly expensive and dangerous vandalism of the "boys." Towns and cities began organizing "safe" Halloween events and householders began giving out bribes to the neighborhood kids as a way to distract them away from their previous anarchy. The ragamuffins disappeared or switched their date to Halloween. The term "trick or treat," finally appears in print around 1939! Pranks became even nastier in the 1980's, with widespread poverty existing side- by-side with obscene greed. Unfortunately, even bored kids in a violence saturated culture slip all too easily from harmless "decoration" of their neighbors' houses with shaving cream and toilet paper to serious vandalism and assaults. Blaming either Neopagans or Halloween for this is rather like blaming patriots or the Fourth of July for the many firecracker injuries that happen every year (and which are also combatted by publicly sponsored events). Given this hazardous backdrop town councils, school boards and parents in the 1930's invented this custom as it is being celebrated today to keep their kids out of trouble. As far as the custom across the Atlantic goes, by the mid- 20th century in Ireland and Britain, the smaller children would dress up and parade to the neighbors' houses, do little performances, then ask for a reward. American kids seem to remember this with their chants of "Jingle bells, Batman smells, Robin laid an egg," and other classic tunes done for no reason other than because "it's traditional." In Scotland the event of trick-or-treating is also known as guising. Little children of Scotland look cute and beautiful when they dress up in bizarre costumes. Each of the well dressed children ring the doorbell of their neighbors and yell “trick or treat!”. Little children are treated and greeted by the members of the houses with sweet tiny chocolates, small and colorful candies. Surprisingly, the occupants of the houses themselves look different as they might appear in front of the children wearing scary attires. A spooky and scary environment is set in the homes by various sound effects and occupants also use fag machines. Less creepy and frightening decorations entertain little children and young visitors. Little ones come back home with the bag full of gifts and mount up many treats. In Scotland, children are told not to recite “trick or treat”. They are likely to recite "The sky is blue, the grass is green, may we have our Halloween". The most entertaining part is that the Children use to impress the house owners with songs, little tricks, small jokes and cute dance steps. Obviously, all these are done by the little ones in order to accrue and earn their treats. It is evident that the traditions and cultures change often. Tricks are not very popular these days in Halloween. However, pranks like soaping windows, egging houses or stringing toilet paper through trees are quiet common. The night before Halloween is often marked with these hoaxes and jokes. Previously, tipping over or dislocating the outhouses were quite common act. Celebrants of Halloween used to dress themselves up to look like vampires, ghosts, devils and witches. To make such costumes two eyeholes were made on a sheet. People of Scotland and Ireland in 19th century believed that they could fool the spirits pretending that they are also the part of the other world. It could deceive and hoodwink the original spirits when they used to come with the intention of harming others. But, traditions and beliefs changed a lot in the last decade. People have walked away from the belief of making costumes in the theme of horror. Recently it is seen that on Halloween people dress up as a well known character of a popular TV show or a politician. The theme is changed according to the eventful occurrences of a particular period. Not many in America, Canada and Mexico are unaware of the campaign of UNICEF with the name "Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF". UNICEF had started this innovative and marvelous movement in 1950 to collect money for their purposes. Small boxes are handed over to the children or trick- or-treaters. According to statistics, children have collected more than $119 million from the households for UNICEF since its inception. Children in their early teenage years come out of these kind of trick-or-treat traditions and costumes. They grow up and get into the mood of celebrating the Halloween with costume parties and social gatherings. Dressing up and Trick-or-Treating on Halloween. Halloween, celebrated on 31st October, is not known as a pagan holiday anymore in recent times. But the history and traditions of Halloween are dated back to the primeval Celtic holiday of Samhain. According to the Celtic tradition, people who used to celebrate Halloween were dressed up in animal costumes. It was the remarkable tradition which marked the end of summer and it announced the onset of winter. The old pagan tradition was gleefully adopted by the Christians later when they came together to celebrate the fascinating festival, All Souls Day on 2nd November. However, the traditions of wearing animal like costumes were dropped and they had adopted a better custom of wearing costumes of saints, devils, angels and fairies. They used to wear these kinds of costumes because they wanted to pay tributes to the spirits on All Souls Day. The ancient Celtic tradition was very common and dominant. The norm of Trick-or-Treating has its roots in Celtic custom and tradition as well. Samhain, celebrated on 1st of November, was treated as a day which was considered as a day to honor the deceased men and women. It was believed that the souls of the people who died in the past year were transitioned to the spirit world from this word on Samhain. Celts had assisted their deceased ancestors on their voyage by offering foods for long journey to the other world. Over the years, celebrants of Samhain are following the custom of wearing dresses like spirits. They used to exchange eatables and perform various tricks. This important and foremost tradition was known as mumming which had inspired the popular custom, trick-or-treating. Take a look at Favorite candies for Halloween. It’s time to celebrate Halloween with delicious candies. A wide array of tasteful and ghoulish candies is sold in huge quantities during Halloween. Decorate your beautiful homes during Halloween and have different colorful candies that suit the moods. Plan suitably and make this Halloween special with the collections of candies. Many of us are now days concerned about the shapes of our figures and physiques. It may so happen that many of us are unwilling to swallow sugar candies. Don’t worry. Plenty of sugar free candies are also there in the market for you. Savor the tastes of the colorful and tasty candies because the celebrations of Halloween are incomplete if you miss this fantastic treat. List of some flavorsome and appetizing candies for Halloween: Jordan Almonds Candy Tootsie Roll Candy corn Hershey's Milk Chocolate Nestle Crunch Bubble Gum Gumballs Nerds Wonka Chocolate Bars Hot Tamales Snickers Bar Baby Ruth Gummi Bears Reese's Pieces Jelly Belly Candy Whirly pops Almond Joy Milky Way Unicorn Twister Pops Razzles Life Savers Candy Pillow M & M's Jawbreakers Candy Sour Patch Twix. Trick or Treat Videos. Video-1 Two dogs decide to go out trick or treating on Halloween night. Watch to see what happens when they come to a certain house to beg for treats. Video-2 A fun Halloween song for kids to teach English, just fun! If any of your friends like Halloween then be sure to tell them about the video! Video-3 An adorable song and video for children about trick or treating. Features puppet children and puppet goblins singing about the best night of the year for candy. Halloween. A fun, innocent song and video to sing and dance along with. Video-4 Find out what happens when two adults go trick or treating a week before Halloween. Will they get candy or will they be arrested? History of Halloween. History of Halloween, like any other festival's history is inspired through traditions that have transpired through ages from one generation to another. We follow them mostly as did our dads and grandpas. And as this process goes on, much of their originality get distorted with newer additions and alterations. It happens so gradually, spanning over so many ages, that we hardly come to know about these distortions. At one point of time it leaves us puzzled, with its multicolored faces. Digging into its history helps sieve out the facts from the fantasies which caught us unaware. Yet, doubts still lurk deep in our soul, especially when the reality differs from what has taken a deep seated root into our beliefs. The history of Halloween Day, as culled from the net, is being depicted here in this light. This is to help out those who are interested in washing off the superficial hues to reach the core and know things as they truly are. 'Trick or treat' may be an innocent fun to relish on the Halloween Day. But just think about a bunch of frightening fantasies and the scary stories featuring ghosts, witches, monsters, evils, elves and animal sacrifices associated with it. They are no more innocent. Are these stories a myth or there is a blend of some reality? Come and plunge into the halloween history to unfurl yourself the age-old veil of mysticism draped around it. Behind the name, Halloween, or the Hallow E'en as they call it in Ireland, means All Hallows Eve, or the night before the 'All Hallows', also called 'All Hallowmas', or 'All Saints', or 'All Souls' Day, observed on November 1. In old English the word 'Hallow' meant 'sanctify'. Roman Catholics, Episcopalians and Lutherians used to observe All Hallows Day to honor all Saints in heaven, known or unknown. They used to consider it with all solemnity as one of the most significant observances of the Church year. And Catholics, all and sundry, was obliged to attend Mass. The Romans observed the holiday of Feralia, intended to give rest and peace to the departed. Participants made sacrifices in honor of the dead, offered up prayers for them, and made oblations to them. The festival was celebrated on February 21, the end of the Roman year. In the 7th century, Pope Boniface IV introduced All Saints' Day to replace the pagan festival of the dead. It was observed on May 13. Later, Gregory III changed the date to November 1. The Greek Orthodox Church observes it on the first Sunday after Pentecost. Despite this connection with the Roman Church, the American version of Halloween Day celebration owes its origin to the ancient (pre-Christian) Druidic fire festival called "Samhain", celebrated by the Celts in Scotland, Wales and Ireland. Samhain is pronounced "sow-in", with "sow" rhyming with cow. In Ireland the festival was known as Samhein, or La Samon, the Feast of the Sun. In Scotland, the celebration was known as Hallowe'en. In Welsh it's Nos Galen-gaeof (that is, the Night of the Winter Calends. According to the Irish English dictionary published by the Irish Texts Society: "Samhain, All Hallowtide, the feast of the dead in Pagan and Christian times, signalizing the close of harvest and the initiation of the winter season, lasting till May, during which troops (esp. the Fiann) were quartered. Faeries were imagined as particularly active at this season. From it the half year is reckoned. also called Feile Moingfinne (Snow Goddess).(1) The Scottish Gaelis Dictionary defines it as "Hallowtide. The Feast of All Soula. Sam + Fuin = end of summer." (2) Contrary to the information published by many organizations, there is no archaeological or literary evidence to indicate that Samhain was a deity. The Celtic Gods of the dead were Gwynn ap Nudd for the British, and Arawn for the Welsh. The Irish did not have a "lord of death" as such. Thus most of the customs connected with the Day are remnants of the ancient religious beliefs and rituals, first of the Druids and then transcended amongst the Roman Christians who conquered them. History of Jack-o-Lantern: Carve a Jack-o-Lantern yourself to make a Halloween pumpkin. This is based on an old Irish legend about the drunk, Jack. One day he was out in the woods and tricked Satan into a tree to throw down some fruit. Once Satan had helped him he carved a cross into the tree and trapped him there. He then struck a deal that Satan would leave his soul alone when he died. This backfired when he died since heaven would not take him either. When he kept bothering the Devil to let him in the Devil gave him a burning ember instead. He carried the ember in a hollowed out turnip (sometimes described as rotton) to light his way as he wandered through eternal darkness on the earth. Eventually this was replaced with the pumpkin in America and became the modern Jack-o-Lantern. Jack-o-lantern - the genesis. According to Rees & Rees, the folks who were abroad in the night imitating the fairies would some- times carry turnips carved to represent faces. This is the origin of our modern Jack-o-lantern. It became popular as house decorations in the United States after immigrant Irish discovered how much easier pumpkins were to carve than turnips, unleashing what has turned into quite an art form in the last decade or so. This later assumed a spooky touch, especially when the glowing faces appear from the darkness. This halloween, carve a Jack-O-Lantern Yourself , and say Boo ! Carving Tips. Select a pumpkin that is ripe, has no bruises, cuts or nicks. Do not carry a pumpkin by its stem; it may break, and do not bruise it as it will not last as long. For easy cleanup, place your pumpkin on several layers of newspaper before carving. Kids: have a parent or other adult cut a circle around the stem of the pumpkin for you. They should use a sharp knife with long, sturdy blade for best and safest results. Or, you can do it yourself with a safer, plastic "pumpkin carving" knife available at many supermarkets during the pumpkin season. Parents: knives are very sharp, so make sure that the proper supervision is maintained when the children carve their pumpkins. Make sure the hole is large enough to reach in and pull out the seeds and stringy membrane. The bottom of the pumpkin could also be cut off instead, this will allow the pumpkin to sit up straight and make removing the seeds easier! When cleaning out the pumpkin, use and old soup ladle to get out the seeds. Try carving a giant pumpkin, it is easier to carve than a regular pumpkin. Examine your pumpkin to determine the best place to carve his or her face. Draw an outline of a face on a plain sheet of white paper (use simple bold features) (You can save any of the images given below, and then print it out for ready help), Tape your paper to the pumpkin where you want the face to be. Score the design onto the pumpkin by punching through the paper into the pumpkin with a large nail or pin. Carefully cut out the design following the holes that were "punched" with your plastic knife. When you are finished cutting, simply push out the pieces to view the final results. Fix some lights inside. Now you're all set to light up your home on Halloween night! Have Fun! History of Halloween Witches. The Witches Caldron "Eye of newt, and toe of frog, Wool of bat, and tongue of dog" "Adder's fork, and blind-worm's sting, Lizard's leg, and owlet's wing" "For a charm of powerful trouble, Like a hell-broth boil and babble" "Double, double, toil and trouble, Fire burn, and caldron bubble" Witches have had a long history with Halloween. Legends tell of witches gathering twice a year when the seasons changed, on April 30 - the eve of May Day and the other was on the eve of October 31 - All Hallow's Eve. The witches would gather on these nights, arriving on broomsticks, to celebrate a party hosted by the devil. Superstitions told of witches casting spells on unsuspecting people, transform themselves into different forms and causing other magical mischief. It was said that to meet a witch you had to put your clothes on wrong side out and you had to walk backwards on Halloween night. Then at midnight you would see a witch. When the early settlers came to America, they brought along their belief in witches. In American the legends of witches spread and mixed with the beliefs of others, the Native Americans - who also believed in witches, and then later with the black magic beliefs of the African slaves. The black cat has long been associated with witches. Many superstitions have evolved about cats. It was believed that witches could change into cats. Some people also believed that cats were the spirits of the dead. One of the best known superstitions is that of the black cat. If a black cat was to cross your path you would have to turn around and go back because many people believe if you continued bad luck would strike you. Samhain. Halloween, the foremost and momentous holiday of the Celtic year, was also popularly known as Samhain or Sah-ween. According to the belief of Celts, the ghosts of the dead populace could easily and effortlessly mingle with the living citizens at this particular time of the year. It was believed that at that point of time the souls of the dead men/women moved to the other world. All of them who had died were honored by lighting the bonfires. Huge crowd congregated to sacrifice fruits, vegetables and even animals to aid them on their journey to the different world. It was also important to satisfy the dead souls as they could not come close to the living individuals. Get to know how Samhain Became Halloween. Once upon a time Christian missionaries attempted to alter the spiritual observances and practices of the Celtic people and from that time the Halloween became Samhain. Before Christian missionaries such as St Patrick and St. Columcille decided to convert the religion of Celts to Christianity, Celts used to practice and perform their religion ornately through their priestly cast, the Druids who were intellectual people and were writers, priests, scientists and scholars at the same time. Pope Gregory the First. The Christians worked really hard to wipe out the pagan holidays such as Samhain. They were successful and triumphant to transform it. It was 601 A.D. when the Pope Gregory the first had issued a renowned proclamation to the missionaries on native convictions and conventions of the people who were enlisted for religion conversions. The Pope Gregory the First didn’t try to eradicate the mores and beliefs of the natives but very wisely he ordered his missionaries to use them. As an example, if a spiritual batch of people worshipped a tree, he didn’t instruct his missionaries to cut the tree down. Like an experienced and wise person he gave an opinion to consecrate the tree to Christ and allowed the devotees to worship it. The approach was praiseworthy and innovative. It helped missionaries a lot to spread the Christianity. Purposefully and intentionally those Church holidays were coincided with the native holidays. Christmas date was arbitrarily assigned on 25th December. It was also a mid-winter celebration day for many people. Similarly, St. John's Day had corresponded to the summer solstice. Good or Evil. Missionaries astutely and intelligently identified their holidays and holidays of the Celts. The supernatural deities of Celts were marked as evil and missionaries had linked those with the Devils. The Celtic gangland inexorably became recognized with the Christian Hell and torment. The intention was to weaken the convictions of the earlier religion. However, missionaries didn’t want to exterminate the beliefs on the Almighty. Celts used to believe in mystical creatures and power. The Church just redefined the meaning. It was a deliberate attempt to let Celts know that those supernatural creatures are not hazardous and definitely malicious. Banquet of All Saints. November 1st was the day when Christian fest was organized. The feast day came into the picture to replace and substitute Samhain. Gradually all the traditional and customary deities of Celts were diminished. Later on it became fairy or leprechaun. Halloween history is one of religious traditions, sacrifices and folklore. While it seems strange to understand the motivation of these ancient actions, it is good to know the roots of our current practices of Halloween.