The concept of Halloween arises as a contraction of the English expression "All Hallows' Eve" , which in our language translates as "All Saints' Eve" . This is a celebration that is also known as Halloween , Halloween , or Night of the Dead .
Halloween is celebrated every October 31 at night, especially in Anglo-Saxon countries. This holiday combines elements of two other commemorations: the Celtic Samhain (which marked the closing of the harvest season) and the Christian All Saints' Day (in honor of the deceased who have already overcome purgatory and enjoy eternal life with God. ).
In the mid- 19th century , Halloween began to take root in the United States following Irish immigration. In the 1920s the celebration became massive and in the '70s and '80s it spread throughout almost the entire Western world thanks to films and television series that showed the customs and practices linked to the date.
One of the most widespread Halloween customs is for children to walk the streets while forcing people to choose between "trick or treat" or "trick or treat . " The adult, in this framework, must give a treat if he or she does not want to suffer a " trick " (some type of prank).
Another Halloween habit is the creation of a jack-o'-lantern : a pumpkin that is hollowed out, a face is carved and a candle is inserted so that it can illuminate.
One of the less apparent characteristics of Halloween is that it is celebrated in many countries, beyond the United States, and not all in the same way; That is to say, although they all carry out activities in common, these have been colored by local customs to give rise to a large number of interesting variations.
In Spain, for example, Halloween is very popular, although children do not go from house to house asking for candy, but rather the celebration focuses especially on the use of costumes in the streets and, as in almost the entire world, theme parties. The English, for their part, celebrate in a very similar way to their North American brothers, but they are characterized by being more competitive with respect to their costumes . In Canada, the main difference is that the costumes are not usually undead, but more typical of a carnival.
The United States is the country that we currently associate with this holiday , and icons such as the aforementioned illuminated pumpkin have emerged from there. The night of October 31 sees children and adults dressed as ghosts and monsters walking the streets in search of candy, while others stay at home enjoying a good scary movie.
In this framework, one of the fundamental points of Halloween is the choice of costume, something that currently can also be done through mobile applications that show us the trends of the moment. It is worth mentioning that in the United States not only local people celebrate Halloween, but this peculiar October night is one of the reasons that drives many foreigners to visit the country.
But the celebration does not end with costumes: another fundamental Halloween custom is to decorate the house with all kinds of elements typical of a horror story, both outside and inside. This collaborates with the transformation of the streets.
"Halloween" is also the title of a film saga created by John Carpenter , whose central character is a psychopath murderer named Michael Myers .