Travel back to Medieval Europe of the Iron Age and meet the Celts, a precursor culture of Ireland, Scotland, Great Britain and northern France. For centuries, they believed that ghosts returned from the dead on Samhain (meaning “summer’s end”), October 31st, the eve of their new year. This was an observance that noted the end of harvest and long days of sunlight, and the onset of darker days and harsher conditions. On that night, the people built bonfires, wore disguises to mimic and frighten off evil spirits, and made burnt offerings of crops and animals as sacrifices to their many gods in an effort to protect themselves from harm. This ancient idea of offering gifts in exchange for protection crept into the activities associated in today’s practice of trick-or-treating.
Eventually, the Catholic church established a church-sanctioned celebration to honor and remember those who have passed on. This feast was called All-hallows (All Saints, or All Hallowed) Day, and originally took place in the spring, but finally ended up being observed on November 1st., very likely as a means to replace the pagan celebration of the dead. Moving this Catholic holiday to the day after Samhain attempted to redirect the focus off of ghosts and evil spirits, centering the attention instead on remembering and praying for the dead. The night before All-hallows Day came to be known as All-hallows Eve, a word which, over time, evolved into the familiar word “Halloween.”
How Halloween Trick-or-Treating Got Started
Irish and English immigrants coming to America brought some of their old world traditions with them. In those festivities, people gave “soul cakes” to poor beggars. Later, disguised children would “go a-souling” or “go guising,” carrying lamps fashioned from turnips–not pumpkins–and offer a small performance of some kind in exchange for receiving tidbits of food or small amounts of money. They were rewarded with ale, money and food as they traipsed door to door. Soon, the practice of dressing up and going house to house to ask for food or money on the eve of All-hallows took hold in America. As the observation of Halloween developed in the States, the practice of giving out food or small gifts grew right along with it.