The Origin of Halloween: Samhain, the Celtic Festival of Darkness and Mystical Light

Celebrated at the beginning of November, themotif: the diviner would try to shed a dim light
Celtic Festival of Samhain marked the coming ofinto the dark future.
the winter months, with their dimming light andThis combination of darkness and light, fear and
heightening darkness. The root of the wordhope, order and chaos gave Samhain its particular
“Samhain” comes fromcoloring of a merry time of misbehaving. It was a
“samhradh”, meaning “summer” infestival where rules were briefly abolished and
Irish Gaelic. While the exact etymology has nottension – whether communal, social, political or
been confirmed by scholars, in Celtic tradition,even psychological – could be released. It was
“Samhain” corresponds to “end ofalso a time when new order was born –
summer” (a combination of samhhence the competitions and games of worth that
“summer” and fuin “ending,were practiced during this period. Figures of
concealment”).  Samhain and Beltanne (Maypower were abolished and others replaced them;
Day) stood in opposition as the beginning of therules were destroyed and recreated.
season of winter and summer, respectively, butIt is perhaps of interest to see what has
Samhain was a much more prominent festival andremained of this festival time in today’s
may have marked the beginning of the CelticHalloween customs.
New Year as Frazer has pointed out.- The symbolic kindling of fires in the lit pumpkin;
Samhain was, consequently, a festival of- Games of worth in the popular ‘bobbing for
deepening darkness and budding light. It was aapples’ – a water ordeal.
meeting place between two opposites – the- The havoc wreaked by deities and the dead in
winter and the summer, the dark and the light,modern movies like Halloween, Scream, Dracula
death and life. As such, the festival contained bothand vampire stories, American Werewolf in
aspects of existence – although the darkness,London and other horror classics;
increasing at this time, was more profuse and- The identification of the living with deities and
substantial.the dead in Halloween trick-or-treating and
In its ‘dark’ aspect, Samhain marked acostume-wearing
period of destruction and chaos. Perhaps the most- The sacral fear surrounding the Samhain
dramatic illustration of this was the ritual killing ofcelebration survives in urban legends of
the Irish kings of Tara. According to Dalton’s‘razors hidden in apples’ to harm children.
evidence and interpretation, the kings that had- The tradition of Samhain feasts in Halloween
behaved unsuitably or unpiously in office would beparties, trick-or-treating and Halloween candy;
killed on the day of Samhain. Ritual killing was also- Mischief survives in the mild “tricks”
effected against animals: Samhain was the seasonplayed on those that do not propitiate the
when the cattle that would not be kept throughcostumed revelers
the winter were slaughtered.- Abolition of traditional hierarchy is still present in
On Samhain, the forces of darkness or chaosthe ascendance of children over adults during the
returned to rule. According to Irish mythology, 1stHalloween season.
of November marked the day that the demonicPerhaps more investigations should be carried out
Fomorian race oppressed the people of Nemed.in this aspect, yet what is certain is that Samhain
According to another legend, the divine Aillen thehas evolved into Halloween in subtle, but yet
Burner puts everyone to sleep at Samhain andpowerful ways, maintaining in the process its
burns the palace of the Irish kings at Tara. Duringfundamental character of an out-of-the-ordinary
the festival, bands of men, women and childrentime when rules become more relaxed and
dressed in masks and costumes embodied theidentities more fluid behind the mask. It is
havoc-causing divinities and inflicted their ownunfortunate that its spiritual core has taken
terror and chaos on the neighbourhood. As Daltonsecond place to ‘ordered chaos’, yet the
points out, the tyrannical Irish king Connenduring power of the Samhain is witnessed by
Cetcathach was killed by fifty warriors dressed asits innovative ways to survive and adapt in the
women. The habit of cross-dressing was popularmodern world.
in various parts of the Celtic world as expressions
of the breakdown of rules on Samhain.1. Kondratiev, A. (1997). Samhain: Season of
Samhain was also a time when the dead cameDeath and Renewal. Online. Accessed 29 October
back to roam the earth. This happened because2008.
the normal order no longer applied, and hence the2. Frazer, J.G. (1922). The Golden Bough: A Study
boundaries of the otherworld were broken. Freedof Magic and Religion. London : Macmillan
from the rules that clearly separate one world3. Dalton, G.F. (1970). The Ritual Killing of the Irish
from the next, the dead returned to visit theKings. Folklore 81(1), pp.1-22
living. They were welcomed at ritual feasts4. Kondratiev, A. (1997). Samhain: Season of
where, as Kondratiev has noted, they wereDeath and Renewal. Online.  Accessed 29
“actually” present. It was this custom ofOctober 2008.
honoring the dead that made the Catholic Church5. Walsh, M.J. (1947). Notes on Fire-Lighting
adopt the date of 1st and 2nd of November asCeremonies I. Folklore 58(2), pp. 277-284.
the Day of the Saints and Day of the Departed.6. Wikipedia. (2008). Samhain. Online. Accessed 30
If Samhain was a dreaded time when rules wereOctober 2008
broken and demons roamed the earth, it was also7. Dalton, G.F. (1970). The Ritual Killing of the Irish
a time when light was re-born. Samhain, as FrazerKings. Folklore 81(1), pp.1-22.
has observed, was not a festival of the sun: the8. Kondratiev, A. (1997). Samhain: Season of
sun is in retreat in autumn. Instead, SamhainDeath and Renewal. Online.  Accessed 29
marked the birth of a mystical light – a lightOctober 2008.
that may originate in the first ray of sun at dawn9. Frazer, J.G. (1922). The Golden Bough: A Study
or the first lunar ray after the new moon. Inof Magic and Religion. London : Macmillan.
Ireland, a bonfire was started on the royal hill of10. Kondratiev, A. (1997). Samhain: Season of
Tara accompanying, perhaps, the coronation of aDeath and Renewal. Online.  Accessed 29
new king after the killing of the old one. TheOctober 2008.
custom of lighting fires on Samhain was also11. Best, J. & Horiuchi, G.T. The Razor Blade
pervasive in Scotland and Wales. In line with thisin the Apple: The Social Construction of Urban
new light, Samhain was also a time when theLegends. Social Problems, 32(5), pp. 488-499.
forces of good eventually prevailed: the demon12. Dell Clark, C. (2005). Tricks of Festival: Children,
Fomorians were destroyed, Aillen the Burner wasEnculturation and American Halloween. Ethos 33(2),
slain. Divination was also pervasive as a practicalpp.180-205.
translation of the ‘light in the darkness’