The Origins of Halloween Halloween began 2000 years ago. In the beginning Halloween was a harvest festival celebrated on November first, they called this Samhain. They believed that the festival would make their gods happy and would protect their crops during Winter. They believed October 31st was a time when the living and the dead came together on Earth.

How Halloween got its name Over 1,000 years ago, the Christian church named 1st November ‘All Saints Day’ also called ‘All Hallows’ which was a traditional English term. The night before All Hallows was named Hallows Eve which was then changed to Halloween.

Dressing up on Halloween People believed spirits of the dead would walk among the living on Earth. They were worried that evil spirits would hurt or kill them. They believed if they dressed in frightening costumes, their disguise would confuse the spirits and would think they were also dead. Therefore the spirits would not hurt them.

How Trick-or-Treating Began Many years ago, people were very superstitious. They were terrified that ghosts or spirits would come into their homes. They began leaving bowls of food outside their doors to stop the ghosts from going inside. As time passed, people became less fear full of the ghosts and started eating the nice treats themselves. People say this was the start of Trick-or-Treating.

Halloween Today Today in America 2.5 billion dollars is spent on decorations and costumes. Halloween is the second biggest commercial holiday after Christmas. All around the world, children look forward to dressing up for Halloween.

THE END BY KEIRA, KAYLA AND RACHEL.