It's a bit late in the day, but I hope everyone had a wonderful Happy Halloween! So let's talk a little bit about it...
How is Halloween celebrated in Japan?
Japan does not celebrate a western-style Halloween. While most people here know a little about Halloween in the United States, with the costumes, parties, and trick-or-treating; very few know exactly when or how it's celebrated. So instead of Halloween, the Japanese celebrate the "Obon Festival" which is dedicated to the spirits of ancestors. So in short, we already celebrated Japan's version of Halloween! XD
Some quick fun facts:
~Halloween wasn’t always Halloween. It was first called Samhain. Samhain, a Celtic festival still celebrated by pagans, means “summer’s end.” Samhain celebrates the end of what is considered the “lighter half” of the year (spring and summer) and the beginning of the “darker half” of the year (fall and winter).
~Samhain, or Halloween, or by whatever name you know it as past or present is a time when the veil between the worlds of the living and dead are at its thinnest. People get lost on the other side. Ghosts get lost among us.
~So, back in the day, and still today, people dress up in disguises so they cannot be identified as human.
~Because spirits aren’t always friendly. Both good and bad spirits were capable of coming to our world, so to ward the evil ones off, costumes were essential.
~As for the word Halloween. Check this out: All HALLOW’s EvENing. When the Christians were trying to convert the pagans, they moved their All Hallows Day to November, the day after halloween, in an attempt to squash Samhain festivities. Therefore, Halloween became All Hallows Eve.
~What about the actual word “Halloween?” Halloween is a variant of All Hallows Evening, which, on Oct. 31, is the day before All Hallows Day on Nov. 1. This was shortened to All Hallows Even, and then the “v” was dropped to All Hallows E’en. It’s not a big jump to see how that got to Halloween.
~Pumpkins were not always associated with Halloween. Initially, turnips were used. Pumpkins replaced them because they are easier to carve than turnips.
~As for Halloween trick-or-treating, that is derived from Middle Ages, when the poor would go door-to-door asking on All Hallows Day to ask for food before All Souls Day, Nov. 2.
Quick Halloween recipes:
Sandra Lee's Green Ghoulade
Vampire Apple Bites
Have fun~ and be safe~!
How is Halloween celebrated in Japan?
Japan does not celebrate a western-style Halloween. While most people here know a little about Halloween in the United States, with the costumes, parties, and trick-or-treating; very few know exactly when or how it's celebrated. So instead of Halloween, the Japanese celebrate the "Obon Festival" which is dedicated to the spirits of ancestors. So in short, we already celebrated Japan's version of Halloween! XD
Some quick fun facts:
~Halloween wasn’t always Halloween. It was first called Samhain. Samhain, a Celtic festival still celebrated by pagans, means “summer’s end.” Samhain celebrates the end of what is considered the “lighter half” of the year (spring and summer) and the beginning of the “darker half” of the year (fall and winter).
~Samhain, or Halloween, or by whatever name you know it as past or present is a time when the veil between the worlds of the living and dead are at its thinnest. People get lost on the other side. Ghosts get lost among us.
~So, back in the day, and still today, people dress up in disguises so they cannot be identified as human.
~Because spirits aren’t always friendly. Both good and bad spirits were capable of coming to our world, so to ward the evil ones off, costumes were essential.
~As for the word Halloween. Check this out: All HALLOW’s EvENing. When the Christians were trying to convert the pagans, they moved their All Hallows Day to November, the day after halloween, in an attempt to squash Samhain festivities. Therefore, Halloween became All Hallows Eve.
~What about the actual word “Halloween?” Halloween is a variant of All Hallows Evening, which, on Oct. 31, is the day before All Hallows Day on Nov. 1. This was shortened to All Hallows Even, and then the “v” was dropped to All Hallows E’en. It’s not a big jump to see how that got to Halloween.
~Pumpkins were not always associated with Halloween. Initially, turnips were used. Pumpkins replaced them because they are easier to carve than turnips.
~As for Halloween trick-or-treating, that is derived from Middle Ages, when the poor would go door-to-door asking on All Hallows Day to ask for food before All Souls Day, Nov. 2.
Quick Halloween recipes:
Sandra Lee's Green Ghoulade
Vampire Apple Bites
Have fun~ and be safe~!
