Fifty fun Halloween facts

1. Halloween is celebrated on October 31, which is the last day of the Celtic calendar.
2. The custom of Halloween has evolved from the ancient Celtic belief that the border between this world and “the Otherworld” becomes thinner in All-Hallows-Eve. People wore costumes to disguise themselves and avoid harm.
3. The day after Halloween is called All Saints’ Day. Christians dedicate this day to all those saints who do not have a special day of their own.
4. All saints is another way of saying all saints. All-Hallows-Eve means the night before All Saints’ Day.
5. The first evidence for the use of the word Halloween comes from Scotland in the early 16th century. It was All-Hallows-Eve slang.
6. The colors orange and black represent Halloween because orange is the color of pumpkins (and fall) and black is associated with death.
7. The tradition of carving a pumpkin started in the UK. They were carved out of All Hallows Eve and left on the door step to ward off evil spirits.
8. The original Jack o ‘lanterns were carved out of a Swede or a turnip.
9. Jack o ‘lanterns were named for the phenomenon of a strange light flickering over bogs.
10. Carving pumpkins into elaborately decorated lanterns dates back thousands of years in Africa. They were intentionally brought to the New World through a prehistoric migration through Asia.
11. A record was set for the largest number of lanterns lit simultaneously on October 21, 2006, when 30,128 lanterns were lit simultaneously on Boston Common.
12. The largest Halloween pumpkin in the world was carved from the largest pumpkin in the world (at the time) on October 31, 2005 in North Cambria, Pennsylvania, United States by Scott Cully. The pumpkin weighed 1,469 pounds (666.33 kg),
13. Today, the record for the largest pumpkin in the world is held by Nick and Kristy Harp, whose pumpkin weighed 1,725 ​​pounds (782.45 kg).
14. Trick-or-treating is the Halloween custom where costumed children go door to door asking for candy with the question “Trick or treat?” The “trick” is a threat (usually idle) to do harm to the owners of the house or their property if no prizes are given to them.
15. Many people believe that trick or treating developed out of the Middle Ages custom of giving freshly baked soul cakes to children who went door to door on All Hallows’ Eve offering prayers.
16. Each soul cake eaten was believed to represent a soul being released from purgatory.
17. In Sweden, children dress up as witches and go trick-or-treating on Holy Thursday (the Thursday before Easter).
18. In northern Germany, Norway and southern Denmark, children dress up and go trick-or-treating on New Year’s Eve in a tradition called “Rummelpott”.
19. In Scotland, children are only supposed to get treats if they perform tricks for the homes they go to. This usually takes the form of singing a song or reciting a funny poem.
20. For several years (in the late 19th and early 20th centuries), Halloween in the United States became synonymous with vandalism.
21. In 1912, Boy Scout clubs and other community organizations came together to promote a safe Halloween celebration. The school posters at this time called for a “healthy Halloween.”
22. In an effort to prevent damage to their property, homeowners began offering candy to children if they promised not to “joke.”
23. By the late 1930s, trick or treating had become widespread.
24. Research conducted by the National Confectioners Association of America in 2005 revealed that 80% of adults and 93% of children went trick-or-treating on Halloween.
25. The first screen representation of Trick or Treating was in the Disney cartoon, “Trick or Treating.” In this cartoon, Huey, Duey, and Louie try to trick their uncle, Donald Duck, into giving them candy.
26. In 1964, a Halloween upset New York housewife began handing out packages of inedible items to children she believed were too old to trick-or-treat. The packages contained items such as steel wool, dog biscuits, and ant buttons (which were clearly labeled with the word “poison”). Although no one was injured, she was prosecuted and pleaded guilty to endangering the children.
27. In 1970, the New York Times ran an article claiming that “those Halloween treats kids pick up this weekend on their ‘trick or treating’ rounds can bring them more horror than happiness.” He provided examples of possible manipulations. The examples were speculative, but led to a wave of fear.
28. In the 1980s, parents in the US and Canada fear trick-or-treating children could eat compromised candy peaked. In 1985, an ABC News / Washington Post poll found that 60% of parents feared their children would be injured or killed as a result of the Halloween candy sabotage.
29. Other than one incident, actually a premeditated act of murder by the father of a cheater, no incidents of malicious and deliberate handling of candy have been recorded during Halloween.
30. In 1970, a 5-year-old boy from the Detroit area found and ate heroin that his uncle had hidden. The boy died after a four-day coma. The family tried to protect the uncle by claiming that the drug had been sprayed on the boy’s Halloween candy.
31. In 2008, candies with embedded metal shavings and metal sheets were found. The treat was Pokemon Valentine’s Day lollipops bought from a Dollar General store in Polk County, Florida. The candy was found to have been manufactured in China with faulty equipment.
32. In the United States, Halloween represents 25% of candy sales for the year.
33. In the United States, nearly $ 2 billion is spent each year on Halloween candy.
34. Candy corn is the most popular Halloween candy.
35. Sweet corn was created by the American company Wunderlee Candy in the 1880s.
36. Snickers bars are the most popular treats sold on Halloween.
37. Snickers bars were created in 1930 by the Mars family. They named it after their family horse.
38. Research by the US National Retail Federation found that in 2005, 53% of Americans purchased a Halloween costume, spending an average of $ 38.
39. The first mass-produced Halloween costumes appeared in the 1930s in the United States.
40. Originally, Halloween costumes were terrifying characters like vampires, ghosts, skeletons, witches, and devils.
41. Today’s Halloween costumes are often inspired by science fiction, television, movies, cartoons, and pop culture.
42. According to the National Retail Federation of America, the most popular Halloween costume themes for adults are, in order: witch, pirate, vampire, cat, and clown.
43. In 2009, the most popular Halloween character for adults and children was Michael Jackson. Michael Jackson died on June 25, 2009.
44. In 1966, the Batman television series was so popular that a fabric company issued costume patterns.
45. Apple bobbing is a traditional Halloween game. The game is played by filling a tub or large basin with water and putting apples in the water. Because apples are less dense than water, they will float. Players then try to catch one with their teeth.
46. ​​Apple bobbing is becoming less popular, possibly because more and more people consider it unhealthy.
47. It is said that girls who place the apple they wiggled under the pillows dream of their future lover.
48. On February 19, 2008, New Yorker Ashrita Furman cut 33 apples in one minute to set a world record.
49. Agatha Christie’s mystery novel “Hallowe’en Party” is about a girl who drowns in a tub of apples.
50. New York City is home to the largest Halloween celebration in the United States, known as The Village Halloween Parade. The night parade attracts more than two million spectators and participants.

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