{"id":21986,"date":"2024-10-29T09:26:35","date_gmt":"2024-10-29T16:26:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/?p=21986"},"modified":"2024-10-29T11:24:10","modified_gmt":"2024-10-29T18:24:10","slug":"ancient-irish-get-too-much-credit-for-halloween","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/ancient-irish-get-too-much-credit-for-halloween\/","title":{"rendered":"The ancient Irish get far too much credit for Halloween"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n    \n                                \n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-hero \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-hero\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img\n                            data-src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/10\/conversation-samhain-dornsife-768x432.jpg\"\n          data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/10\/conversation-samhain-dornsife-1920x1080.jpg 1920w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/10\/conversation-samhain-dornsife-1280x720.jpg 1280w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/10\/conversation-samhain-dornsife-768x432.jpg 768w\"          data-sizes=\"(min-width:1200px) 75vw, (min-width:768px) 83vw, 100vw\"          class=\"lazyload\"\n        \n                  alt=\"A person dressed in a ceremonial outfit, with a leafy crown and antlers, holds a flaming staff at dusk, surrounded by fire and onlookers in the background.\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n  \n      <div class=\"image-caption\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  The Celtic festival of Samhain celebrates a time of year when the division between Earth and the otherworld collapses, allowing spirits to pass through. (Photo: Matt Cardy.)\n\n\n<\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  \n  <div class=\"text-wrapper\">\n          <nav aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\" class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n        <ul>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\">News<\/a><\/li>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\/?category=arts-and-culture\">Arts and Culture<\/a><\/li>\n                  <\/ul>\n      <\/nav>\n    \n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--page-title\">\n\n    \n  <h1>The ancient Irish get far too much credit for Halloween<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n          <div class=\"subtitle\">\n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  Folklorists created a through line from the Celtic pagan festival of Samhain to Halloween. But the Halloween we know today has more to do with the English, a 9th-century pope and American consumerism.\n\n\n<\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    \n           <strong class=\"author-field\"><span >By<\/span><a href=\"mailto:communication@dornsife.usc.edu\">Lisa Bitel<\/a><\/strong>\n    \n          <span class=\"post-date-field\">October 29, 2024<\/span>\n      <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--social-share \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--social-share\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"content-wrapper\">\n    <span class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_32 addtoany_list\" style=\"line-height: 32px;\">\n      <span class=\"title\">\n        Share\n      <\/span>\n                        <a class=\"a2a_button_copy_link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#copy_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Link\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_copy_link\">\n              <svg 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cc--rich-text \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--rich-text\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n      \n<div class=\"f--field f--wysiwyg\">\n\n    \n  <p>This time of year, I often run across articles <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/uk-northern-ireland-29785031\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">proclaiming Halloween<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/how-did-halloween-get-spooky\/\" rel=\"noopener\">a modern form of the pagan Irish holiday of Samhain<\/a> \u2014 pronounced SAW-en. <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/profile\/lisa-bitel\/\">But as a historian of Ireland and its medieval literature<\/a>, I can tell you: Samhain is Irish. Halloween isn\u2019t.<\/p>\n<p>The Irish often get credit \u2014 or blame \u2014 for the bonfires, pranksters, witches, jack-o\u2019-lanterns and beggars who wander from house to house, threatening tricks and soliciting treats.<\/p>\n<p>The first professional 19th-century folklorists were the ones who created a through line from Samhain to Halloween. Oxford University\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/biography.wales\/article\/s-RHYS-JOH-1840#?c=0&amp;m=0&amp;s=0&amp;cv=0&amp;manifest=https%3A%2F%2Fdamsssl.llgc.org.uk%2Fiiif%2F2.0%2F5227644%2Fmanifest.json\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">John Rhys<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Golden-Bough-James-George-Frazer\/dp\/0486424928\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">James Frazer<\/a> of the University of Cambridge were keen to find the origins of their national cultures.<\/p>\n<p>They observed lingering customs in rural areas of Britain and Ireland and searched medieval texts for evidence that these practices and beliefs had ancient pagan roots. They mixed stories of magic and paganism with harvest festivals and whispers of human sacrifice, and you can still find echoes of their <a href=\"https:\/\/irishmyths.com\/2021\/10\/01\/history-of-halloween-traditions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">outdated theories on websites<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>But the Halloween we celebrate today has more to do with the English, a ninth-century pope and America\u2019s obsession with consumerism.<\/p>\n<h2>A changing of the seasons<\/h2>\n<p>For two millennia, Samhain, the night of Oct. 31, has marked the turn from summer to winter on the Irish calendar. It was one of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irishcentral.com\/opinion\/others\/the-irish-calendar-staying-grounded-with-the-8-seasonal-holidays-83404787-238015771\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">four seasonal signposts<\/a> in agricultural and pastoral societies.<\/p>\n<p>After Samhain, people brought the animals inside as refuge from the long, cold nights of winter. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bpl.org\/blogs\/post\/the-origins-and-practices-of-holidays-imbolc-setsubun-lunar-new-year\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Imbolc<\/a>, which is on Feb. 1, marked the beginning of the lambing season, followed by spring planting. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Beltane\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Beltaine<\/a> signaled the start of mating season for humans and beasts alike on May 1, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bpl.org\/blogs\/post\/the-origins-and-practices-of-lammas-lughnasad\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Lughnasadh<\/a> kicked off the harvest on Aug. 1.<\/p>\n<p>But whatever the ancient Irish did on Oct. 31 is lost to scholars because there\u2019s almost no evidence of their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Celtic-religion\/The-Celtic-gods\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">pagan traditions<\/a> except legends written by churchmen around 800 A.D., about 400 years after the Irish started turning Christian. Although they wrote about the adventures of their ancestors, churchmen could only imagine the pagan ways that had disappeared.<\/p>\n<h2>An otherworld more utopian than terrifying<\/h2>\n<p>These <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Otherworld-Wonder-Romance-Medieval-Ireland\/dp\/0197600611\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">stories about the pagan past<\/a> told of Irish kings holding annual weeklong feasts, markets and games at Samhain. The day ended early in northwestern Europe, before 5 p.m., <a href=\"https:\/\/www.timeanddate.com\/sun\/ireland\/dublin?month=11&amp;year=2024\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">and winter nights were long<\/a>. After sundown, people went inside to eat, drink and listen to storytellers.<\/p>\n<p>The stories did not link Samhain with death and horror. But they did treat Samhain as a night of magic, when the otherworld \u2014 what, in Irish, was known as the \u201cs\u00ed\u201d \u2014 opened its portals to mortals. One tale, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ucc.ie\/en\/media\/academic\/seanmeanghaeilge\/cdi\/texts\/Meyer-Echtra-Nerai.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Adventure of Nera<\/a>,\u201d warned that if you went out on Samhain Eve, you might meet dead men or warriors from the s\u00ed, or you might unknowingly wander into the otherworld.<\/p>\n<p>When Nera went out on a dare, he met a thirsty corpse in search of drink and unwittingly followed warriors <a href=\"https:\/\/storyarchaeology.com\/uaimh-na-gcait-oweynagat\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">through a portal<\/a> into the otherworld. But instead of ghosts and terror, Nera found love. He ended up marrying a \u201cban s\u00eddh\u201d \u2014 pronounced \u201cBAN-shee\u201d \u2014 an otherworldly woman. But here\u2019s the medieval twist to the tale: He lived happily ever after in this otherworld with his family and farm.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/global.oup.com\/academic\/product\/otherworld-9780197600610\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Irish otherworld was no hell<\/a>, either. In medieval tales, it is a sunny place in perpetual spring. Everyone who lives there is beautiful, powerful, immortal and blond. They have good teeth. The rivers flow with mead and wine, and food appears on command. No sexual act is a sin. The houses sparkle with gems and precious metals. Even the horses are perfect.<\/p>\n<h2>Clampdown on pagan customs<\/h2>\n<p>The link between Oct. 31, ghosts and devils was really the pope\u2019s fault.<\/p>\n<p>In 834, <a href=\"https:\/\/tinyurl.com\/2v837yn3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pope Gregory IV decreed<\/a> Nov. 1 the day for celebrating all Christian saints. In English, the feast day became All Hallows Day. The night before \u2014 Oct. 31 \u2014 became known as All Hallows Eve.<\/p>\n<p>Some <a href=\"https:\/\/www.history.com\/topics\/halloween\/history-of-halloween#ancient-origins-of-halloween\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">modern interpretations insist that<\/a> Pope Gregory created All Hallows Day to quell pagan celebrations of Samhain. But Gregory knew nothing of ancient Irish seasonal holidays. In reality, he probably did it because everyone celebrated All Saints on different days and, like other Popes, Gregory sought to consolidate and control the <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikisource.org\/wiki\/Catholic_Encyclopedia_(1913)\/All_Saints\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">liturgical calendar<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In the later Middle Ages, <a href=\"https:\/\/catholiceducation.org\/en\/culture\/all-hallow-s-eve.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">All Hallows Eve<\/a> emerged as a <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1093\/acprof:oso\/9780198205708.001.0001\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">popular celebration<\/a> of the saints. People went to church and prayed to the saints for favors and blessings. Afterward, they went home to feast. Then, on Nov. 2, they celebrated <a href=\"https:\/\/www.catholic.org\/saints\/allsouls\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">All Souls\u2019 Day<\/a> by praying for the souls of their lost loved ones, hoping that prayers would help their dead relatives out of purgatory and into heaven.<\/p>\n<p>But in the 16th century, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.english-heritage.org.uk\/learn\/story-of-england\/tudors\/religion\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the Protestant rulers of Britain<\/a> and Ireland quashed saints\u2019 feast days, because praying to <a href=\"https:\/\/publishing.cdlib.org\/ucpressebooks\/view?docId=ft6n39p11n&amp;chunk.id=d0e4008&amp;toc.id=&amp;brand=ucpress\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">saints seemed idolatrous<\/a>. Protestant ministers did their best to eliminate popular customs of the early November holidays, such as candle-lit processions and harvest bonfires.<\/p>\n<p>In the minds of ministers, these customs smacked of heathenism.<\/p>\n<h2>A mishmash of traditions<\/h2>\n<p>Our Halloween of costumed beggars and leering jack-o\u2019-lanterns descends from this <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1093\/acprof:oso\/9780198205708.003.0037\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">mess of traditions<\/a>, storytelling and <a href=\"https:\/\/anthroholic.com\/antiquarianism?srsltid=AfmBOoqBwCr-YfJvCxn6hkesL4YKA9FtORkMFyrysDNzBbutRvW7KGVu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">antiquarianism<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Like our ancestors, we constantly <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.loc.gov\/headlinesandheroes\/2021\/10\/the-origins-of-halloween-traditions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">remake our most important holidays<\/a> to suit current culture.<\/p>\n<p>Jack-o\u2019-lanterns are neither ancient nor Irish. One of the earliest references is an <a href=\"https:\/\/lesleybannatyne.com\/JOL.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">18th-century account<\/a> of an eponymous Jack, who tricked the devil one too many times and was condemned to wander the world forever.<\/p>\n<p>Supposedly, Jack, or whatever the hero was called, carved a turnip and stuck a candle in it as his lantern. But the custom of carving turnips in early November probably originated in England with celebrations of All Saints\u2019 Day and another holiday, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.history.com\/news\/guy-fawkes-day-a-brief-history\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Guy Fawkes Day<\/a> on Nov. 5, with its <a href=\"https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=xAPeYLg0clUC&amp;pg=PT63&amp;source=gbs_toc_r&amp;cad=2#v=onepage&amp;q&amp;f=false\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">bonfires and fireworks, and it spread from there<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>As for ancient bonfires, the Irish and Britons built them <a href=\"https:\/\/beltane.org\/a-detailed-history-of-beltane\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">to celebrate Beltaine<\/a>, but not Samhain \u2013 at least, not according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/ancientmedievalhistory.wordpress.com\/2016\/10\/30\/samhain-and-allhallowtide-a-history\/#:%7E:text=The%20first%20mention%20of%20anything%20religious%20was%20in%20the%20seventeenth%20century%20by%20the%20thoroughly%20unreliable%20Geoffrey%20Keating%2C\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">medieval tales<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In 19th-century Ireland, All Hallows Eve was a time for communal suppers, games like <a href=\"https:\/\/irishmyths.com\/2022\/10\/12\/bobbing-for-apples\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">bobbing for apples<\/a> and celebrating the magic of courtship. For instance, girls tried to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.iskullhalloween.com\/Irish_cabinet.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">peel apples<\/a> in one long peel; then they examined the peels to see what letters they resembled \u2014 the initials of their future husbands\u2019 names. Boys crept out of the gathering, despite warnings, to make mischief, taking off farm gates or stealing cabbages and hurling them at the neighbors\u2019 doors.<\/p>\n<h2>Halloween with an American sheen<\/h2>\n<p>Across the Atlantic, these customs first appeared in the mid-19th century, when the Irish, English and many other immigrant groups brought their holidays to the U.S.<\/p>\n<p>In medieval Scotland, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.scotland.org\/inspiration\/halloween-traditions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">guisers<\/a>\u201d were people who dressed in disguise and begged for \u201csoul cakes\u201d on All Souls Day. These guisers probably became the costumed children who threatened \u2014 and sometimes perpetrated \u2013 mischief unless given treats. Meanwhile, carved turnips became <a href=\"https:\/\/tinyurl.com\/2m23trnj\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">jack-o\u2019-lanterns<\/a>, since pumpkins were plentiful in North America \u2014 and easier to carve.<\/p>\n<p>Like Christmas, Valentine\u2019s Day and Easter, Halloween eventually became a feast of consumerism. Companies mass-produced <a href=\"https:\/\/www.halloweencostumes.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">costumes<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/christmastraditions.com\/collections\/vintage-halloween-decor?srsltid=AfmBOorfB_wiaL_Jhxgg1wOmAD07D4k8jGYkvpvnFl_bAYUibYvrMK26\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">paper decorations<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.walmart.com\/browse\/food\/halloween-candy\/976759_1096070_6041305\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">packaged candy<\/a>. People in Britain and Ireland blamed the Americans for the spread of modern Halloween and its customs. British schools even tried to <a href=\"http:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.1080\/01416200.2012.750594\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">quash the holiday<\/a> in the 1990s because of its disorderly and demonic connotations.<\/p>\n<p>The only real remnant of Samhain in Halloween is the date. Nowadays, no one expects to stumble into a romance in the s\u00ed. Only those drawn to the ancient Celtic past sense the numinous opening of the otherworld at Samhain.<\/p>\n<p>But who\u2019s to say which reality prevails when the portals swing open in the dark of Oct. 31?<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;\" src=\"https:\/\/counter.theconversation.com\/content\/239801\/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic\" alt=\"The Conversation\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" \/><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https:\/\/theconversation.com\/republishing-guidelines --><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/profiles\/lisa-bitel-418308\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Lisa Bitel<\/a>, Dean\u2019s Professor of <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/religion\/\">Religion<\/a> and Professor of <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/hist\/\">History<\/a>, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/institutions\/usc-dornsife-college-of-letters-arts-and-sciences-2669\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>This article is republished from <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/the-ancient-irish-get-far-too-much-credit-for-halloween-239801\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n  \n        \n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-related-stories \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-related-stories\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--section-title\">\n\n    \n  <h2>\n          Related Articles\n      <\/h2>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n                  <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/is-ai-really-writing-ancient-authors-would-have-said-no\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >Is AI really \u2018writing\u2019? From a priestess to philosophers, ancient authors would have said\u00a0\u2018no\u2019<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n              <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/giqbYRVn5v4\" \n         target=\"_blank\"                 class=\"\" \n      >\u2018Trojan Talks\u2019: USC President Beong-Soo Kim talks with Assal Habibi<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n              <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/today.usc.edu\/top-k-12-students-to-compete-in-science-olympiad-at-usc\/\" \n         target=\"_blank\"                 class=\"\" \n      >Top K-12 students to compete in Science Olympiad at USC<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n            <\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Folklorists created a through line from the Celtic pagan festival of Samhain to Halloween. But the Halloween we know today has more to do with the English, a 9th century pope and American consumerism.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":21987,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[87,128,83],"class_list":["post-21986","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-and-culture","tag-expert-viewpoint","tag-folklore","tag-the-conversation"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The ancient Irish get far too much credit for Halloween<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Folklorists link Samhain to Halloween. 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