Halloween originated as a Celtic festival thousands of years ago celebrated on October 31st. The Celts would prepare for the coming cold winter months and honor the dead. When immigrants came to the US in the 1800s, they brought their Halloween traditions which merged with native traditions. Today, Halloween traditions in the US include trick-or-treating, costume parties, carving jack-o-lanterns, and activities like haunted houses and hay rides.

1. Halloween Waid Harbison 2 nd period 10-16-07

2. Origins of Halloween Halloween started as a Celtic festival thousands of years ago. For the Celtics, November the 1 st started a new year into the cold harsh winter. On October, 31 st , they celebrated the day of the dead and prepared for the harsh deathly months ahead.

3. Halloween to the US Southern colonies began to merge beliefs with the Indians and then Halloween began to be celebrated. When immigrants from around the world flooded into the US in the 1800’s, they brought their traditions with them.

4. Other Countries Caribbean- In the Caribbean, Halloween is largely un-celebrated. In some parts of British West Indies there are celebrations around Halloween where firecrackers are shot, people blow bamboo joints, and other similar activities. Bamboo Joint

5. Malta- Until recently, Malta has never seen Halloween. They celebrate with costume parties for teenagers and adults , but traditional Trick-or-Treating is rare.

6. The Isle of Man The Manx celebrate Hop-tu-Naa on October 31 st . It is parallel to the Celtic tradition that was celebrated long ago.

7. Personalities with Halloween Ghost Witches Scary Figures (Vampires, Bats, etc.)

8. Symbols Jack-O-Lanterns Ghosts Skeleton

9. US Traditions In the US traditions such as Trick-or-Treating are followed. Costume parties are held and other parties with activities including Hay Rides and Haunted Houses. Children often dress up and go around to get candy while Trick-or-Treating. Often families carve pumpkins into Jack-O-Lanterns. These are several traditions.

10. Works Cited http://www.ask.com http://en.wikipedia.org http://www.history.com http://www.google.com