Halloween originated from the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, celebrated on October 31st. The Celts believed this was when the boundary between the living and the dead was thinnest, and spirits could easily cross over. They would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts. Halloween traditions like bobbing for apples, trick-or-treating, and carving jack-o-lanterns were later incorporated from Celtic harvest festivals and Samhain rituals. Today, Halloween is celebrated in many Western cultures with costumes, telling scary stories, and children going door-to-door collecting candy. In Puerto Rico, Halloween traditions have been adapted and commercialized but children still go "tricortrí" or

1. Halloween
Presentation by Liannette Bellido
Cintrón

2. The Origins of Halloween
 Halloween has its
origins in the ancient
Celtic.
October 31th was the
daythey celebrated the end
of the harvest season in a
festival called Samhain
(pronounced sah-win”)
Signifies the end of the summer which also meant
the end of the year for them as they thought that the
1st
of November was New Years Day

3. The Origins of Halloween
 The Celts believed that on this night, all of
the ghosts and spirits left “the world of the
dead” and entered into “the world of the
living”
On Samhain the villagers made huge
bonefires to drive the dead back to the spirit
world and keep them away from the living.
 In the 800s, the Pope replaced the festival of
Samhain with All Saints Day, then the night
before october 31th was All-Hallows Eve,
which was later changed into Halloween
Hallow means Holly or Sainted.

4. Halloween in America
 Irish and Scottish immigrants carried versions of
the tradition to North America in the nineteenth
century. Other western countries embraced the
holiday in the late twentieth century including
Ireland, the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and
the United Kingdom as well as Australia and New
Zealand.

5. Halloween Traditions
1. Bobbing for apples
 What is it?
 Game usually played at Halloween
Was started in the British Isles
A large tub of water with apples in it
floating on the surface. Players must try to
catch one only using their mouth!!
 Why is it play?
 Because hundreds of years ago, people
thought that if you did it, then peeled the
apple in one piece and threw it over your
shoulder it would land in the shape of the
first letter of your true love’s name.

6. Halloween Traditions
2. Trick or Treating
 What is it?
 It is usually done at Halloween
 Children go from door to door, knocking and saying “trick
or treat” in exchange for sweets or sometimes, money
 Why do we do it?
 It originates from Britain and Ireland
 Dates back to the Middle Ages when poor
people used to go from door to door on
“Hallowmas” (November the 1st
) receiving
food in return for prayers for the dead on All
Souls Day.

7. Halloween Traditions
3. Jack-O-Lanterns
 What are they?
 Lanterns made from hollowed pumpkins with carved faces
 Usually displayed at Halloween
 Why do we make them?
 An old Irish tradition because Irish people used to carry
turnips with candles inside them to light their way and also
to scare off any ghosts. It was changed to the well known
pumpkin by the Americans
 People believe that if they are displayed at Halloween, any
evil spirits or ghosts will be scared off

8. Halloween Traditions
4. Fancy dress costumes
What is it?
 People dress up in costumes to look like such things as
witches, the devil, skeletons, mummies, vampires etc.
 Why do we dress up?
People thought that if they left their homes on this night,
they might meet ghosts and so they dressed up so that
they would not be recognised!

9. Halloween Traditions
5. Telling scary stories
Why do we do it?
The first Halloween celebrations in America included
play parties, public events held to celebrate the harvest,
where neighbours would share stories of the dead, tell
each other's fortunes, dance, and sing. Colonial Halloween
festivities also featured the telling of ghost stories and
mischief-making of all kinds.

10. How do we celebrate in
Puerto Rico?
Halloween has transformed, from being a cultural and
religious tradition, to a commercial and entertainment event.
This has also happened in the United States.
Children continue with the “trick-or-treat” tradition, in
Puerto Rico referred as “tricortrí”.
Teenagers and young adults attend to parties that include
shows of well known singers.
Others plan their own parties and enjoy Halloween with
friends.