How Halloween Came to Be
Origins of the Spooky Holiday
All Hallow's Eve, Samhain, Celtic New Year, and Day of the Dead are all names for Halloween. Yup, Halloween started longer ago than you might have thought! Celts and Germans believed that on the first day of the new year, deceased souls would roam around, reminding the people how dangerous the cold, dark winter could be. Halloween costumes began as people's attempts to deceive witches, ghosts, and the like into thinking that the people were spirits. That was to avoid being possessed by an actual spirit. Today, the tradition is to dress up and give out candy. All Saints' Day, November 1st, and All Souls' Day, November 2nd, are more like the original Halloween. They celebrate the lives of dead saints and souls in general.
Below you can see popular Halloween caricature and face painting ideas.  The above is a zombie caricature by Sean G. Below, you see a sugarskull face painting design by Jenny A. |