Did you know the Irish and
Scottish carved turnips not pumpkins for Halloween?
That was in the free ethnic eNews last night.
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You could write a book about the history and
spread of Halloween from the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Hallows'
Day to what it is today. This was the time in the liturgical year dedicated to
remembering the dead, including saints (hallows), martyrs, and all the
departed.
Did you know that in Ireland and Scotland, the
turnip has traditionally been carved during Halloween? Immigrants to North America used the native
pumpkin, which is both much softer and much larger – making it easier to carve
than a turnip. At least we don’t have turnip spice lattes.
The American tradition of carving pumpkins is
recorded in 1837 and was originally associated with harvest time in general,
not becoming specifically associated with Halloween until the mid-to-late 19th
century.
In England, from the medieval period up until the 1930s, people practiced the
Christian custom of souling on Halloween, which involved groups of soulers,
both Protestant and Catholic, going from parish to parish, begging the rich for
soul cakes, in exchange for praying for the souls of the givers and their
friends.
In the Philippines, the practice of souling is
called Pangangaluwa and is practiced on All Hallow's Eve among children in
rural areas. People drape themselves in white cloths to represent souls and
then visit houses, where they sing in return for prayers and sweets.
On Hallowe'en (All Hallows' Eve), in Poland,
believers were once taught to pray out loud as they walk through the forests in
order that the souls of the dead might find comfort.
In Spain, Christian priests in tiny villages
toll their church bells in order to remind their congregants to remember the
dead on All Hallows' Eve. And don’t
forget Dia de Muertos (see below).
Irish and Scottish migrants brought many
Halloween customs to North America, and then through American influence,
Halloween spread to many other countries by the 21st century such as Ecuador,
Chile, Australia, New Zealand, (most) continental Europe, Finland, Japan, and
other parts of East Asia.
