Halloween is an ancient holiday that stretches back thousands of years. It is a time of celebration, superstition and scary ghosts stories. Oh yes, and don’t forget the trick or the treat. Most people opt to pay the treat, usually in the form of candy. How it all developed, however, may not be what is commonly thought.

Halloween began in the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain, celebrated on Oct. 31. Celebrants would celebrate the coming of winter, but they wore masks and costumes in an effort to thwart the energies of any wayward ghosts or the evil desires of demons because they did not want evil spirits to be able to recognize them, according to History.com. The Celts populated northern England and Ireland over 2,000 years ago. For them, Samhain marked the end of the summer and the bringing in of the harvests.

Nov, 1 was also the beginning of the new year for the Celts and it was on Samhain that realities became blurred and the spirits of the dead returned to roam Earth. This also made it easier for their priests, the Druids, to foretell the future. Prophecy was important to people who were totally reliant on superstition and the natural world.

In 609 AD the Catholic Christian church began to rule much of Europe and made Nov. 1 a feast day for all of its martyrs and saints. As Christianity moved slowly but surely to replace all religious traditions but its own, the feast day became known in ancient English as All-Hallows, and the traditions of the Celts and many other peoples were lost and forgotten.

A uniquely American celebration began to emerge as traditions brought from immigrants’ original homelands began to evolve along with the traditions of the ancient Native Americans. Celebrations of any kind were frowned upon by the Puritans. Originally people set aside Halloween to be a day to celebrate a successful harvest and to tell stories of the dead as well as to party, sing and dance.

As Irish immigrants pushed their way in during the 1800’s, many of their traditions followed. The Irish, adopted by the country, had the tradition of going from house to house asking for candy or for money. Young women of the time also believed that there were certain magical movements that could be performed that would reveal to them the identity of their future mates.

In the 1920s and 30s the holiday became a revelry festival with parades, food and drink. Vandalism was huge during these celebrations. In the 1950s communities decided to focus the holiday just on the children, which greatly reduced vandalism and crime.

One tradition is to wear a mask if going out after dark on Oct. 31, to avoid recognition by roaming spirits and demons who might cause damage. With a costume and mask on, spirits will think a person to be one of them and allow them to safely pass by.