13 Fascinating Things You Didn't Know About Halloween

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Everyone's favorite excuse to dress up like a ghost or witch for the night (while eating loads of candy and caramel apples) has come a long way. Over the centuries the holiday has evolved from a way of begging for food to one of the most commercialized days of the entire year. Here's everything you didn't know about Halloween:

1. The holiday can be traced back more than 2,000 years.

Halloween all started as a pre-Christian Celtic festival called Samhain (which means "summer's end") held around the first of November. It celebrated the final day of the harvest, and was also believed to be the day spirits of the dead would cross over into the other world. 

2. Trick-or-treating has existed since medieval times.

In Scotland and Ireland it was known as "guising" when poor adults and children dressed up in costumes and asked for food and money in exchange for songs and prayer, while in Britain and Ireland this tradition was called "souling." Today, the tradition has morphed into a simple excuse for children to get dressed up and ask for candy — oh, how the times have changed.

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3. Centuries ago, Halloween was also all about finding a husband.

Ladies who lived during the 1700s and1800s (and even before that) prescribed Halloween traditions that would "help" them find a romantic match. They'd use apple-bopping as matchmaking, ate sweets to encourage dreams of future husbands, and more — all of it folklore that was probably more folly than realistic.

4. Immigrants helped popularize the holiday in the U.S.

When the Irish fled their country in1840s due to the potato famine, they brought over their Halloween traditions. However, by the 1920s the holiday evolved to include "tricks" and the mischief was at an all-time high during The Great Depression. Some believe community-based trick-or-treating became popular in the 1930s as a way to control the excessive pranksters.

5. Sugar rationing during World War II put a halt to trick-or-treating.

After the ration was lifted, the tradition really started to morph into how we know it today. Candy companies  started launching advertising campaigns to capitalize on the ritual.

6. Now it's the second biggest commercial holiday in the country.

Candy sales average around 2 billion dollars annually and it's second only to — you guessed it — Christmas. 

7. On average, Americans spend $$$$$ on Halloween every year.

That includes Halloween decorations, candy, and costumes. (If you're curious how that compares to Christmas, Americans spent an average of $$$ on everything for Christmas in 2014.  Halloween might be the second biggest holiday – but it is a distant second.)

8. The tradition of Jack O' Lanterns came from Irish folklore.

It was about a man named Stingy Jack in Ireland who tricked the Devil and therefore was not allowed into Heaven or Hell — so he spent his days roaming the Earth, carrying a lantern, and was known as "Jack of the Lantern."

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9. And they used to be carved out of turnips and potatoes.

It originated in Ireland, after all.

10. The record for the fastest pumpkin carving was 24.03 seconds.

Stephen Clarke holds the honor. The rules required the pumpkin to be less than 24 pounds and had to be carved in the traditional way with eyes, a nose, ears, and a mouth.

11. The black and orange colors are associated with the fall harvest.

Orange represents strength and endurance, while black is a symbol for death and darkness.

12. The biggest Halloween parade in the U.S. is in New York City. 

Today, it draws over 2 million spectators and includes 60,000 participants, but it started out as just as simple idea from Greenwich Village resident (and puppeteer!) Ralph Lee — a walk from house to house for his children and their friends. But when the local theatre got wind of it, they turned it into a bigger event — and it's gotten bigger (and more theatrical) every year since.

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13. The most popular children's costumes are Batman and princess dresses.

Followed by all other super heroes and animals — which we're sure you see swarms of in your neighborhood year after year. If it ain't broke, right?

From: Good Housekeeping US

By Lauren Smith