How Halloween is celebrated in America: features of the national tradition. Halloween in New York
Halloween is a holiday beloved by Americans, it is extremely popular among the US population, and it is celebrated on such a scale that even Christmas will envy. At the same time, Halloween did not receive the status of a public holiday, and it was not made a day off.
However, according to an old Celtic tradition, on the last day of October, all Americans dress up in all kinds of costumes of evil spirits, and scare passers-by on the streets, while ignoring age and social status.
The history of the holiday, as well as the attitude towards it in the United States and the rest of the world, is full of mysteries and a variety of theories. However, there are several quite official versions of the origin of Halloween.
Halloween evening
history of the holiday
For a long time it was believed that the origins of Halloween should be sought in the culture of Ancient Rome. It was the Romans who were the first to come up with an important holiday for the ancient worldview - parental. The essence of the holiday was to commemorate the deceased parents and pay tribute at each grave of a Roman.
But, the study of the annals and works of Roman historians showed that this holiday was celebrated in Rome on February 13, and according to another version - a few days before February 21. Due to a discrepancy in dates, the hypothesis was rejected, and replaced by a more likely version, which is still used today.
American and British historians have proven that Halloween traditions date back to the ancient Irish holiday of the end of the harvest - Samhain. The same word in the 10th century meant the end of summer, and later came into use among the Irish as the name of November. It was the end of October in ancient Ireland that was considered the end of summer, when the last harvest from the fields was harvested, and it was time to prepare for winter.
On the last night of October, the Irish Druids led all the inhabitants of villages and cities into the field, lit huge fires, and sacrificed livestock. In prayers, they turned to the spirits of their dead ancestors, so that they would tell them what to expect next year. Ordinary people were obliged to jump over the fire in order to be cleansed of sins.
Samhain celebration
With the Christianization of Britain and Ireland, such rituals fell under the prohibitions of the official church, but the people's memory preserved them. The word "Samhain" from the 15th century became firmly associated with witchcraft and witches, and the Catholic equivalent was invented for the holiday - All Saints' Day and Memorial Day who immediately followed him.
Important: The very word "Halloween" was formed from the English expression: "All Hallows Even". Over time, in Britain, the idiom was transformed, and under the influence of the Scottish dialect, it began to sound like a single word - Halloween.
Children's tradition begging for sweets in adults is first mentioned in historical books of the 16th century. There was no question of any terrible costumes and masks then - the children knocked on the houses of their nearest neighbors and asked for refreshments in exchange for a promise not to be mischievous for a whole year.
The first masks and costumes appeared only at the end of the 19th century. Around the same time, the tradition of carving Jack-o'-lanterns, in memory of a roguish blacksmith and foam ale lover from Ireland, who deceived the Devil himself three times, but in retaliation his soul remained restless and stuck in Purgatory.
By the way, the Irish used vegetables of a more modest size for these purposes: turnips, beets or potatoes. But people liked the American pumpkin more, and now we associate this holiday with it.
Pumpkin lamps
With the advent of the 20th century and the development of entertainment infrastructure in the United States, amusement parks, films, festivals and musical performances dedicated to Halloween began to appear.
To date, Halloween is not only the third largest holiday after Christmas and Thanksgiving, but also an indispensable attribute of American pop culture, which has spread throughout the world, including reaching Russia.
Modern Halloween Traditions in the USA
Now Halloween is, among other things, a gold mine for businessmen selling sweets and carnival costumes. The turnover of these industries on a holiday drains the pockets of Americans by billions of dollars.
People in festive costumes
Shops offer their customers a wide range of Halloween costumes - everyone can dress up as a simple devil or skeleton, or as a costume of their favorite character. The Americans do not stop at some costumes, they are trying to achieve more individuality by applying makeup.
Americans decorate not only themselves, but also their homes. They are filled with all sorts of mystical paraphernalia associated with witches, black cats and pumpkin lamps.
Halloween decorated lawn
Over the decades, the format of the holiday has changed. Many Americans have long ceased to wear "terrible" costumes, replacing them with role-playing outfits. Now on Halloween it is fashionable to dress up as a superhero, a celebrity, or even the president of a country. The βotherworldlyβ atmosphere of the holiday for ordinary Americans is gradually turning into an outdated tradition, which now serves only as a backdrop for general fun.
The attitude towards children's food has also changed. Now American parents make sure that sweets and other sweets from neighbors are served exclusively in wrappers, and preferably from well-known manufacturers. In addition, in some states there is a kind of curfew for children's Halloween - all candy extortionists are required to go home before 20:00. The detained kids have the right to see off already policemen.
Important: Tightening the rules for celebrating Halloween in the United States began in 1964, after a tragic incident when a group of teenagers got poisoned by candy. The investigation showed that a certain Helen Fail mixed arsenic into the sweets, deciding to punish the "extortionists" for behaving like little children. The woman was arrested and declared insane.
Children ask for sweets
The tradition of playing naughty at the house of greedy owners is also gradually becoming a thing of the past. Modern American laws equally effectively protect both the inviolability of someone else's home and children who go around neighboring houses. Now any act of violence against a child leads to real prison terms, and the parents of a little bully will have to pay for an overturned pot of flowers.
Some American TV channels and radio stations often play their audience, reporting the invasion of an enemy army, or an asteroid rushing towards the planet. As a rule, jokes are not repeated from year to year, so the US Halloween information field pleases many prank lovers.
Because of the "scary format of the holiday," the US Psychological Associations have ensured that Halloween was included in the list the most common phobias among children and adults.
The annual sales of Halloween costumes and paraphernalia in the US alone is $2.5 billion.
Hollywood producers have an unspoken tradition of achieving horror movie premieres just on Halloween.
In recent years, in the United States, a mandatory attribute of the holiday has become pet costumes.
German power metal band Helloween named after the holiday, with a change in spelling so that there is a play on words from the English "hell" - hell.
In Japan, Halloween has been assimilated into the tradition of holiday parades. The largest costume parade is held every year in the city kawasaki.
In France, the main Halloween venue is Disneyland Paris, and in Germany - frankenstein castle in the city of Darmstadt.
Mexican version of Halloween - The day of the Dead- coincides with the American celebration, but does not carry any entertainment basis. This is a serious Catholic holiday of commemoration of the dead.
Halloween is official banned in Malaysia and a number of other Muslim countries, as a holiday that violates Sharia norms.
In 2015, several religious and public organizations in Russia made an official proposal ban halloween celebration, as a holiday that violates the centuries-old traditions of the Russian peoples.
How they celebrate Halloween in America? Very interesting and unusual for us.
Preparations for Halloween in America starts in about a month. In all yards, stairs and on the verandas of houses, pumpkins appear - a symbol of this holiday.
On the glass windows are images of black cats and witches, inflatable images of monsters, scary masks with long teeth, stuffed animals in long black robes and skeletons are hung on ropes.
As always, there are especially zealous lovers to celebrate, they invent more and more frightening ways to scare passers-by and onlookers.
In the courtyards of houses, whole compositions from films about vampires are created - the figures are all voluminous, human-sized, dressed in costumes. And all this is illuminated by multi-colored lanterns. Creepy picture!
From afar, it seems that a person is sitting on the veranda of the house, and if you come closer, you will shudder. A skeleton is sitting, dressed in a suit, in his hand he has a razor, a knife or an ax, and he swings at the incoming.
Costumes and a variety of Halloween attributes are sold around, even in pharmacies and supermarkets. Yes, wherever you can inscriptions: Trick or Treat! - a comic threat "Trick or Treat!".
The traditions of the holiday go back centuries. Since about the year 800, November 1st has been a religious holiday known as All Saints' Day. Halloween is celebrated the day before October 31.
The bright orange color of pumpkins is strongly associated with this holiday. The custom of carving various figures from pumpkins and using them as lanterns came from Ireland.
The legend tells of a man named Jack who was so miserly that he didn't go to heaven when he died. But he couldn't go to hell either, because he played a trick on the devil. As a result, Jack had to walk the earth with his lantern until Judgment Day.
The Irish carved scary faces out of turnips, beets or potatoes to represent Jack's Lantern or will-o'-the-wisp. The Irish brought their customs to America and started carving faces on pumpkins because they were more available in the fall.
Today, a pumpkin lantern in the windows of houses on Halloween night means that children in these houses are waiting for goodies if they knock on the door and say: Trick or treat!
So already on the afternoon of October 31, groups of children in fairy-tale costumes walk the streets. Here are princesses, and witches, ghosts and vampires, various animals and even Dracula. In the hands of children, handbags in the form of a pumpkin, sweets and small coins are thrown into them.
Adults also come off in full. Imagine: you are walking calmly, and suddenly Death with a scythe rises up the stairs towards you.
And then comes a group of werewolves with such scary faces and claws.
It's another Halloween in New York. For me it was already the tenth Halloween in America. And although I have never been a fan of horror and horror stories, after ten years in the USA, the atmosphere of the annual preparation for October 31 and directly one of the most colorful and largest Halloween celebrations in the world have become a kind of tradition for me and the starting point of the real New York autumn with its variety of colors, invigorating autumn coolness and the beginning of the rainy season.
The atmosphere of Halloween celebrations this year was overshadowed by a sad event - a terrorist act that occurred on that day ... New York itself is a rather unsafe place ever ... But when this happens, the desire to be in a large crowd of people disappears . Therefore, we decided to skip the parade this year and see how New Yorkers celebrate Halloween in other parts of the city.
We left on West 69 Street between Central Park West and Broadway Halloween is celebrated in a more intimate, more homely setting. The presence of tourists is minimal. In general, it must be said that Halloween celebrations in this part of the city are organized annually by the residents of this street themselves, and quite a few families live in this place. If you are traveling with children, then this is a great place to celebrate Halloween with the whole family, even with the smallest kids.
The atmosphere is very friendly for children of all ages. Here you will not see very scary costumes that can scare a child. Or vice versa, costumes or their complete absence, which should not be seen by kids. Everything here is designed for families. And mountains of candy everywhere! To be honest, I have never seen such a large number of candy distributions in all these years in any part of New York. So with buckets-pumpkins for sweets next time right here!
Tallest hotel in New York
- Residence Inn by Marriott New York Manhattan/Central Park - free breakfast, free wifi. Some rooms offer views of the city, Central Park, Times Square, or the Hudson River. Not far from Central Park and the observation deck at Rockefeller Center.
Some families living on 69th Street open the doors to their house decorated in a panic room and put on a little show with the distribution of sweets. Everyone participates in the performances - even the smallest ones. I'm not a big fan when a small monster jumps on you in complete darkness from around the corner (and then I don't mind squealing with fear and dislike;)), but it's worth it! A little dose of adrenaline! Whoo! There is nothing fake here - a real house, a real New York family and no actors!
The Halloween celebration in New York on 69th Street is different from all the celebrations I have seen in previous years. And I can not say that it is something worse or better. There is undoubtedly a one-of-a-kind New York Halloween atmosphere here, but at the same time there is also a spirit of seed cohesion and family comfort, home comfort and warmth. And it has its own charm!
Halloween celebrations in New York take place on a special scale every year. And if you are lucky enough to be in New York on the night of October 31, then by all means visit the costumed parade dedicated to this holiday. This spectacle attracts millions of tourists from around the world. And believe me, it's worth it!
Preparations for Halloween begin long before October 31 Already in September, the owners of private houses decorate the facade of the house, as well as the surrounding area with various skeletons, witches, mice, rats, spiders and an indispensable symbol of the holiday - pumpkins. Also quite an interesting sight.
The holiday itself is celebrated on October 31st. Already in the morning, people in masks, costumes, with painted and made-up faces begin to appear in the city, in the subway. On October 31, children-dogs, cats, spider men, all possible princesses and many other cartoon and movie characters that are popular among American children run on playgrounds on October 31. Children go into stores, pester sellers, random passers-by with the words βTrick or Treat!β, begging for sweets. Get ready, stock up on candy.
The theatrical costumed parade usually starts at 6-7 pm and takes place in one of the Greenwich Village districts of New York. The procession passes along 6th Avenue, on which traffic is blocked. Whole groups, organizations, and anyone who wants to take part in the parade - the main thing is to have a costume and a desire to have a great and interesting time.
Halloween costumes
An unforgettable sight! It is difficult to describe all the feelings and emotions from what is happening around. I still remember the first impressions of what I saw. People not only buy costumes, but also try to come up with something unique and unusual. I wouldn't be surprised if some of them work on costumes for a whole year. And it's worth it! If the costume is original and unique, then everyone wants to take a photo. There are ABSOLUTELY no limits and limits for your imagination, costumes!
Of course, most of the costumes are purchased in stores, the number of which increases several times about a month before the holiday. Suits are sold on almost every corner. Many costumes with a wider range and much lower prices are bought on the Internet.
Halloween is celebrated in the USA and absolutely everyone has fun: both old and small. Fun takes place not only on the street, costume parties in cafes and bars continue until late at night.
Hotels near Empire State Building
- La Quinta Inn & Suites Manhattan - breakfast included. Just an 8-minute subway ride from Times Square and 10 minutes from Central Park.
- The Gregory - A boutique hotel with original architectural elements, located in Manhattan, 100 meters from the Herald Square subway station.
Halloween parade in New York on October 31
For participants: those wishing to walk in the parade must arrive at the starting point (6th Avenue between Spring Street and Canal Street) for the parade to line up no later than 20:30.
For spectators: 6th Avenue to 16th Street from 19.00. There are a lot of people gathering, so in order to take places in the front rows, you need to come in advance (sometimes people start taking places an hour and a half before the start of the parade).
The festive procession traditionally takes place along 6th Avenue. Starting point at the intersection of Spring Street and Canal Street. The procession ends at the intersection with 16th Street.
A suit and a good mood are a must!
Thanks for your support!
Halloween has its roots in the traditions of the ancient Celts and is celebrated on the night of October 31 to November 1. Halloween is very popular in English speaking countries. I happened to attend one such celebration when I lived in Florida.
Americans take this holiday seriously and prepare their Halloween costumes for a long time. The costumes are very diverse, which will be seen from my photo report.
Here I am with the original couple in gothic costumes:
I didn't have a Halloween costume, so I went to the party in my Papa John's pizza delivery uniform. To enhance the effect, I glued together three empty pizza boxes and carried them with me. Americans order pizza at home so often that everyone immediately recognizes the uniform of a pizza delivery man, as if it were a uniform of a policeman or a firefighter.
The effect of my form was such that I did not expect. π Half of the audience thought I was cool and was able to get or custom-make a real pizza delivery costume. π The other half thought that I actually brought someone a pizza and wanted to order it too.
On Halloween, I met a pizza delivery man from another company. I already posted this photo. I have a dark streak from a seat belt on a T-shirt from constant driving:
Halloween was celebrated in a club on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean. Since this is Florida, on October 31 the weather was warmer than in summer in Siberia. π
Halloween is starting, everyone is mentally preparing, and I'm singing "All i do is just rap!" (All I do is rap!) π
The vampire from the first photo continued the photo shoot: π
Elements of the national American flag are very popular and often used in Halloween costumes:
Young man dressed as Batman. He's kind of a little strange - like Batman didn't have such short shorts: π
Original Halloween costume - man-bed π . He's hot, but he endures. There is a slot in the side of the bed so that you can hold a bottle of beer:
Red horns are very popular:
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An interesting combination - the guy is dancing in a factory worker's costume, and the girl is in some kind of nightgown and boots:
What's Halloween without the Elvis Presleys? These are some of the most popular costumes:
As my wife explained to me, this is Dorothy with the dog Toto from The Wizard of Oz. And all the years I thought it was some kind of Little Red Riding Hood with a tame mini-wolf without a hat: π
Robin Hood and a girl dressed as a waitress from the popular Hooters restaurant:
Some even came in what they go at home, including pajama pants:
This is a goof man. On the jamb it says "Legalize" (Legalize). These guys smoke weed and advocate for its legalization:
And this is a support group for a cant man. The tennis player wants to order pizza from me: π
An Indian girl, a superwoman and a guy with a huge round mp3 player and a dollar sign on a gold chain:
The bartender worked in an Indian costume:
I went out for some fresh air. In the parking lot, a monster truck caught my attention and I took a picture with it. In America, they are very popular, this one still has small wheels, there are many times more. Itβs the best thing to ride in Siberia - there are no normal roads here: π
One American came to the party in an old hearse to stand out. Most likely, this is his everyday car:
A girl dressed as a schoolgirl. She was the prettiest of the whole party.
I took a picture with some dude, I donβt even know what movie he took this image from:
Here sits a sad Scot in a national costume and flip flops and thinks about something:
In general, Americans willingly allow themselves to be photographed and do not experience any complexes.
One of my favorite costumes is a realistic stormtrooper from Star Wars. The guy is entirely dressed in a plastic suit, I can imagine how hot he was, but he steadfastly held out for the whole holiday:
Here is another strange man in a tight leather dress, wig and sandals. I did not take a picture with him: π
Suit of a cyclist and either a pimp or a smuggler from the 1970s: π
On October 31, all of America celebrates its traditional Halloween holiday. Along with Christmas, Halloween is one of the most popular holidays in the United States. Halloween traces its history back to an old Celtic holiday called Samhain. This day marked the end of field work and the onset of winter. The word Halloween itself comes from the Irish All Hallows Eve, i.e. the night before All Saints' Day.
According to the Oxford Dictionary of Folklore, Halloween has been strongly associated with death and the supernatural. At the same time, there is no evidence that in pagan times the holiday had any special significance other than agricultural and seasonal.
It is traditionally believed that the perception of Samhain as a dark pagan holiday associated with the dead owes its appearance to Christian monks of the X-XI centuries, who wrote about it about two centuries after the establishment of All Saints' Day and about four hundred years after the adoption of Christianity in Ireland
Dressing in carnival costumes is a relatively recent element of the holiday. For the first time as a full-fledged custom, it was recorded at the beginning of the 20th century and goes back to the American traditions of costume parties. For the first time, the wearing of fancy dress on Halloween was recorded in 1895 in Scotland, when masked children went from house to house and received sweets, cakes, fruit and money.
children collect candy (Trick-or-treat)
Term Trick-or-treat first began to be used in the United States, the first time its use was recorded in 1934, and he began to actively spread only in 1939. Literally it can be translated as joke or treat(common options are trick or treat, sweetness or nastiness etc.), which indicates a comic threat to harm if the owner does not bring treats to the children.
But there is no established translation of the term into Russian and it is usually given in the original, or with a replacement for the phrase trick or treat. In modern times, the phrase has a distinctly jocular connotation and is often used outside of the United States without fear of getting charged with extortion.
Representatives of various Christian denominations have different attitudes towards the celebration of Halloween. Some parishes of the Church of England support the holiday as part of the Christian tradition of All Saints' Day, and some Protestants celebrate Halloween in memory of the Reformation, which is celebrated on the same day.
Father Gabriel Amort, a Vatican exorcist, said that βif American and English children dress up as witches for one night of the year, then this is not a problem. There's nothing wrong if it's just a joke." Many modern Protestant and Catholic clergy see the holiday as a fun event for children, allow it to be held in their parishes, allow children and their parents to dress up, play games and receive free candy.
Most often, believing Christians perceive the holiday as neutral because of its outright joking and pretense. The Roman Catholic Church does not consider the holiday a religious one, but recognizes its connection with Christianity, and therefore allows it to be celebrated in any parochial schools.
Halloween is most celebrated in the United States, where it is most popular. In the 19th century, a huge number of Irish people emigrated to the New World, bringing with them the traditions of Halloween. In the US, Halloween is the holiday with the most candy sales and the second holiday after Christmas in terms of total pre-holiday sales.
It even has its own capitals - Los Angeles and New York, where the brightest and most colorful festivities and carnivals take place on this day. American Halloween attributes: Jack-o-lanterns pumpkin lantern and candy begging - Trik or trak. The ancient rite of Trik or trak has become a favorite game of children, who dress up as monsters and go around the neighbors' houses, scaring adults, and those, in order to appease the "ghosts", pay off them with sweets.
Despite the fact that Americans have been celebrating Halloween for more than two centuries, the holiday is not official. However, this does not prevent the inhabitants of the New World from spending a lot of money every year on pumpkins, decorations, candles and greeting cards.