The History of Halloween!

Halloween, or Hallowe’en, is an international holiday celebrated on October 31. Halloween activities include trick-or-treating, ghost tours, bonfires, costume parties, visiting haunted attractions, carving jack-o'-lanterns, reading scary stories and watching horror movies.

Halloween has its origins in the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain, which is a celebration of the end of the harvest season in Gaelic culture, and is sometimes regarded as the "Celtic New Year". Traditionally, the festival was a time used by the ancient pagans to take stock of supplies and slaughter livestock for winter stores. The ancient Gaels believed that on October 31, now known as Halloween, the boundary between the alive and the deceased dissolved, and the dead become dangerous for the living by causing problems such as sickness or damaged crops. The festivals would frequently involve bonfires, into which bones of slaughtered livestock were thrown. Costumes and masks were also worn at the festivals in an attempt to mimic the evil spirits or placate them. Today most people see Halloween as nothing more than a fun opportunity to dress up, with few true sinister intentions.

The carved pumpkin, lit by a candle inside, is one of Halloween's most prominent symbols in America, and is commonly called a jack-o'-lantern. Originating in Europe, these lanterns were first carved from a turnip or rutabaga. Believing that the head was the most powerful part of the body containing the spirit and the knowledge, the Celts used the "head" of the vegetable to frighten off any superstitions. The name jack-o'-lantern can be traced back to the Irish legend of Stingy Jack, a greedy, gambling, hard-drinking old farmer. He tricked the devil into climbing a tree and trapped him by carving a cross into the tree trunk. In revenge, the devil placed a curse on Jack, condemning him to forever wander the earth at night with the only light he had: a candle inside of a hollowed turnip. The carving of pumpkins is associated with Halloween in North America, where pumpkins were readily available and much larger, making them easier to carve than turnips. Many families that celebrate Halloween carve a pumpkin into a frightening or comical face and place it on their home's doorstep after dark. In America the tradition of carving pumpkins is known to have preceded the Great Famine period of Irish immigration. The carved pumpkin was originally associated with harvest time in general in America and did not become specifically associated with Halloween until the mid-to-late 19th century.

Halloween did not become a holiday in the United States until the 19th century, where lingering Puritan tradition restricted the observance of many holidays. American almanacs of the late 18th and early 19th centuries do not include Halloween in their lists of holidays. The main event for children of modern Halloween in the United States and Canada is trick-or-treating, in which children disguise themselves in costumes and go door-to-door in their neighborhoods, ringing each doorbell and yelling "trick or treat!" to solicit a gift of candy.
 

 

Staff Changes in OISS!
 

Hi everyone! As many of you know, Sarah will only be here on Tuesdays, so while our office conducts a search for a new, permanent, Assistant Director we are lucky enough to have Zhanna Saparova come all the way from Kansas City to help us out!

She just arrived Monday, so come by the office anytime and say hi!

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Hello! My name is Zhanna Saparova and I am originally from Turkmenistan (former USSR). I came to the U.S in 1996 as an exchange student for a year with FSA/AFS program. In 1998, I returned to the U.S to study at the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC). I received both my Bachelors and Masters degrees in Political Science from UMKC. While at UMKC, I had an opportunity to work with international students from all over the world and continued to do so for the last four years.

Besides working with international students, I dance Spanish flamenco. I perform with the ensemble “Al-Andaluz” and teach flamenco at Manos Rojas-School of Flamenco Music and Dance. I also dance Argentine Tango and Salsa (that is how I met my husband Beau).

I constantly challenge myself to grow as a person. Just recently, I started taking sewing classes and learning how to play violin. Learning Spanish, French, Arabic languages and Indian traditional dance are just a few other “to do’s” on my list.

I am very excited to serve in the capacity of the Interim Assistant Director in OISS and I look forward to meeting all of you.

Zhanna Saparova
Interim Assistant Director
Office of International Student Services (OISS)
University of St. Thomas