Halloween in the Middle AgesAlthough the holiday’s roots can be traced back to pagan practices

Halloween in the Middle AgesAlthough the holiday’s roots can be traced back to pagan practices, the name ‘Halloween’ is purely a Christian tradition that began in the early Middle Ages.In fact, permitting pagan traditions to survive was a stroke of genius by the early christian Church.Halloween is a descendent of the Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sah-een) or 'summer’s end’ in the original Scots Gaelic.The celebration held on November 1 marked the Celtic New Year when dead souls were believed to walk the earth. 'Soul cakes’ were left out for good spirits and lanterns were customarily lit - the modern version of the Halloween pumpkin - to ward off stray evil spirits that also happened to pierce the thin veil of the underworld during this time of year. So deeply imbedded was the Samhain tradition in the human psyche that it survived for centuries.In the eighth century, the church finally named November 1 All Hallows Day (or the day of the holy ones) in honor of the saints. However, two centuries later, the Church followed the Samhain festival more closely by naming November 2 All Souls Day in honor of the dead.Owing to the medieval custom of beginning observances the night before, the collective holiday began on All Hallows Evening, or Halloween. -- source link

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