Halloween
Quirky customs for the scariest day of the year
White paint, a few splashes of fake blood, a cheap vampire bite and the dreary Halloween costume is ready. If you really want to get scared, you should try Mexico.
© Diego Grandi / Shutterstock.com
While some are all about trick and treating, others look to the future with hazelnuts on Halloween.
Halloween is a popular festival for young and old (almost) all over the world. With a good portion of horror and goosebumps in our luggage, we take a look at beautiful and bizarre customs with which people celebrate the day.
“Trick or Treat” in the USA
From the USA “Trick or Treat” in the form of “Trick or Treat” spilled across the pond to Germany years ago. In beautiful creepy disguises, children (and sometimes adults too) go from door to door and ask for sweets – otherwise there is a risk of a prank. Many a tree has already been decorated with toilet paper.
The funny tradition has a less cheerful background: It has its origins, among other things, in the Welsh tradition of “Cennad y Meirw” (German: “Ambassador of the dead”). Wealthy members of the community prepared feasts in Samhain; the poor went from door to door to ask for charitable gifts. In every house they were given food that was set aside solely for this purpose.
A custom that the Christians adopted in a modified form. At All Souls Day they went around asking for “soul cakes”. In return, they promised to offer prayers for the relatives of the donors.
Nut oracle in England
In England and Scotland, one looks into the future with a glance into the fire. In the Nut-Crack-Night, several hazelnuts are given the names of the potential future and thrown into the flames. According to the nut oracle, the nut that burns the brightest will be. Of course there are also variations here. Existing couples can put two nuts on the fire and wait to see whether the fruits burn slowly or explode loudly. The interpretation is then a matter of individual interpretation. In 1912 the book “Games for Hallow-e’en” came on the market, in which interested parties can find more games.
“Day of the Dead” in Mexico
The “Día de los Muertos” in Mexico promises horror 2.0. Preparations for the “Day of the Dead” start in mid-October, with celebrations from October 31 to November 2. Then the locals commemorate death and the deceased – with elaborate costumes and lots of color. Since 2003 it has been recognized by UNESCO as a “masterpiece of the oral and intangible heritage of mankind”.
Background: According to old Mexican belief, the dead come to visit from the afterlife once a year at the end of the harvest season and celebrate a happy reunion with the living with music, dance and food. Accordingly, shops and streets are decorated in a colorful way and with great attention to detail. The most important rule: there is no mourning!