Halloween: Fun Facts
Halloween is the scariest night of the year, the evening when the creatures of the underworld come out to play. But how much do you know about the night of the dead? If all you can think of is pranks, pumpkins and free candy here are a few fun Halloween facts to fill your treat bag!
HISTORY OF HALLOWEEN
- The word Halloween is shortened from ‘All Hallows Evening’
- The 1st of November is officially All Saint’s Day and is a celebration of all saints who do not have a special day of their own.
- Halloween originated as an old Gaelic tradition to mark the end of light season (summer) and the start of the dark season (winter). It was thought that on this night the wall to the underworld was thinner allowing spirits to pass through.
- People started wearing Halloween costumes so that the ghosts and ghouls who roamed the countryside would not recognize that they were human
- The traditional Halloween colours are orange for the autumn harvest and black for evil and darkness.
- There are no words in the dictionary that rhyme with the word orange.
- In 2009 the world record for the largest pumpkin was established in Ohio, United States. The oversized squash weighs 1,725 pounds (782kg).
- Jack-o-Lanterns were originally carved from turnips and potatoes (photo).
- Stephen Clarke holds the Guinness World Record for the fastest pumpkin carver with a time of 24.03seconds.
- Samhainophobia is the fear of Halloween.
- The next time there will be a full moon for Halloween is the 31st of October 2020.
GHOUL’S, GHOST’S AND GOBLINS AROUND THE GLOBE
- In Mexico, Halloween is a three-day joyful celebration of the dead called Dia de Los Muertos. Family’s construct alters with food, drinks, flowers and pictures of the dead in the belief that on this day they will return home.
- Japanese people celebrate the dead for three days during the Obon Festival. Fires are lit every night to guide the deceased home. Depending on the region, the festival takes place in July or August.
- The ‘Yue Lan’ or ‘The Hungry Ghost festival’ is Hong Kong’s version of Halloween. The purpose of the festival is to prevent unhappy spirits from seeking revenge on the living.
- On Halloween night in Czechoslovakia a chair is placed around the fireplace for each living and deceased family member.
HALLOWEEN IN HOLLYWOOD
- Rapper Vanilla Ice and film director Peter Jackson were both born on the 31st of October.
- Legendary magician Harry Houdini died on Halloween 1926 from peritonitis.
- Halloween the movie was made in 21 days with a budget of $300,000. It went on to be the highest grossing independent film of its time.
- The film ‘Jaws’ enticed cinematic feeding frenzy making it the highest grossing horror film of all time.
- Saw III is so far the most successful of the Saw film series bringing in $164,874,275 at the worldwide box office.
- The Devil’s Academy of the Scholomance is said to be a school hidden in the Carpathian Mountains of Romania and built by the devil himself. According to author Bram Stoker, the infamous Count Dracula attended the secret academy.
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