When one thinks of Halloween, they usually imagine kids in costumes, bags overflowing with candy and carved pumpkins on glowing porches. But Halloween isn’t just celebrated in the U.S., but rather one that’s observed in many countries. With roots stemming from Ireland, Halloween takes on different forms depending on where you look!
Halloween traces back more than 2,000 years to the Celtic festival of Samhain (Sow-in), which marked the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter. Ancient Celts believed that the line between the living and spirit worlds would blur, allowing spirits to cross over. In order to protect themselves from wandering spirits, the Celtic usually wore disguises, lit bonfires to ward off evil to either confuse or please the spirits. Sharing stories of ancient heroes or gods, helped communities stay unified and pass down cultural traditions. Unbeknownst to them, these traditions planted the seeds for modern Halloween traditions like carving pumpkins / jack-o-lanterns. Irish immigrants brought these traditions to other countries as well, which led to the evolution of a celebration we are all familiar with.
Japan, having no cultural heritage of Halloween, incorporated elements of American Halloween with their own twist. The annual Kawasaki Halloween Parade, which began in 1997, takes place near Tokyo and attracts thousands of participants who dress up in elaborate costumes ranging from witches to anime characters. Since then, the Japanese have largely ignored American Halloween traditions such as trick-or-treating. Instead, they have gone all out with high-quality, creative costumes as well as participate in flash mobs, street parties and manic zombie runs. Another large-scale Halloween celebration started taking place at Tokyo Disneyland from the year 2000, introducing a limited-time Halloween parade.
In the Philippines, October 31 – November 2 is marked by a celebration known as Pangangaluluwa. Pangangaluluwa is best described as a hybrid of All Souls Day, along with its own pre-colonization twists. Groups of kids as well as members of churches go from house-to-house at night, dressed as wandering souls. Sounds an awful lot like your typical Halloween tradition right? But instead of asking for candy, these wandering souls sing hymns and prayers in exchange for food or small offerings in honor of those who passed. Neighborhoods turn into places of remembrance, where the living honor their loved ones and dead ancestors, reflecting the Filipino belief that the dead continue to watch and guide the living. Trick-or-treating is still popular in urban areas, but Pangangaluluwa remains strong in rural regions.
Each country’s version of Halloween shares creativity, and remembrance. Whether it’s Japan’s Kawasaki Halloween Parade, to the Philippines’ hymns for the departed, these celebrations show how people around the world tackle the mysteries regarding life and death. The global reach that Halloween has reminds us that beneath flashy costumes and collecting mountains of candy, Halloween is all about connection.
