History of Halloween
Halloween is a holiday celebrated on the night of October 21. The word Halloween is a shortening of All Hallows’ Evening also known as Hallowe’en or All Hallows’ Eve.
Traditional activities include trick-or-treating, bonfires, costume parties, visiting “haunted houses” and carving jack-o-lanterns. Irish and Scottish immigrants carried versions of the tradition to North America in the nineteenth century. Other western countries embraced the holiday in the late twentieth century including Ireland, the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the United Kingdom as well as of Australia and New Zealand.
Halloween has its origins in the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain (pronounced “sah-win”). The festival of Samhain is a celebration of the end of the harvest season in Gaelic culture. Samhain was a time used by the ancient pagans to take stock of supplies and prepare for winter. The ancient Gaels believed that on October 21, the boundaries between the worlds of the living and the dead overlapped, and the deceased would come back to life and cause havoc such as sickness or damaged crops.
The festival would frequently involve bonfires. It is believed that the fires attracted insects to the area which attracted bats to the area. These are additional attributes of the history of Halloween.
Masks and costumes were worn in an attempt to mimic the evil spirits or appease them.
Trick-or-treating, is an activity for children on or around Halloween in which they proceed from house to house in costumes, asking for treats such as confectionery with the question, “Trick or treat?” The “trick” part of “trick or treat” is a threat to play a trick on the homeowner or his property if no treat is given. Trick-or-treating is one of the main traditions of Halloween. It has become socially expected that if one lives in a neighborhood with children one should purchase treats in preparation for trick-or-treaters.
The history of Halloween has evolved. The activity is popular in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Canada, and due to increased American cultural influence in recent years, imported through exposure to US television and other media, trick-or-treating has started to occur among children in many parts of Europe, and in the Saudi Aramco camps of Dhahran, Akaria compounds and Ras Tanura in Saudi Arabia. The most significant growth and resistance is in the United Kingdom, where the police have threatened to prosecute parents who allow their children to carry out the “trick” element. In continental Europe, where the commerce-driven importation of Halloween is seen with more skepticism, numerous destructive or illegal “tricks” and police warnings have further raised suspicion about this game and Halloween in general.
(Credit : http://www.halloweenhistory.org/)
Here are some of the craziest Halloween parties in Dubai this year.
Bongo’s Bingo Halloween Special
On Saturday, October 21, party bingo event, Bongo’s Bingo are bringing a spooky edition of their popular bingo night out to Dubai. Located at Atlantis The Palm Dubai, it costs Dhs150 per ticket for drinks, games and karaoke. Plus, they’ll be giving away Dhs5,000 for the best costume, so this will be one of the Halloween parties in Dubai where people go all out.
Well, we don’t know what we would be doing yet, on this Halloween. Lets make it fun.
Freak Show Halloween Secret Brunch at Nonya
Halloween party in Dubai, but make it freaky. Head to Nonya at the Taj in JLT for their special edition Secret Circus Brunch. On Saturday October 29 between 1pm and 4.30pm for a Freak Show-themed event where you should dress to impress. It’s Dhs299 for soft drinks, Dhs349 for grape (ladies only), Dhs399 for house drinks, Dhs499 for sparkling. Plus, there’s an after-party package from 4.30pm until 6.30pm that includes four drinks for Dhs150. This is one of the freakiest Halloween parties in Dubai.
Dhs299 (soft drinks), Dhs349 (grape ladies only), Dhs399 (house drinks), Dhs499 (sparkling), Dhs699 (bubbly). Sat Oct 29, 1pm-4.30pm. Taj Hotel Jumeirah Lake Towers, secret-parties.com
Naughty Noodles brunch Halloween Special
This Halloween party in Dubai is themed on spooky fantasy. Taking place on Saturday October 29 from 1pm until 4pm, this costume party is Dhs350 (soft drinks), Dhs450 (house drinks) or Dhs500 (sparkling). If you don’t want the Halloween event to end there, pay Dhs120 for the afterparty and you’ll get an extra three drinks. This is going to be one of the most popular Halloween parties in Dubai.
Dhs350 (soft drinks), Dhs450 (house drinks) or Dhs500 (sparkling). Sat Oct 29, 1pm-4pm. Maiden Shanghai, FIVE Palm Jumeirah (04 455 9989).
