Halloween is just around the corner and we are all very excited planning our costumes and buying lots of sweeties for the guisers. But, it did get us thinking, how did Halloween come to be? And what is Scotland's part in it? Well today we answer those questions as we take a look at Scottish Halloween Traditions and the Samhain festival.
The story of Halloween begins over 2000 years ago with the Celtic pagans and their celebration of Samhain (also spelled Samhuinn), we will get into that story a little later on. The Celtic pagans had always celebrated Samhain on 31st October, but it wasn't until the 8th Century that the Catholic Church created All Saints Day on November 1st. This was a Church holiday and was used to celebrate all the Saints who did not have a day of their own. Allhallowmas was the name given to the mass that was carried out on November 1st, and so October 31st was known as All Hallows Eve, which eventually evolved into Hallowe'en.
Celtic Samhain
Samhain was a gaelic festival that marked the transition of summer into winter and was traditionally held on 31st October, the last day of the harvest. Samhain was celebrated in Scotland, Ireland and on the Isle of Man. The other Celtic lands of Wales, Cornwall and Brittany also had their own versions of the festival as well.
Samhain was usually held on the date that the cattle were brought down from their fields and slaughtered for the winter. Bonfires were lit in every town as they were thought to be cleansing and warded off any evil spirits. People believed that it was easier to cross between the boundary into the 'Otherworld' on this day, and therefore spirits (also known as Aos Sí) could cross into our world. People would leave out food and drink as offerings to the spirits, in the belief that doing this would ensure the people and their livestock would live through the winter. This is also where the tradition of guising originated.
Samhuinn Fire Festival
The traditions of Samhain slowly died out through the centuries, but nearing the end of 20th Century a small organisation in Edinburgh decided to celebrate the festival, but in a more modern way. This new version of the festival was first held in 1995, on Halloween night, and has been held every year since, always in a different location in Edinburgh. This year the festival will be held on top of Calton Hill. The Samhuinn Fire Festival showcases the transition from Summer into Winter through a performance of dance and music, but it also focuses on how aspects of life can change during the different seasons.
The organisation describes the festival as so:
The nights are getting longer and the veil draws thin between our world and the next. As we turn to face the dark wintry months together, hundreds of otherworldly creatures will awaken all over Calton Hill and gather for an epic struggle between Winter and Summer. Witness the dramatic battle between the Winter King and the Summer King up close, before the mysterious Cailleach emerges to decide each of their fates.
The event is suitable for anyone of any age and there are still tickets available for this amazing event on their website.
Hallowe'en in Scotland
Since the Samhain Festival first began in Scotland, Halloween has always been a holiday that the Scots celebrate. The biggest Scottish Halloween tradition is guising. Guising, or Mumming as it was once called, began during the Samhain festival and parents would dress their children up in scary disguises so as to protect them from the evil spirits and the Aos Sí. They would then go door to door in their costume and people would give them offerings of food, again to ward off the evil spirits.
Evolving from the Bonfires used to ward off spirits, turnips were then also used with the same idea in mind. The inside of the turnip would be scooped out and a scary face would be carved into the side and a candle would be put inside. People would carry these around after dark on October 31st to protect themselves.
There were many traditions carried out on Hallowe'en in Scotland, including apple dookin' and treacle scones. Robert Burns also described two other traditions in his poem 'Halloween'. One of these traditions was the burning of nuts, an engaged couple would each throw a nut on an open fire, if the nuts burned quietly they would have a happy marriage and if the nuts spat and hissed while they burned this was thought of as a bad omen for the marriage. The other tradition described was kale pulling, this was when a woman would pull kale stalks out of the ground, this had to be carried out after dark on Halloween and she had to have her eyes shut. The stalks length and straightness would determine a future partners height and figure, while the soil on the stalk indicated their wealth.
Almost all of these traditions are now either not carried out at all or are very different, due to the impact of American culture on the holiday. Children tend to dress up as their favourite character, rather than something scary, they carry pumpkins instead of turnips and it is referred to as Trick or Treating instead of guising.
If you attend the Samhuinn Fire Festival or even if you incorporate tartan into your Hallowe'en costumes, we would love to hear from you! Send us over your pictures by email or message us on Facebook or tag us on Instagram.
