So Halloween is just around the corner and it got me thinking…I wonder if people from Around the World celebrate Halloween? Of course they do, right? I wasn’t so sure until I stumbled upon an article from www.oprah.com (of all places) and got a major lesson. Halloween is a global holiday. Go figure.
“In Mexico, they celebrate El Dia de Los Muertos or “Day of the Dead”. El Dia de Los Muertos starts the evening of October 31 and ends on November 2, which is All Souls Day.
The tradition of the lively event is to celebrate the belief that your deceased relatives come home. In their honor, relatives prepare altars with flowers, the deceased’s favorite foods and candles to help guide them home.
The Japanese celebrate the obon, which is similar to Mexico’s El Dia de Los Muertos in that they are honoring the spirits of the dead who return home to their families. The obon is a Buddhist tradition and is celebrated from August 13 to August 16. In welcoming back and honoring the spirits, the Japanese place foods, flowers and paper lanterns around their family altars.
A tradition that coincides with the obon celebration is the Japanese folk dance bon odori. The participants of the bon odori dress in kimonos and dance with the beat of Japanese drums (taiko) in the background.
Hailed as the birthplace of Halloween, Ireland’s celebration is more of the Americanized version these days, but it does have a few unique twists. During parties to celebrate the occasion, a game called “snap-apple” is played. An apple is tied to a string and hung from a doorway or a tree branch. A person with her hands tied behind her back then attempts to bite the apple. Also on Halloween, the Irish eat a treat called a barmbrack—a cake that contains items believed to predict the eater’s future. Finding a ring means the person will be wed soon, and a piece of string means that person will have a prosperous year.
Interestingly, it is said that the creation of jack-o’-lanterns” also originated in Ireland. In an ancient story, a man called “Stingy Jack” is not allowed into heaven because of the way he lived. He also isn’t allowed into hell because he played tricks on the devil. It is rumored that the devil gives Jack an ember out of sympathy so that he could roam the world between good and evil. Jack placed the ember into a hollowed out turnip so that he could find his way.
Qingming is a national holiday in China, and it is believed to be unlucky for a business to be open. People celebrate the day by taking trips, singing and dancing. It is also a time when the courting process begins among couples.”
It would be nice to see more of this.