万圣节作文英语简单（精彩20篇）

when we think of halloween, we think of "trick or treat", pumpkins, jack o lanterns, vampires and haunted houses.

but do you know the origin of halloween? why does it fall on 31 october? what kind of festival is it? why is it so creepy?

halloween dates back to a celtic festival called samhain. november 1 is the new year of the celts, who lived in europe more than a thousand years ago. this is the day which marked the end of summer and harvest.

the celts believed that on the night of october 31, ghosts of the dead would return to earth. the celts celebrated samhain by dressing up in costumes with animal heads and having bonfires.

many celts settled in britain and ireland, where the festival became popular. those who moved to america took the tradition with them.

nowadays, most people celebrate halloween but only for fun. they are not worried about ghosts.

kids in america will dress up as devils or angels and will go from house to house calling "trick or treat", playing mischievous tricks and getting sweets.

americans spend more money on halloween than christmas! in xx, more than hk$45 billion was spent on halloween. and hk$15 billion of that was spent on candy alone!!!

kids in britain also dress up at halloween. they visit houses, sing songs or tell a joke to get sweets. many go to halloween parties and play games like "ducking for apples". you must pick up an apple in water but you can only use your mouth. try it!

1. 眼见为实.

seeing is believing.

2. 人生短暂，学艺无穷。

Art is long, life is short.

3. 三思而后行.

Look before you leap.

4. 有其父，必有其子。

Like father,like son.

5. 再晚也不算迟。

Better late than never.

6. 条条大路通罗马。

All roads lead to Rome.

7. 并非闪光的都是金子。

All that glitters is not gold.

8. 种瓜得瓜，种豆得豆。

As you sow,so shall you reap.

9. 物以类聚。

Birds of a feather flock together.

10. 不劳无获。

No pain,no gain.

11. 入乡随俗，

When in Rome,do as the Romans do.

12. 那恰是我所喜欢的。

Its my cup of tea.

13. 一日一苹果，医生远离我。

An apple a day keeps the doctor away.

14. 患难见真情。

A friend in need is a friend indeed.

15. 少壮不努力，老大徒伤悲。

A young idler; an old beggar.

16. 熟能生巧。

Practice makes perfect.

17. 一分耕耘，一分收获。

No sweet without sweat.

18. 时间就是金钱。

Time is money.

19. 欲速则不达。

Haste makes waste.

20. 说起来容易做起来难。

Easier said than done.

21. 人各有所好。

Every man has his taste.

22. 物极必反。

Extremes meet.

23. 活到老学到老。

Live and learn.

24. 事出必有因。

Nothing comes of nothing.

25. 光荣之路常坎坷。

The path to glory is always rugged.

26. 失败是成功之母。

Failure is the mother of success.

27. 江山易改，本性难移。

A leopard can not change his spots.

28. 好心有好报。

Good mind,good find.

29. 得饶人处且饶人。

Forgive others whenever you can.

30. 爱乌及乌。

Love me ,love my dog.

Halloween is a holiday celebrated on October 31. By tradition， Halloween begins after sunset. Long ago， people believed that witches gathered together and ghosts roamed the world on Halloween. Today， most people no longer believe in ghosts and witches. But these supernatural beings are still a part of Halloween.

万圣节是一个节日庆祝十月三十一日。按照传统，万圣节日落之后开始。很久以前，人们相信巫婆聚集和鬼魂在万圣节前夜周游世界。今天，大多数人不再相信鬼魂和巫婆。但这些超自然力量仍然是万圣节的一部分。

The colors black and orange are also a part of Halloween. Black is a symbol for night and orange is the color of pumpkins. A jack-o-lantern is a hollowed-out pumpkin with a face carved on one side. Candles are usually placed inside， giving the face a spooky glow.

黑色和橙色的颜色也是万圣节的一部分。黑色是夜晚的标志和橙色是南瓜的颜色。一个南瓜灯笼是挖空的南瓜雕刻一脸的一侧。蜡烛通常放在里面，使面部怪异的光芒。

An old woman had a cat. The cat was very old; she could not run quickly, and she could not bite, because she was so old. One day the old cat saw a mouse; she jumped and caught the mouse. But she could not bite it; so the mouse got out of her mouth and ran away, because the cat could not bite it.

Then the old woman became very angry because the cat had not killed the mouse. She began to hit the cat. The cat said, "Do not hit your old servant. I have worked for you for many years, and I would work for you still, but I am too old. Do not be unkind to the old, but remember what good work the old did when they were young."

[简单的英语作文哲理

when the harvest moon rises on october 31, little hobgoblins, spooky ghosts, ghoulish witches and gremlins — their young faces hidden behind grotesque masks — will go forth to frighten friends and neighbors and to threaten them with trick or treat .

halloween (aii hallows eve) as the name implies, is a nighttime holiday, the one night in the year when the child‘s world turns to pure fantasy. children take all the lead parts while parents and other adults play the supporting roles. encouraged by teachers and merchants and the remembrance of the good time they had the earlier year, children (from 3 to 11 years old) start preparing their costumes and halloween decorations weeks ahead. although parents help the children very much prepare the costumes, on halloween they must pretend to be frightened by the masked visions that suddenly appear. there will be little witches in long black dresses with tall-pointed hats and magic broomsticks to carry them over the rooftops — to a neighbor‘s house in the next block. ghosts in sheets run with tell-tale sneakers and half socks showing; and terrible pirates with skull and cross-bones painted on their three-cornered hats. some carry jack-o‘-lanterns but all carry bags or unicef boxes marked trick or treat, which fill up very fast.

teenagers have their fun playing tricks that sometimes get rather rough. they throw eggs or tomatoes at passing motorists , mark up windows and windshields with hard-to-erase candle wax, roll pumpkins down long hills, carry away porch furniture and garbage can covers, engrave graffiti on fences, or do whatever bad things occur to them as they go around looking for ways to let off steam. police officers are alert but they only arrest those caught doing real damage. in most communities there are school dances or block parties to help redirect the energies of the youthful pranksters. business firms offer prizes for the best costumes and recreation directors help plan the party, but the young people themselves take charge of the entertainment and the decorations — a necessary part of halloween. dried corn stalks, pumpkin faces, and piles of apples create the harvest atmosphere; and cutouts of witches on their brooms, goblins, ghosts and black cats symbolize the witchcraft aspect of the holiday. the freshments — apple cider, popcorn and pumpkin pie, and witches made of spicy ginger cookies — also carry out both themes.

there is an occasional adult halloween dance in a bright orange and black setting, with paper-made black cats, witches and grinning skeletons floating above the dance floor. but halloween has become mainly a young people‘s holiday — and the younger the child the more exciting he finds it.

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《S HALLOWEEN》

Jack Prelutsky

Its Halloween! Its Halloween!

The moon is full and bright

And we shall see what cant be seen

On any other night.

Skeletons and ghosts and ghouls,

Grinning goblins fighting duels,

Werewolves rising from their tombs,

Witches on their magic brooms.

In masks and gowns

we haunt the street

And knock on doors

for trick or treat.

Tonight we are

the king and queen,

For oh tonight

its Halloween!

ghosts and goblins are more than halloween decorations or costumes for many americans who confessed they believe in the supernatural and returning from the grave。

thirty—seven percent of 2，100 adults questioned in a zogby interactive poll said they think ghosts are real， and 23 percent believe they have been visited by a deceased relative or friend。

even the 22 percent who said they have not had any ghostly experiences themselves know someone who has。

"more than a third of americans have this belief that ghosts do exist，" said a spokesman for zogby， adding that the findings were surprising。

nearly half of those questioned said if they could be a ghost， they would choose to come back as themselves。

but belief in the supernatural is not required to enjoy halloween。 eighty—seven percent of parents said their children would be dressing up for the holiday and 71 percent would be trick—or—treating。

but 41 percent of adults said they were not celebrating halloween， including 12 percent who cited religious reasons。

serial killers were deemed to be the scariest costumes， followed by the walking dead and zombies。

As the Halloween is coming soon, there are many stores selling the relative products and many kids are attracted deeply. This festival originated in western country and now the world is celebrating it. Every year, there will be a big parade and all kinds of horrible images appear. The ghosts, the walking deads and vampires are favored by the young people, they like to dress like these images and join the parade. For the kids, they like to hang out together and ask for candy from door to door. Treat or trick is their slogan, they can always get the candy. Some naughty guys even throw eggs and this habit annoys many people, some stores will refuse to sell eggs to kids on this day, just in case of the accident. In all, the young people are enjoying great party in Halloween.

万圣节快到了,有许多商店出售相关产品,许多孩子被深深地吸引了。这个节日起源于西方国家,现在世界都在庆祝。每年会有一个游行，各种可怕的形象出现在其中。鬼,行尸走肉和吸血鬼受到年轻人的喜爱,他们喜欢穿成这样，并加入游行队伍。对孩子们来说,他们喜欢一起出去玩,挨家挨户索要糖果。不给糖就捣蛋是他们的口号,他们总是可以得到糖果。一些淘气的孩子甚至扔鸡蛋，这个习惯惹恼了很多人,有些商店会在这一天拒绝把鸡蛋卖给孩子们,以防事故发生。总之,年轻人享受万圣节的派对。

Days and days past, I’m not a child any longer. But I still remember that Halloween, 31st October 2001. That was Saturday. I went to study English with an American girl named Debby as usual. We had 5 students altogether. Before that week, Debby had already told us to learn something about Halloween ourselves. On that day, Debby spent an hour describing this American festival for us, such as “trick or cheat”, pumpkin and even, she took a pumpkin with her. First she took out a finished pumpkin lantern. That was really beautiful and ugly, we liked it so much. Then she taught us how to make a pumpkin lantern by ourselves. We each held a small knife, learnt to cut and draw something on that pumpkin. Finally, we made it and put a short candle into it. That was truly happy. And the most surprising thing was that the lantern was a present for that day’s super student. Who will that be? My god! That was me! Do you know how excited I was then? I held it, jumping and shouting. That was the most unforgettable day to me. And I will not forget it, never!

October is a carnival season, on October 4, this day, we went to the hangzhou paradiseHalloween, there absolutely.

Standing at the gate of the Halloween carnival area, there is a huge and horrible skeleton, ten meters high, is spectacular. Carnival in many entertainment facilities, among them, the most exciting belongs to the "gouhun the train".

"Gouhun train" is a 880 meters of train track, is very magnificent. Before my mother and I came to the team, the team has seven columns, more than three hundred individuals, we stood in line for an hour and a half, its our turn at last. We are on the car, fasten the safety belt, ready to go. The train started moving slowly climbed the 40 m high slope. In the above, I see the carnival area many entertainment facilities, and the green trees. "Boom -" the train rushing down from the "slope", I feel like Im floating up. Then, train and to turn over two fall at fast speed, the screams. After 5 minutes, the train into the station, I dizzy the car underground, the heart also jumped on the "beat", went to play with other projects. Next, we also play speed, turntable, hell ghost ship such as fun and exciting project.

Carnival zone often have "devil parade", those who wear very terrorist. Sometimes, a zombie walk from behind, voldemort standing on high become warped wobbled, and even a alien walked leisurely manner with long legs... Its diversity. I still and they trick-or-treaters!

Happy day to end soon, the beautiful sunset quietly.

十月是一个狂欢的季节，在十月四日这一天，我们去了杭州乐园万圣节，那里绝对狂欢。

站在万圣节狂欢区门口，有一个巨大的、恐怖的骷髅，足有10米高，可壮观了。狂欢区里的娱乐设施很多，其中，最刺激的就属“勾魂列车”了。

“勾魂列车”有一条长达880米的列车轨道，十分雄壮。我和妈妈来到队伍前，那队伍有7列，三百多个人，我们排了一个半小时的队，终于轮到我们了。我们上了车，系了安全带，准备出发。列车开动了，缓缓地爬上了40米高的“坡”。在上面，我看到狂欢区的许多娱乐设施，和那绿油油的树木。“轰——”列车从“坡”上冲下来，我感觉自己飘起来了。接着，列车又以飞快的速度翻了两个跟头，尖叫声此起彼伏。5分钟后，列车进了站，我晕头转向地下了车，心还在“怦怦”地跳，就去玩别的项目了。接下来，我们还玩了生死时速、地狱转盘、幽灵船等好玩又刺激的项目。

狂欢区里经常有“魔鬼大巡游”，那些人都穿得很恐怖。有时，一个僵尸从背后走过，魔王踩着高翘摇摇晃晃，甚至长着长腿的外星人慢悠悠地走来走去……真是千姿百态。我还和他们合了影呢!

快乐的一天很快结束了，美丽的夕阳悄悄。

Good morning, interviewers! It is really my honor to have this opportunity for an interview. I hope I can make a good performance today. Im confident that I can succeed.

Now I will introduce myself briefly. I am 26 years old, born in Shandong province. I graduated from Qingdao University. My major is electronics. And I got my bachelor degree after my graduation in the year of 2003. I spent most of my time on study, and I’ve passed

CET-6 during my university. And I’ve acquired basic knowledge of my major. It is my long cherished dream to be an engineer and I am eager to get an opportunity to fully play my ability.

In July 2003, I began working for a small private company as a technical support engineer in Qingdao city. Because there was no more chance for me to give full play to my talent, so I decided to change my job. And in August 2004, I left for Beijing and worked for a foreign enterprise as an automation software test engineer. Because I want to change my working environment, Id like to find a job which is more challenging. Moreover，Motorola is a global company, so I feel I can gain a lot from working in this kind of company. That is the reason why I come here to compete for this position. I think Im a good team player and a person of great honesty to others. Also，I am able to work under great pressure. I am confident that I am qualified for the post of engineer in your company.

That’s all. Thank you for giving me the chance.

My name is.I am eleven years old this year.I am tall and thin with two big eyes.I like reading,collecting stamps,playing the piano,playing table tennis,traveling and so on.I also like eating meat because it is delicious.I am interested in maths and English.I study hard every day so I am good at maths and English.I also like playing basketball on weekends with my friends.My favorite star is Yao Ming.I admire him very much.

Halloween always falls on 31 October.Its a holiday for children.On that day,children always wear fancy clothes and masks.And then,they go from house to house to say "Trick or Treat",so that people will treat them with candies.If they dont receive any candies,theyll play a trick on people.But sometimes if the people are going out,when the children come,theyll put the candies in a carved pumpkin lanterns.Children will take the candies themselves.All of the children enjoy this holiday very much.

Halloween is for the "All Hallows Evening".

However,due to various reasons, Halloween has become the years most popular and one of the most popular festivals,and many players with great enthusiasm to celebrate this holiday.

Halloween is a holiday celebrated on October 31. By tradition, Halloween begins after sunset. Long ago, people believed that witches gathered together and ghosts roamed the world on Halloween. Today, most people no longer believe in ghosts and witches. But these supernatural beings are still a part of Halloween.

The colors black and orange are also a part of Halloween. Black is a symbol for night and orange is the color of pumpkins. A jack-o-lantern is a hollowed-out pumpkin with a face carved on one side. Candles are usually placed inside, giving the face a spooky glow.

万圣节又叫诸圣节，在每年的10月31日，是西方的传统节日。以下是关于万圣节的英语素材，供大家参考。

11月1日万圣节英文：Hallowmas，南瓜是万圣节的代表。

10月31日是万圣夜英文：Halloween，华语地区常将万圣夜称为万圣节。

Halloween is a holiday celebrated on October 31. By tradition, Halloween begins after sunset. Long ago, people believed that witches gathered together and ghosts roamed the world on Halloween. Today, most people no longer believe in ghosts and witches. But these supernatural beings are still a part of Halloween.

万圣节前夜是在10月31日庆祝的一个节日，根据传统，万圣节前夜的庆祝活动从太阳落山开始。在很久以前，人们相信在万圣节前夜女巫会聚集在一起，鬼魂在四处游荡。现在，大多数人们不再相信有鬼魂和女巫的存在了，但是他们仍然把这些作为万圣节前夜的一部分。

The colors black and orange are also a part of Halloween. Black is a symbol for night and orange is the color of pumpkins. A jack-o’-lantern is a hollowed-out pumpkin with a face carved on one side. Candles are usually placed inside, giving the face a spooky glow.

黑色和橙色仍然是万圣节前夜的一部分，黑色是夜晚的象征，而橙色代表着南瓜。南瓜灯是用雕刻成脸型，中间挖空，再插上蜡烛的南瓜做成的，带来一个毛骨悚然的灼热面孔。

Dressing up in costumes is one of the most popular Halloween customs, especially among children. According to tradition, people would dress up in costumes (wear special clothing, masks or disguises) to frighten the spirits away.

盛装是最受欢迎的万圣节风俗之一，尤其是受孩子们的欢迎。按照传统习俗，人们会盛装(穿戴一些特殊的服饰，面具或者装饰)来吓跑鬼魂。

Popular Halloween costumes include vampires (creatures that drink blood), ghosts (spirits of the dead) and werewolves (people that turn into wolves when the moon is full).

流行的万圣节服装包括vampires(吸血鬼)，ghosts(死者的灵魂)和werewolves(每当月圆时就变成狼形的人)。

Trick or Treating is a modern Halloween custom where children go from house to house dressed in costume, asking for treats like candy or toys. If they dont get any treats, they might play a trick (mischief or prank) on the owners of the house.

欺骗或攻击是现代万圣节的风俗。孩子们穿着特殊的衣服走街串巷，讨取糖果和玩具之类的赏赐。如果他们得不到任何的赏赐，就可能会对屋主大搞恶作剧或者胡闹了。

The tradition of the Jack o Lantern comes from a folktale about a man named Jack who tricked the devil and had to wander the Earth with a lantern. The Jack o Lantern is made by placing a candle inside a hollowed-out pumpkin, which is carved to look like a face.

南瓜灯的传统来自于一个民间传说。一个名叫Jack的人戏弄了恶魔，之后就不得不提着一盏灯在地球上流浪。南瓜灯是用雕刻成脸型，中间挖空，再插上蜡烛的南瓜做成的。

There are many other superstitions associated with Halloween. A superstition is an irrational idea, like believing that the number 13 is unlucky!

和万圣节有关的迷信还有很多。迷信是一种不合常理的想法，比如认为13是不吉利的数字!

Halloween is also associated with supernatural creatures like ghosts and vampires. These creatures are not part of the natural world. They dont really exist... or do they?

万圣节还和一些诸如鬼魂和吸血鬼之类的超自然的生物有关。这些生物不是自然界的一部分。他们实际上是不存在的......或许他们其实真的存在?

Witches are popular Halloween characters that are thought to have magical powers. They usually wear pointed hats and fly around on broomsticks.

女巫是万圣节很受欢迎的人物，人们认为她们具有强大的魔力。他们通常戴着尖顶的帽子，骑在扫把上飞来飞去。

Bad omens are also part of Halloween celebrations. A bad omen is something that is believed to bring bad luck, like black cats, spiders or bats.

恶兆也是万圣节庆祝活动的一部分。人们相信恶兆会带给坏运气，黑猫、蜘蛛或者蝙蝠都算是恶兆。

Halloween

Halloween always falls on 31 October. It’s a holiday for children. On that day, children always wear fancy clothes and masks. And then, they go from house to house to say “Trick or Treat”, so that people will treat them with candies. If they don’t receive any candies, they’ll play a trick on people. But sometimes if the people are going out, when the children come, they’ll put the candies in a carved pumpkin lanterns. Children will take the candies themselves. All of the children enjoy this holiday very much.

万圣节总是在10月31日。这是一个属于孩子们的节日。在那天，孩子们总是穿奇装异服而且带上面具。然后，他们会挨家挨户地说“不招待就使坏”，所以人们都会用糖果招待他们。如果他们不接受糖果，他们就会对人们恶作剧。但有时，如果人们外出了，而孩子们来了，他们会把糖果放在雕刻好的南瓜灯笼里。孩子们会自己拿糖果。所有的孩子都很享受这个节日。

This evening we went to Happy Valley, the day it was Halloween.

There is a sea of people, almost everyone with masks, some long teeth, some hair all white, and the lotus flower.

First we went to a small house, each go after the cloth are written on the front of the project. I saw a mummy hopping in front of a horror, and I was scared to close my eyes. Im scared, but I still laugh at those ghosts that look ugly. There is a piece of cloth without writing, we go in, a hand to come over, a look at a person, still walk to the head.

We are going to see a man holding the painted face, with a knife, I see that it is fake. I made a face at him, with a hand on his hand. I saw a few steps back as soon as I saw it.

We went to a butcher branch of a street, but now Im not nervous, also jokingly asked: "boss, how much is it?"......

We saw a doctor and I approached. She had four blood on her face, and she was scary all over with a doll in her hand.

Today I am very high heart, but also improve my courage, one day too fast!

how are you, i call xx.this year is 22 years old.graduate from xxxx college.the profession is a calculator multimedia.i am one is bright, optimism, there is the person of responsibility.a fondness for plays basketball, computer, listen to music, etc..thankful your company gives me this the opportunity of the personal interview!

中文版：你好，我叫xx。今年22岁。毕业于xxxx学院。专业是计算机多媒体。我是一个开朗，乐观，有责任心的人。爱好打篮球，电脑，听音乐，等。感谢贵公司给我这次面试的机会!

In China, Children’s Day is celebrated on June 1 and is formally known as “the June 1 International Children’s Day”. Schools usually hold activities such as camping trips or free movies on Children’s Day to allow students to have fun, and children might also receive small gifts from the government. Entrance ceremonies of the Young Pioneers of China are usually held on June 1 as well. InChina, it is a big day for children. On June 1, except join some activities, their parents also take children to parks or fairground to have fun, and then have a big dinner. In general, McDonald’s and KFC are the most popular.

在中国，儿童节是在六月一日这天庆祝，正式的说法是六一国际儿童节。学校会举行很多活动，比如露营或观看电影，允许孩子尽情欢乐，孩子们也会拿到很多小礼物。中国少先队员宣誓仪式也通常在这天举行。六一儿童节在中国是为儿童庆祝的一天。这一天，他们除了会参加很多活动外，爸爸妈妈还会带着孩子去公园，游乐场玩，他们还会大吃一顿，通常麦当劳和肯德基是最受欢迎的。

万圣节(All Saints Day, All Hallows Day或Hallowmas) 是每年11月1日的欧美大节日。以下是小编带来的关于万圣节的英语资料大全，希望对你有帮助。

Halloween (or Halloween) is an annual holiday observed on October 31, which commonly includes activities such as trick-or-treating, attending costume parties, carving jack-o-lanterns, bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted attractions, playing pranks, telling scary stories, and watching horror films arevery happy.

Halloween (or Halloween) is an annual holiday observed on October 31, which commonly includes activities such as trick-or-treating, attending costume parties, carving jack-o-lanterns, bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted attractions, playing pranks, telling scary stories, and watching horror films.

History

Historian Nicholas Rogers, exploring the origins of Halloween, notes that while "some folklorists have detected its origins in the Roman feast of Pomona, the goddess of fruits and seeds, or in the festival of the dead called Parentalia, it is more typically linked to the Celtic festival of Samhain, whose original spelling was Samuin (pronounced sow-an or sow-in)".The name is derived from Old Irish and means roughly "summers end".Snap-Apple Night (1832) by Daniel Maclise.Depicts apple bobbing and divination games at a Halloween party in Blarney, Ireland.The name Halloween and many of its present-day traditions derive from the Old English era.

The word Halloween is first attested in the 16th century and represents a Scottish variant of the fuller All-Hallows-Even ("evening"), that is, the night before All Hallows Day.[4] Although the phrase All Hallows is found in Old English (ealra hālgena mæssedæg, mass-day of all saints), All-Hallows-Even is itself not attested until 1556.

11月1日 -- 万圣节 All Saints Day

11月2日 -- 墨西哥的鬼节 Day of Death

万圣节(All Saints Day, All Hallows Day或Hallowmas) 是每年11月1日的欧美大节日。

Halloween 是 All Hallows Eve 的缩写，万圣节前夜的意思，指10月31日的晚上。

For thousands of years people have been celebrating different holidays and festivals at the end of October. The Celts celebrated it as Samhain (pronounced “sow-in”, with “sow” rhyming with cow)。 The Irish English dictionary published by the Irish Texts Society defines the word as follows:

“Samhain, All Hallowtide, the feast of the dead in Pagan and Christian times, signalizing the close of harvest and the initiation of the winter season, lasting till May, during which troops (esp. the Fiann) were quartered. Faeries were imagined as particularly active at this season. From it the half year is reckoned. also called Feile Moingfinne (Snow Goddess)。(1) The Scottish Gaelis Dictionary defines it as ”Hallowtide. The Feast of All Soula. Sam + Fuin = end of summer.“(2) Contrary to the information published by many organizations, there is no archaeological or literary evidence to indicate that Samhain was a deity. The Celtic Gods of the dead were Gwynn ap Nudd for the British, and Arawn for the Welsh. The Irish did not have a ”lord of death“ as such.

The Celts believed that every year on the last day of October, the souls of the dead visited the earth.www.

When the Romans conquered the Celts in the first century A.D., they added parts of their festivals, Feralia and Pomona to the tradition. Feralia was a festival to honor the dead and Pomona was a harvest festival named after the goddess of fruit (apples) and trees.

Around the eigth century, the Christian church made November 1 All Saints Day to honor all of the saints that didnt have a special day of their own. Over the years these festivals combined, the mass held on All Saints Day was called Allhallowmas (the mass of all Hallows - saintly people)。 The night before was known as All Hallows Eve. Eventually this name became Halloween.

In the 1800s, as a lot of people emigrated to the U.S., the holidays and traditions of different cultures merged. Halloween was not always a happy time. October 31, or the night before took on other names. Some called it Devils or Hell night, to others it was mischief night. Here in Vermont, the night before is called cabbage night. To some people this became a time to play tricks on others. Some of these tricks were not fun at all. Luckily, community groups and individuals took action and started to change Halloween into a family event. Dressing up in costumes and going ”trick or treating“, costume parades, community parties and Fall festivals are some of the ways that Halloween is celebrated today.

Other countries have different Fall festivals to honor the deceased.

The Festival of the Dead is one of the most important happenings in both Palermo and the rest of Sicily. The second of November is a festival day for the children of Palermo as, according to tradition,they were made to believe that their dead relatives would return the night before and leave them traditional sweets and cakes on the table (Martorana fruit, which is almond paste made into the shape of different fruit)。 They would also receive puppets of boiled sugar and toys. Its one way of keeping the memory of their dead relatives and loved ones alive.

一年中最”闹鬼“的这天夜里，各种妖魔鬼怪、 海盗、 外星来客和巫婆们纷纷出动。在基督纪元以前，凯尔特人在夏未举行仪式感激上苍和太阳的恩惠。

当时的占卜者点燃并施巫术以驱赶据说在四周游荡的妖魔怪。后来，罗马人用果仁和苹果来庆祝的丰收节与凯尔特人的10月31日溶合了。

在中世纪，人们穿上动物造型的服饰、 戴上可怕的面具是想在万圣节前夜驱赶黑夜中的鬼怪。尽管後来基督教代替了凯尔特和罗马的宗教活动，早期的习俗还是保留下来了。现在，孩子们带着开玩笑的心理穿戴上各种服饰和面具参加万圣节舞会，这些舞会四周的墙上往往悬挂着用纸糊的巫婆、 黑猫、 鬼怪和尸骨，窗前和门口则吊着龇牙裂嘴或是面目可憎的南瓜灯笼。孩子们还常常试图咬住悬挂着的苹果。

美国和加拿大的孩子们在这天穿戴上古怪的服饰去按邻居家的门铃，并按传统发出”是款待我还是要我耍花招“的威胁。邻居们不管是否被吓着，总是准备了一些糖果、 苹果等点心，孩子们则一一收入自己的袋内。

万圣节其实不是基督教的节日。2500年前，爱尔兰的凯尔特人(Celts)以10月31日为一年的最後一日，11月1日是新一年的开始，也象徵冬天的来临。

凯尔特人相信死亡之神Samhain在10月31日的晚上会和鬼魂一起重返人间，寻找替身。因此他们燃点火炬，焚烧动物以作为死亡之神的献礼。还会用动物的头或皮毛做成的服饰打扮自己，发出古怪的声音，使死亡之神认不出自己，避过灾难。这就是今天万圣节化妆舞会的由来。过了当晚，鬼魂回到阴间，一切回复平静。

基督教兴起，教徒沿袭万圣节传统，万圣节的意义慢慢改为纪念为献身於神而死亡的人(holies)。

附带一提，11月2日是墨西哥的鬼节(Los Dias de los Muertos, Day of the Dead)。当天家家户户都烘烤动物造型的面包和煮鸡肉等食物，并在供桌上面放置玩具，以期待早逝的孩童们回到家中玩耍。也可以陈列鲜花、 水果、 照片和彩绘的骷髅头，接待仙逝长辈。

墨西哥人认为，鬼魂和人一样需要及时行乐，所以鬼节宛若一场嘉年华会，人们带着面具到处游走，吃骷髅形状的糖，面包上还装饰有鬼的形像。黄昏时刻，全家人一起到墓园清理墓地，妇女们或跪或坐整夜祈祷，男人们交谈或唱歌，在子夜中烛光忽闪忽灭充满了整个墓园，游唱歌者为已逝亡者的灵魂高歌吟唱。

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it was many octobers ago when it happened. dark magic never gives any warnings, but i sure wish it did. i had always been a peculiar child- i could look at the clouds for an hour or so without getting bored, and see the tiniest details. thinking back, it was only a matter of time before something happened.

it was the day before my thirteenth birthday: october the 30th and i was taking a long walk through the dajurie woods. i knew i was getting dangerously close to the heart of the forest, but i didn’t care. i had to do something to take my troubles off. my mother thinks it my fault that my 11 year old sister was foolish enough to wander off and get lost. my darn fault! how is that my fault, may i ask? now, where was i? ah, yes, strolling through dajurie woods. to this day, i still don’t know how i ever fell asleep in the middle of walking, but i must’ve done so, for all i remember was breathing in the pine-scented air, enjoying my stroll, and then suddenly falling into a deep black void of darkness.

when i woke up, (or got out of the darkness, if i wasn’t truly sleeping) i was standing in an elegant stony hallway. it seemed to stretch on forever. the hall was only slightly illuminated by torches, glowing (of all things) green. i started tiptoeing down the hall, for how long, i do not know. i only remember the sense of terror, which kept growing with each and every step i take. at last, i reached a dilapidated wooden door with an iron handle. i could smell an enchantment in the air. something was there. something ancient and evil. i could tell… … you know how some people say they have butterflies in their stomachs when they’re scared? well, i had killer bees.

i just stared at the door knob for a while, then, at last, got up all my courage, peeked inside, and immediately screamed so loud that i feared i’d never speak again. for inside, lay the corpse of my sister. the most startling thing was that her eyes were midnight black, instead of their regular grey-green. what in the world happened???

i was shaking all over. my hair nearly stood strait up. suddenly, a voice rasped in my ear “yesss, you shall do quite nicsssely… …”, and before i knew it, i was pinned to the ground. for the first time, i noticed my new surroundings. i was in a gorgeous flower garden, yet it looked different from something you see in an average garden. it looked…, well, it looked more beautiful. more beautiful and deadly. i would’ve probably even enjoyed my stay if i wasn’t pinned down and trying to breath, with my sister already dead.

i looked up at my captor, and immediately wished i hadn’t. i knew, at that moment, that for as long as i live, (which might be really short, depending on what the captor was trying to do) i’ll never forget my captor’s face- for there wasn’t one. yes, there were eyes, a crooked nose, and a mouth, yet somehow they weren’t… … flesh. they were fragrant of fears, shadows, and nightmares. i did not know how that was even possible, but i knew it was true, somehow. its body wasn’t there at all, only an eerie invisible force, pushing me to the ground.

perhaps i should’ve struggled, should’ve screamed for help, but i found that i couldn’t- i was completely paralysed. finally i managed to croak -“what?” the monster smiled with its shadowy mouth, showing blood covered fangs.

“you ssshall fall into the sssame fate asss your sssister,” he rasped in the same snake-like voice, “you mortalsss are ssso foolissssh, never realizing the truth! why do you think thessse woods are named ‘dajurie’? they were elvish for me, the mighty dracula! for centuriesss i have waited for mortalsss with magic in their blood to ssstumble acrosss my trap. you ssshall die a famous death, my dear, the death that bringsss me to a true form. then, i ssshall be able to feassst on whoever i pleassse!”

with that, he started to lower his fangs into my flesh. time slowed down. i knew it wasn’t just about me anymore. if dracula managed to rise to power, my world was doomed. i had to think. what has defeated beings of the night in stories?

just then, dracula’s fangs touched my skin. suddenly, i knew what to do. i shouted at the top of my lungs “i’m not afraid of you! you’re never going to hurt my world. you’re just a shadow!!” i was surprised to feel my confidence soaring back to me. i was somehow, somehow stronger.

dracula jerked away as if all his energy was gone. slowly his terrifying face cracked and crumbled into nothingness. i fell again, into the same darkness that brought me to the vampire’s garden. except this time i was grateful to be whisked away. after a while, i felt someone shaking me. i opened my eyes- it was my mother.

“just what happened to you???” she asked, looking like she was on the verge of tears, but hey, i guess i looked that way too. suddenly, her hand flew to her mouth. “y- your e- eyes,” she stammered, “t-they’re, they’re black!”

i just shook my head, “trust me, you wouldn’t believe me if i told you.”