Gryphon Gallery: Hallowe’en—Connecting Ancient Traditions with Those at the Beach Campus

The tradition of Hallowe’en originated with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain. This day marked the end of summer and harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter. Celts believed that on the night before the beginning of this time, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. It was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth and so the druid priests lit huge bonfires and the people wore costumes and masks to ward off the frightening spirits. From these times, a few of these superstitions evolved as traditions and remain celebrated today.

The tradition of carving pumpkins or Jack-o’-Lanterns, originated in Ireland using turnips instead of pumpkins. It is allegedly based on a legend about a man named Stingy Jack who repeatedly trapped the Devil and only let him go on the condition that Jack would never go to Hell. But when Jack died, he learned that Heaven did not want his soul either, so he was forced to wander the Earth as a ghost for eternity. The Devil gave Jack a burning lump of coal in a carved-out turnip to light his way. Locals eventually began carving scary faces into their own turnips to frighten away the evil spirits. 

Although Halloween celebrations may have been included in some way previously, the history of GNS tells us that the first of the Halloween traditions to be adopted into school life on a regular basis was pumpkin carving. Started by the Mothers Auxiliary of Glenlyon and hosted by the Grade 4s, an annual halloween party was started in 1972 and continued for several years. The highlight was a pumpkin carving contest that was displayed usually on the balcony at the rear of Rattenbury House, while hot chocolate and fireworks set-off on the beach helped to keep the “spirits” at bay. In some classrooms at the Beach, pumpkin carving remains a part of the excitement leading up to Halloween.

In order to avoid being terrorized by all the evil spirits walking the Earth during Samhain, the Celts donned disguises in order to confuse the spirits and be left alone. 

Wearing costumes on Halloween at school was permitted for many years, but issues of safety and appropriateness brought changes to what was allowed at the Beach – except for Mr. Eagle’s Kindergarten costume parade. No class or office space could hide from the pre-halloween visit of his “Little Horrors”! Historical Halloweens, created by Ms. Masson, became the focus in recent times and gives everyone an opportunity to dress-up, learn a little about their chosen character and share with their classmates.

There is much debate around the origins of trick-or-treating, but generally there are three theories. The first suggests that during Samhain, Celtic people would leave food out to appease the spirits traveling the Earth at night. Over time, people began to dress as these unearthly beings in exchange for similar offerings of food and drink. The second theory speculates that the candy boom stems from the Scottish practice of guising. During the Middle Ages, children and poor adults would dress-up in a disguise and collect food and money from local homes. Guisers would offer songs, jokes, and other “tricks” in return for the donation. The third theory argues that modern American trick-or-treating stems from “belsnickeling,” a German-American Christmas tradition where children would dress in costume and then call on their neighbours to see if the adults could guess the identities of the disguised. In one version of the practice, the children were rewarded with food or other treats if no one could identify them. 

Whichever is correct, the practice is a highlight for many children who don’t really care how it came about as long as they can tour their neighbourhood and gather their ‘loot’. For a while the school actually held their Parent-Teacher interviews the day after Halloween, while the children stayed at home to recover from their sugar highs. A tradition that some might have wished it still remains!