October. The name evokes images of footpaths dusted with rust-coloured leaves, snuggling up in a warm sweater, sipping on hot chocolate in a buzzing café, and a host of other niceties that typify Autumn. Edinburgh provides the perfect backdrop for an aesthetic Autumnal vibe. Orange and brown hues coat Princes Street Gardens and a low hanging sun rises blissfully over Arthur’s Seat. The whole month – which I certainly would characterise as the epitome hygge (a sort-of Danish comfort of the soul) – exposes the cozy in all of us. And yet, the climax of the month brings about the antithesis of hygge.
Hallowe’en, in reality, is a Celtic ritual gone rogue. Although celebrations across Europe and North America are entirely non-religious today, the tradition is rooted in an ancient Celtic festival: Samhain. These five days of festivities included blessings, dancing and drinking wine. Echoes of Samhain traditions remain today, such as wearing ghoulish costumes and a lighted pumpkin at one’s door to welcome the dead. The eighth century saw Pope Gregory III declare the first of November ‘All Saints Day’, following ‘All Hallows Eve’. Shortly, modernised rituals of Hallowe’en emerged, and the western world went crazy over scary stories, resulting in what we see as annual tradition nowadays.
By now, you’ve probably picked up on my oddly old-fashioned spelling of Hallowe’en. There is a simple explanation for this: I love Hallowe’en! My mum grew up in Canada, and All Hallows Eve is celebrated widely across North America, and so it was in our house. Every year until I was fifteen, I dressed up in the same children’s black cat costume, and we would trick-or-treat with friends long into the night. We’d spend an entire day carving pumpkins and adorning the house in lights, cobwebs and a large witch made of bin bags on the front door. In the village, our house was the one to visit! Iconically, my uncle has dressed as Dracula consistently for as long as I can remember, and my dad as Darth Vader, pacing silently up and down the driveway in wait of scaring trick-or-treaters. Some traditions run the course of time, and in my family, it is the annual spooky fest – even my uncle’s dog dresses up for the evening!
Whether you partake in pumpkin carving, dressing up to trick-or-treat, or binging horror movies (my personal favourite is The Shining), Hallowe’en’s popularity has been on the rise in the UK in recent years. Naturally, university students are known for taking any opportunity they can to dress up, and certainly, they did not disappoint this year.
For me this year, on the Saturday of ‘Halloweekend’, a small gathering of friends turned into a raging flat party as we blasted ghoulish music and drank from blood bags. Costumes, of course, were not optional. I went as Padmé Aimdala – that one from the bad Star Wars movies that looks like Princess Leia but isn’t Princess Leia – which was an easy fit. But costumes got far more creative than mine this year. The villainous Vector made an appearance, George Harrison strode through the flat, blaster guns filled with booze ended up in the hands of Mario and Princess Peach, and my personal favourite: the idiot sandwich meme. We saw scary costumes too: zombie brides, witches, and a sexy housemaid (?). Social media feeds were filled with ‘Men [and Women] in Black’, Peaky Blinders, and minions. In the end, most people at our party ended up with a fake moustache on top of their original costume, by virtue of George Harrison, but the night drew on and was positively ghoulish.
So, when you’re stuck for ideas in a year’s time – for party suggestions, costume inspiration or celebration ideas – come back here for some spooky advice on how to spend you Hallowe’en in most ghoulish way possible!
Photo credit: “Vintage Halloween Card [Pumpkin Scarecrow and Witch].” by Halloween HJB is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.