In America, Halloween is not just one day — it is a whole season. October is about pumpkin, horror movies, decorations and celebrations to make lasting memories.
Halloween in America has become a highly commercialized holiday, fueled by costumes, spooky decor and supernatural-themed stories.
Nina Sugiyama-Allen, junior, said, “My favorite part about Halloween is doing things with other people, like trick or treating or watching movies.”
Halloween is the start of the holiday season and a time to make memories with others.
Sugiyama-Allen also said, “[My favorite memory] is carving pumpkins. Me, my dad and my sibling have a very specific way of doing it.”
How does this compare to the way Halloween is celebrated in different countries?
In Mexico, Halloween is celebrated as more of a religious holiday. Many kids still go trick or treating on October 31, but the holiday is overshadowed by the Day of the Dead.
The Day of the Dead, celebrated November 1 and 2, is a time to remember ancestors who have passed. It is believed to be a day where the heavens open their gates so the deceased can visit their families.
Setting up altars and visiting cemeteries are a custom on this day. There are gatherings of friends and family to eat traditional foods and open their homes to the past.
The Day of the Dead has a deeper cultural and religious significance than the commercialized Halloween traditions.
In England, Halloween takes a back seat to Guy Fawkes Day.
Guy Fawkes Day is a celebration of the failed assassination of King James I in 1605.
Guy Fawkes tried to blow up Parliament while King James was present. He hid 36 barrels of gunpowder, a fuse, a small lamp and a box of matches in the cellar.
On November 5, English people celebrate with bonfires, and instead of trick or treating, kids walk around saying, “penny for the Guy”
There are some similarities between Guy Fawkes Day and Halloween, but England does not value Halloween as much as American culture does.
Spanish Halloween is similar to America’s. Kids and adults dress up, go trick or treating, carve pumpkins and go to parties.
Celia Canada is a junior and Spanish exchange student. It is her first year experiencing American Halloween.
Canada said, “We kind of copy you but [Halloween is] different because here you decorate a lot more — the street, the house, and the school. Here it is all bigger, and you have more horror things.”
Halloween is known as an “American holiday”, but it has spread throughout the world. It is a day to celebrate with friends and family and create lasting memories.
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