Halloween 2005 “The fright stuff “

The dark night streets of Fukuoka are soon to echo with the eerie footsteps of ghosts and witches, zombies and werewolves. You can run, but you cannot hide, for Halloween is upon us. As the moon rises on October 31, monsters of unimaginable horror will prowl the streets in search of sweet treats and the occasional beer or two. And if you canﾕt beat them, you better grab a costume and join them! Halloween is a time of trick-or-treating, parties and a celebration of all things spooky. And in this edition of Fukuoka Now, we have information about everything you need to make the night a HOWLING success! Check out our Halloween guide on Page 4, which has all you need to know.

Halloween ﾐ The Origins Unearthed
It is widely believed that the origins of Halloween lie in the ancient Celtic Samhain festival, which, on November 1, marked both the Celtic New Year and the day during which the spirits of those who had died in the previous year were believed to roam the Earth. But the name “Halloween” is Christian in origin. In an attempt to stop pagan practices, the Roman Catholic Church incorporated Samhain festivities into the Christian calendar. In 731AD, November 1 was declared All Saints’ Day (All Hallows Day). October 31 thus became All Hallows Eve, which in time was shortened to “Halloween.” Irish immigrants to America in the 1800s continued their traditional observances of the old Celtic rituals, leading to the type of Halloween celebrations we see today.

Halloween ﾐ Trivia!

ｷ Halloween is big business. In the US, Halloween is the festival when the most candy is sold. It is second only to Christmas. The total sales of costumes, candy and other Halloween material exceeds $3 billion.

ｷ A person with an intense fear of Halloween is known as a Samhainophobic.

ｷ The word “witch” comes from the Saxon word “wicca”, meaning “wise one”.

ｷ Modern American “trick-or-treating” originated from school boards. Because young people were using the night to commit pranks, which escalated into more serious vandalism, the school boards, urged to do something by parents, got together with town councils to come up with a safe activity for children. The town council got businesses and locals to cooperate in giving children candy to keep them out of mischief.

ｷ In the US, more than 41 million children aged five to 14 go trick-or-treating.

ｷ In 2001, the pumpkin harvest in the US was threatened by a fungus that caused pumpkins to become covered in white spots, leaving them virtually useless for use as jack-oﾕ-lanterns. In light of the terrorist attacks in the preceding month, some people speculated that the fungus was the work of international “evil-doers”.

ｷ In Japan, Halloween was reportedly first celebrated on American military bases in the 1970s, and although retailers tried to sell Halloween merchandise and candy in the 1980s and 1990s, Halloween did not take off until the Tokyo Disney Resort started to draw attention with their celebration.

･ In Fukuoka, if you don’t put on a costume and go to a Halloween party, you’re called a “boring loser.” To avoid being labelled such, almost every foreigner in Fukuoka goes to at least one party on the following pages.

Halloween 2005 – What’s on and where