万圣节的起源

While there are many versions of the origins and old customs of Halloween， some remain consistentby all accounts. Different cultures view Holloween somewhat differently but traditional Halloween practices remain the same.

尽管关于万圣节的起源和旧俗有很多不同的看法，但有一些是被所有人接受的。不同文化看待万圣节总是有点不同，但是传统的万圣节做的事情都是一样的。

Halloween culture can be traced back to the Druids， a Celtic culture in Ireland， Britain and Northern Europe. Roots lay in the feastof Samhain， which was annually on October 31st to honor the dead.

万圣节文化可以追溯到德鲁伊教，这是一种爱尔兰、北欧和英国的凯尔特文化，根植于Samhain节的庆祝活动，Samhain节于每年的10月31日纪念逝者。

Samhain signifies “summers end” or November. Samhain was a harvest festival with huge sacred bonfires， marking the end of the Celtic year and beginning of a new one. Many of the practices involved in this celebration were fed on superstition.

Samhain节说明夏天结束或者十一月，是一个丰收的节日。在Samhain节会燃起神圣巨大的篝火，标志着凯尔特一年的结束和新一年的开始。一些做法因为迷信被加入庆祝活动中。

The Celts believed the souls of the dead roamed the streets and villages at night. Since not all spirits were thought to be friendly， gifts and treats were left out to pacifythe evil and ensure next years crops would be plentiful. This custom evolved into trick-or-treating.

凯尔特人相信死者的灵魂会在夜里出没在街道和村庄 。因为他们认为不是所有的灵魂都是友善的，所以就把礼物和好吃的留在外面安慰恶灵来确保来年的庄稼可以丰收。这种习俗演变成了trick-or-treating。

It’s October the 31st， andacross Britain and the USA， thousands of children are dressing upas monsters， ghosts and witches and going to their neighbours’houses to ask for sweets or to play tricks on them if they refuse.Many houses have lanterns made from pumpkins in their windows.These lanterns have frightening faces cut into them.What is thereason for all of this？ It’s Halloween！ To an outsider， this mayseem a strange festival， but it is a very popular one and animportant part of the culture in Britain and the USA. But how didit start？ The holiday once had a religious significance. Novemberthe 1st is All Saint’s Day， and October the 31st was believed to bea day when all the spirits came back to the world of the living. Inmodern times， this has changed to be a day when children dress upas monsters， ghosts and witches. Once they are dressed up childrengo to their neighbours’ houses. They knock on the door and shout‘Trick or treat！’ Good neighbours， of course， give ‘treats’。 Theseare usually sweets or chocolates. Bad neighbours， however， may givenothing. If so， then the children play a ‘trick’ on them. This maybe a simple practical joke. However， naughty children may dosomething worse， like throwing rubbish in the neighbour’s garden.Nowadays， of course， most neighbours always give a treat. Afterall， it’s fun for the children. Another tradition is to makelanterns from pumpkins. First， the inside of the pumpkin isremoved. Then， a face is cut into the pumpkin， traditionally asmiling， devil face. Finally a candle is placed inside， and thelantern is put at the front of the house to keep evil spirits away.There are many traditional games on Halloween， but the most commonis ‘apple-bobbing’。 It’s simple to play. Several apples are putfloating in water. Children then have their hands tied behind theirbacks. They then have to try to pick the apples out of the waterusing only their mouths. Of course， people get very wet and it isvery funny to watch.

Vocabulary：

dressing up：乔装打扮；穿上盛装

monsters：怪物；妖怪

ghosts：鬼；幽灵

witches 巫师

neighbour：邻居

sweets：糖果

tricks：恶作剧；诡计

lanterns：灯笼

outsider：外人；局外人

treat：招待；请客

practical joke： 恶作剧

evil： 邪恶的