facts.txt

Halloween is the second highest grossing commercial holiday after Christmas
The first Jack O’Lanterns were actually made from turnips.
The word “witch” comes from the Old English wicce, meaning “wise woman.”
Samhainophobia is the fear of Halloween.
The world record of the largest pumpkin was achieved in 1993 with a 836 lb. pumpkin.
The first known mention of trick-or-treating in NA occurred in 1927 in Canada.
Ireland is typically believed to be the birthplace of Halloween.
Scarecrows, a popular Halloween fixture, symbolize the ancient agricultural roots of the holiday.
Halloween has variously been called All Hallows’ Eve, Witches Night, Lamswool, and Summer’s End.
According to tradition, if a person wears his or her clothes inside out and then walks backwards on Halloween, he or she will see a witch at midnight.
In many countries, such as France and Australia, Halloween is seen as an unwanted and overly commercial American influence.
Children are more than twice as likely to be killed in a pedestrian/car accident on Halloween than on any other night.
Both Salem, Massachusetts, and Anoka, Minnesota, are the self-proclaimed Halloween capitals of the world.
Boston, Massachusetts, holds the record for the most Jack O’Lanterns lit at once (30,128).
Comedian John Evans once quipped: “What do you get if you divide the circumference of a jack-o’-lantern by its diameter? Pumpkin π.”
The Village Halloween parade in New York City is the largest Halloween parade in the United States. The parade includes 50,000 participants and draws over 2 million spectators.
Only 6 states produce a majority of the holiday's pumpkins.
People used to dance and sing for treats.
Candy corn is one of the holiday's most-produced candies and was originally known as "chicken feed".
The night before Halloween is "Cabbage Night" to New Englanders.
Ohio is home to the world's longest haunted house.
Halloween tops Valentine's Day in candy sales.
In the Isle of Man, Hop tu naa is the celtic festival celebrated on 31st October and is said to be the oldest unbroken tradition on the island.
If you'd been around for the earliest Halloween celebrations, you might have worn animal skins and heads.
Originally, you had to dance for your "treat."
The Village Halloween parade in New York City is the largest Halloween parade in the United States. The parade includes 50,000 participants and draws over 2 million spectators.
Halloween is a contraction of "All Hallows' Eve".
Trick-or-treating evolved from the ancient Celtic tradition of putting out treats and food to placate spirits who roamed the streets at Samhain, a sacred festival that marked the end of the Celtic calendar year.
Dressing up as ghouls and other spooks originated from the ancient Celtic tradition of townspeople disguising themselves as demons and spirits. They believed that disguising themselves this way would allow them to escape the notice of the real spirits wandering the streets during Samhain.
A full moon on Halloween is extremely rare, most recent one being in 2001, and before that in 1955.
Black cats, spiders, and bats are all Halloween symbols because of their spooky history and ties to Wiccans.
Halloween grew from the Celtic tradition of "Samhain", a pagan festival Gaelic in origin. Today, members of Wicca and other earth-centric religions still practice religious ceremonies on the day or night of Halloween.
Halloween also is recognized as the 3rd biggest party day after New Year's and Super Bowl Sunday.
There's a $1,000 fine for using or selling Silly String in Hollywood on Halloween. The prank product has been banned in Hollywood since 2004 after thousands of bored people would buy it on the streets of Hollywood from illegal vendors and "vandalize" the streets. The city ordinance calls for a maximum $1,000 fine and/or six months in jail for "use, possession, sale or distribution of Silly String in Hollywood from 12:01 AM on October 31 to 12:00 PM on November 1."
Dressing up on Halloween comes from the Celts. Celts believed Samhain was a time when the wall between our world and the paranormal world was porous and spirits could get through. Because of this belief, it was common for the Celts to wear costumes and masks during the festival to ward off or befuddle any evil spirits.
The moniker "Halloween" comes from the Catholics. Hallowmas is a three-day Catholic holiday where saints are honored and people pray for the recently deceased. At the start of the 11th century, it was decreed by the pope that it would last from Oct. 31 (All Hallow's Eve) until Nov. 2, most likely because that was when Samhain was celebrated and the church was trying to convert the pagans.
Black and orange are typically associated with Halloween. Orange is a symbol of strength and endurance and, along with brown and gold, stands for the harvest and autumn. Black is typically a symbol of death and darkness and acts as a reminder that Halloween once was a festival that marked the boundaries between life and death.
During the pre-Halloween celebration of Samhain, bonfires were lit to ensure the sun would return after the long, hard winter. Often Druid priests would throw the bones of cattle into the flames and, hence, “bone fire” became “bonfire.”
Halloween is thought to have originated around 4000 B.C., which means Halloween has been around for over 6,000 years.
“Souling” is a medieval Christian precursor to modern-day trick-or-treating. On Hallowmas (November 1), the poor would go door-to-door offering prayers for the dead in exchange for soul cakes.
Stephen Clarke holds the record for the world’s fastest pumpkin carving time: 24.03 seconds, smashing his previous record of 54.72 seconds. The rules of the competition state that the pumpkin must weigh less than 24 pounds and be carved in a traditional way, which requires at least eyes, nose, ears, and a mouth.
Owls are popular Halloween symbols. In medieval times, owls were believed to be witches, and if you heard the call of an owl it meant that someone was about to die.