Introduction
On October 31st, a festival called Halloween is observed. Despite its Pagan and Christian origins and earlier celebrations in Europe and North America, it is now a joyous event that is observed all around the world. This is observed the night before All Saints’ Day to scare off evil spirits. On this day, people prepare a variety of foods, particularly using pumpkin and candy, and dress up as skeletons, ghosts, witches, and other frightful creatures in masks and costumes. Mexican celebrates the Day of the Dead as a national holiday and festivity from October 31 through November 2. Some see this as the Mexican equivalent of the Halloween festival, but this is a gathering to honor loved ones who have passed away, not to celebrate Halloween. People still alive prepare a variety of foods and beverages, especially those that were popular among the deceased, and serve them in their cemeteries.
Halloween Vs. The Day of the Dead
The primary distinction between Halloween and the Day of the Dead is that Halloween was originally intended to scare away evil spirits, whereas the Day of the Dead was intended to commemorate, honor, and remember loved ones who have passed away. October is the month for two festivals: Halloween and Day of the Dead. Despite how similar they may appear, the celebrations serve diverse objectives. Particularly Halloween, these two celebrations are now well-known fun festivals all over the world.
Difference Between Halloween and The Day of the Dead in Tabular Form
| Parameters | Day of the Dead | Halloween |
| Date | October 31 to November 2 | October 31 |
| Country of Origin | Mexico | Ireland |
| Purpose | Celebrate and honor deceased family members and friends. | An understanding and appreciation of life after death and survival. The night before All Hallows’ Day, also known as All Saints’ Day, is the literal meaning. |
| Celebration | When visiting a cemetery, place food offerings at the altar in the shape of skulls along with candles, incense, and a picture of the deceased. | Carve pumpkins into Jack-o-Lanterns, decorate your home with a spooky theme, have parties, and go trick-or-treating door-to-door while wearing costumes. |
| Symbols | Skulls | Pumpkins, ghosts. |
| Typical festivity food | Pan de Muertos (bread of the dead- skull-shaped bread), candied pumpkins, or any favorite food of the celebrated late friend/family member. | Pumpkin pie, cookies shaped like pumpkins, ghosts or skulls, candy, and cakes made like a graveyard. |
| Religion | Christianity | Paganism, Christianity (All Hallows Eve); is now modernized and embraced universally as a fun festival. |
What is Halloween?
The 31st of October is the day that Halloween is commemorated. On the evening before All Saints' Day, also known as All Hallows' Day and the day before the Western Christian celebrations of All Saints, it is observed in the majority of European and North American nations. Allhallowtide officially begins now. The final day of Allhallowtide, All Souls Day, concludes the three-day celebration. The titles All Hallows Eve, All Halloween, and All Saints' Eve are also used to refer to Halloween.
Samhain, a celebration observed by ancient Celts in Ireland and Britain, is said to be the ancestor of Halloween. People once held the belief that during this festival season, the souls of the deceased visited their houses while those who had recently passed away started their trip to the afterlife. Celtic people lit bonfires to scare away evil spirits and disguised themselves to avoid being recognized by the ghosts they believed to be around. This led to the emergence of Halloween monsters including demons, witches, goblins, and others. Although this festival was originally a Catholic celebration, it has since gained worldwide recognition as a family-friendly event. People dress up in costumes that frequently resemble skeletons, mummies, witches, scarecrows, and pumpkins for Halloween; they also wear masks, carve pumpkins into Jack-o-lanterns, play practical jokes on one other, light bonfires and narrate spooky tales. Foods like candies, pumpkin pies, pumpkin-shaped cookies, ghosts, skulls, caramel apples, and candy apples, as well as apple cider, are popular during Halloween.
Celebration
Halloween is a modern holiday that both kids and adults enjoy. Halloween is a time when kids dress up in costumes and knock on doors asking for candy. They pose the age-old question “trick or treat”, meaning that if no treats are supplied, they will do trouble. Costumes are typically eerie or supernatural, however over time, they have evolved into outfits with any theme. Apple-bobbling and touring scary places are common games. Adults often celebrate Halloween by dressing up for costume parties, which frequently have different themes unrelated to the horror genre. Symbols of Halloween include pumpkins and various tropes of horror literature, including vampires, ghosts, and mummies.
Historical Roots
Halloween’s origins are thought to have been with the Celtic people of Europe, who lived roughly 2,000 years ago. They performed their ceremonies around harvest season, offerings to their gods and paying respect to the deceased. This celebration was known as Samhain. Later popes pushed for the adoption of Christian customs to replace Samhain after the arrival of the Romans. By the year 1000 A.D., November 2 served as All Souls’ Day, a day set aside for people to offer prayers for the deceased. The day known as All Saints' Day, which was set aside for saints on November 1, was also known as All Hallows. That led to Halloween and All Hallows Eve on October 31. "Good Housekeeping". As Guy Fawkes Day, observed by Protestants on November 5, arrived, Halloween changed. With bonfires, masks, costumes, graveyards, trick-or-treating, and even jack o’
Halloween Statistics
According to CNN, around $9 billion will be spent on Halloween celebrations by 175 million Americans in 2018. Children between the ages of 5 and 14 who trick-or-treat in America number roughly 41 million. A total of 3.8 million of them, 2.2 million as Batman, and 1.9 million as Star Wars characters are anticipated to dress up. A little over 10% of adults will dress as witches. Around 70,000 acres of pumpkins are harvested each year, and consumers spend around $7 million on pumpkin spice-flavored goods around Halloween.
What is the Day of the Dead?
Mexicans observe the Day of the Dead festival and holiday from October 31 through November 2. Dia De Los Muertos is another name for it. On this day, Mexican families host a feast with food and beverages to greet the spirits of their deceased relatives. Some people think of it as the Mexican equivalent of Halloween because both events feature the same recognizable masks, costumes, and parades. The celebration of the Day of the Dead is thought to be a synthesis of Mesoamerican customs, Spanish culture, and European religion. Its history dates back 3,000 years. Mexicans and people of Mexican ancestry in the US and other countries commemorate the Day of the Dead. Mexicans believe that on October 31st at midnight, the gates of heaven will open for 24 hours, allowing the spirits of the deceased children to reunite with their loved ones. The souls of the adults do the same on November 2. This is because it is thought that on this day, the line separating the physical world from the spiritual realm dissolves. To greet them, the living prepares their deceased family members’ favorite foods and beverages and store them at cemeteries or in “ofrendas” created at their residences. The ghosts are treated by the living not just with food and drink but also with music, dancing, and parades.
Celebration
The Day of the Dead honors and remembers deceased friends and family members. The Day of the Dead is utilized in the majority of Mexico to remember infant and young family members who have passed away. On November 2nd, we celebrate adults. Instead of one of grief, the ambiance is more like that of a festival or picnic. Mexicans accept death and honor the deceased for their life.
Mexico observes the Day of the Dead as a national holiday, and all banks are closed. It occurs on November 1st. To entice the spirits of the deceased to visit, people go to graves and erect private altars filled with their favorite foods and beverages, as well as mementos like photos. Mexican marigolds that are orange are frequently used to adorn graves. For deceased children, toys are brought, and for adults, bottles of tequila, mescal, or pulque are brought. Some people decorate their garments with shells so that when they dance, the noise will awaken the dead. The customs in each town are unique.
Historical Roots
About 3,000 years ago, the Aztecs, Toltecs, and other ethnic groups in Mesoamerica practiced the Day of the Dead. Families would frequently practice traditions in August, such as providing food and assistance to help their deceased relatives on their afterlife journeys. It was thought that a person’s soul had to travel to the Land of the Dead after passing away. The majority of academics feel that the dates changed to the first of November as Spanish colonists introduced their Catholic practices to Mexico.
Native customs were converted to Catholicism after Spanish explorer Hernan Cortes arrived in Mexico in the sixteenth century. The Catholic Church observes All Saints’ Day on November 1 and All Souls’ Day on November 2. According to experts, present the Day of the Dead celebrations include indigenous roots with European influences. Both of these impacts can be seen in contemporary the Day of the Dead customs, including those of decorating graves, praying in cemeteries, creating altars, and setting out food for the passing spirits.
The Main Difference Between Halloween and the Day of the Dead in Points
- Samhain, another name for Halloween, has Celtic origins. Scotland, Ireland, and the Isle of Man are where it all began. On Halloween, it was thought that the line between the living from the dead was the thinnest, making it an ideal day for communicating with the afterlife. On the other hand, the Day of the Dead, a Mexican celebration, is known as Dia de Muertos. At this event, families get together to pay tribute to and mourn relatives who have passed away. In 2008, the Day of the Dead was formally included in the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.
- On Halloween, which falls on October 31, the dead return to their final resting places. November 1 is All Saints’ Day, and November 2 is also known as All Souls Day or the Day of the Dead. From October 31 to November 2nd, many nations in Latin America are off.
- Children dress up for Halloween and visit neighbors and friends for trick-or-treating. Unsettling spooky dwellings are traversed by people. They like to frighten people because dying can be frightening. On the other hand, people enjoy having colorful parades with Mexican music and face painting their faces to resemble skulls for the Day of the Dead. It is intended to honor and commemorate the deceased.
- Skulls, skeletons, and the well-known ofrenda (offering) filled with photos, flowers, candles, and anything else that the deceased loved ones liked are the primary Day of the Dead symbols. The finer the meal and ofrenda (offering), the more color there is. On the other hand, the symbols of Halloween are eerie things like spiders, bats, black cats, ghosts, skeletons, witches, and zombies. It’s a gloomy holiday where people enjoy scaring each other and getting silly.
- The purpose of the Day of the Dead is to honor our ancestors. Halloween, on the other hand, is more about recognizing and respecting the power of death and has less to do with rituals.
- The ancient Aztec civilization is where the Day of the Dead got its start. The Land of the Dead is where the dead are buried, according to the Aztecs. On the other hand, while Halloween still has its roots in religion, it has evolved into a more casual, secular holiday.
Conclusion
You can see that, despite certain similarities, there are fundamental differences between Halloween and the Day of the Dead when you compare and contrast the two holidays. Each of them offers a special chance to laugh together, remember the deceased, tell stories, enjoy music, and honor their lives. Both occasions are a great way to reconnect with our heritage and are a ton of fun.
References
- https://www.spanish.academy/blog/13-ways-halloween-is-different-from-day-of-the-dead/
