Why Do We Celebrate Halloween? 為什么要慶祝萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夜？

張寧

Halloween has been around for more than a thousand years. Originally a religious1 observance2， it became increasingly secular3 over the centuries. Today Halloween is considered a holiday for dress-up and fun， especially for children.

Halloweens origins can be traced back to the ancient Celtic festival. It was believed that on that day， the souls of the dead returned to their homes， so people dressed in costumes and lit bonfires4 to ward5 off spirits. In this way， popular Halloween words such as witches6， ghosts， and goblins7 became associated with the holiday.

In the 7th century， Pope Boniface IV created All Saints Day， originally celebrated on May 13. A century later， Pope Gregory III moved the holiday to November 1. The day before the saintly celebration became known as All Hallows Eve， or Halloween.

Though the holiday began in Celtic regions of Ireland， the United Kingdom， and France， it quickly spread to other parts of the world. The first American colonists8 in New England were forbidden to celebrate it for religious reasons， though it enjoyed some popularity in the Southern colonies. By the 1800s， fall festivals marking the seasonal harvest incorporated9 Halloween elements， and many Halloween traditions brought by Irish immigrants10 remain today.

The custom of trick-or-treating， in which children dress up in costume and solicit11 treats from neighbors， became popular in the United States in the early 20th century as Irish and Scottish communities revived the Old World custom of “guising12”， in which a person would dress in costume and tell a joke， or perform some other trick in exchange for a piece of fruit or other treat. By 1950， trick-or-treating for candy had become one of Halloweens most popular activities. Today， Halloween is one of the biggest holidays for candy sales in the United States， exceeding13 $2.5 billion every year.

萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夜已經(jīng)有一千多年歷史了。它最初是一種宗教儀式，幾個(gè)世紀(jì)以來(lái)，它變得越來(lái)越世俗化。今天萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夜被當(dāng)作是一個(gè)變裝打扮和娛樂(lè)的節(jié)日，特別是對(duì)兒童來(lái)說(shuō)。

萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夜的起源可以追溯到古代凱爾特人的節(jié)日。據(jù)說(shuō)，在那一天，死者的靈魂會(huì)回到他們的家，所以人們變裝打扮，點(diǎn)燃篝火，以抵御鬼魂。就這樣，萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夜的流行詞語(yǔ)，如女巫、鬼魂、妖精等與這個(gè)節(jié)日聯(lián)系了起來(lái)。

公元7世紀(jì)，教皇卜尼法斯四世設(shè)立了萬(wàn)圣節(jié)，最初是在5月13日慶祝。一個(gè)世紀(jì)后，教皇格列高利三世將這個(gè)節(jié)日移到了11月1日，而萬(wàn)圣節(jié)慶典的前一天被稱(chēng)為萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夜。

盡管這一節(jié)日始于愛(ài)爾蘭的凱爾特人地區(qū)、英國(guó)和法國(guó)，但它很快傳到了世界其他地區(qū)。盡管該節(jié)日在美國(guó)南部殖民地頗受歡迎，但由于宗教原因，美國(guó)新英格蘭的第一批移民被禁止慶祝該節(jié)日。到了19世紀(jì)，標(biāo)志著季節(jié)性豐收的秋季節(jié)日吸收了萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夜的元素，愛(ài)爾蘭移民帶來(lái)的許多萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夜的傳統(tǒng)，仍保留至今。

孩子們穿著奇裝異服，向鄰居討要糖果，“不給糖就搗蛋”的習(xí)俗，在20世紀(jì)初在美國(guó)流行起來(lái)。當(dāng)時(shí)愛(ài)爾蘭人和蘇格蘭人社區(qū)重新興起了舊大陸的“偽裝”的習(xí)俗，即一個(gè)人喬裝打扮講個(gè)笑話(huà)或表演其他一些把戲，以此換取一塊水果或其他的食物。到了1950年，“不給糖就搗蛋”已經(jīng)成為萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夜最受歡迎的活動(dòng)之一。如今，萬(wàn)圣節(jié)前夜是美國(guó)糖果銷(xiāo)售額最大的節(jié)日之一，每年銷(xiāo)售額超過(guò)25億美元。

（英語(yǔ)原文選自：britannica.com）

1. religious [■] adj. 宗教的

2. observance [■] n. 慣例;儀式;慶祝

3. secular [■] adj. 世俗的;非宗教的

4. bonfire [■] n. 篝火;營(yíng)火

5. ward [■] v. 避開(kāi);守護(hù)

6. witch [■] n. 巫婆，女巫

7. goblin [■] n. 小妖精

8. colonist [■] n. 殖民者;殖民地居民;移民

9. incorporate [■] v. 包含，吸收;體現(xiàn)

10. immigrant [■] n. 移民，僑民

11. solicit [■] v. 請(qǐng)求;乞求

12. guise [■] v. 使化裝;偽裝

13. exceed [■] v. 超過(guò);勝過(guò)