万圣节

October 31st is Halloween 万圣节是世界上最老的节日之一，在10 月31日这天，有许多国家，如：美国,加拿大,英格兰,爱尔兰,苏格兰,墨西哥,拉丁美洲,西班牙等，都会庆祝万圣节的来临。   Halloween is one of the world’s oldest holidays, celebrated in several countries around the globe including the USA, Canada, England, Ireland, Scotland, Mexico, Latin America, and Spain.

在2000多年前的爱尔兰地区及法国北部，住着一群凯尔特人，而万圣节就是起源于古塞尔特人的一个叫做Samhain的节庆 。 Halloween’s origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in). The Celtic peoples lived over 2,000 years ago In the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Northern France.

凯尔特人选在每年11月1日庆祝新年，正值夏天结束，冬天刚开始的时节多半让人联想到黑暗的死亡。 For the Celtic peoples, the New Year was celebrated on November 1st of every year. This date marked the end of Summer and the beginning of Winter. This time of year was often associated with human death. For the Celtic peoples, the New Year was celebrated on November 1st of every year. This date marked the end of Summer and the beginning of Winter. 凯尔特人选在每年11月1日庆祝新年，正值夏天结束，冬天刚开始的时节多半让人联想到黑暗的死亡。

The Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred as the dead searched for the afterlife. Thus, on the night of October 31st, they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to Earth to cause mischief and trouble. 凯尔特人相信在新年的前一晚，阴间和阳间的大门不再门禁森严，此时阴间的鬼魂会趁机跑出来，为阳间的人们带来厄运。所以，在十月三十一日晚上，凯尔特人会庆祝Samhain这个节日，以趋魔避邪。  

凯尔特人借着神圣的营火，燃烧献祭的动物和尸体，以赶走可怕的鬼魂并祈求神的保护。同时，凯尔特人也会假扮成鬼的样子，企图混淆跑到阳间的鬼魂 。 To commemorate the event, people built huge sacred bonfires where animals and crops were sacrificed to the Gods for protection, and to help scare ghosts away. The Celts also wore costumes to disguise themselves, in an attempt to confuse the spirits roaming the Earth. 凯尔特人借着神圣的营火，燃烧献祭的动物和尸体，以赶走可怕的鬼魂并祈求神的保护。同时，凯尔特人也会假扮成鬼的样子，企图混淆跑到阳间的鬼魂 。

The Impact of Christianity By the A.D. 800’s, the influence of Christianity had spread into Celtic lands. Pope Boniface IV designated November 1st All Saints Day, a time to honor Saints and Martyrs. It was known as All Hallowmas. Thus, October 31st became known as All Hallows Eve, and eventually was shortened to the current day title, Halloween. 西元八百年時，基督教傳入塞爾特人居住的區域。當時的教宗明訂十一月一日為萬聖節All Saints Day，又稱 All Hallowmas，來紀念所有的聖人和騎士。因此，十月三十一日就成了萬聖節前夕，英文稱之All Hallows Eve，而後來人們便簡稱十月三十一日為Halloween。

Even later, in A.D. 1000, the Christian church made November 2nd All Soul’s Day, a day to honor the dead. It was celebrated with big bonfires, parades, and dressing up in costumes as saints, angels, and devils. Together, the three celebrations, All Hallows Eve, All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day, were called Hallowmas. 公元一千年左右，基督教订定十一月二日为All Souls’ Day ( 万灵节 )来纪念所有的死去的灵魂。借着大型营火，游行和变装打扮成圣人，天使或恶灵的方式来庆祝。综合这三个节日All Hallows Eve (万圣节前夕)，All Saints’ Day (万圣节) 和 All Souls’ Day (万灵节)，就叫做Hallowmas.  

Becoming an American Tradition Halloween arrived in North America courtesy of Irish and Scottish emigrants who brought stories of Samhain and Hallowmas, as well as tales of ghosts and spirits with them in the 1840’s, during the Irish Potato Famine. The holiday flourished into what is now modern day Halloween. 1840年代，爱尔兰区发生了饥荒，一些爱尔兰及苏格兰人移民到北美洲，也把这些习俗和鬼故事带到了北美洲，渐渐地，北美洲人也开始庆祝Halloween(万圣节)。  

Traditions of Halloween 许多关于Halloween(万圣节)习俗，包括变装打扮，不捣蛋就给糖的游戏，咬苹果的游戏，刻番瓜灯笼，和点燃大营火等习俗，都可以追溯到凯尔特人Samhain节，或是Hallowmas这些节日。   Many of the traditions associated with Halloween can be traced back to the ancient festivals of Samhain and Hallowmas. Traditions include costuming, trick-or-treating, bobbing for apples, pumpkin carving, and the lighting of bonfires.

Costumes were worn by the Celts for Samhain and the Christians for All Hallows’ Eve as a disguise to confuse and/or scare away the spirits/ghosts they believed were freely roaming the Earth from possessing their souls. Today, although we no longer believe that spirits are flying freely, modernized costumes are worn at Halloween by children going trick-or-treating and by adults seeking fun and amusement. 过去，变装打扮是为了让鬼魂们搞不清楚，免得惹祸上身。现在，虽然人们不再相信鬼魂们会在阳间跑来跑去，但是小孩子还是会装扮自己到处玩不给糖就捣蛋的游戏﹔而大人则是觉得装扮自己有趣又好玩。   Costuming

Trick-or-treating 不给糖就捣蛋的游戏起源于要灵魂饼干的习俗，所谓的灵魂饼干就是将烤好的饼干祭祀过世的人。后来，基督教会鼓励贫穷的人在收获的季节里挨家挨户地乞求食物，若是得到食物，这些穷人就会帮这家庭中过世的人祈祷以谢谢他们。   The modern day custom of Trick-or-Treating originated from the very old custom of “Going-a-souling” or begging for soul cakes. Soul cakes were baked goods offered to souls of the departed. The Christian Church encouraged the practice of the needy going from home to home gathering food (Going-a-souling) at Harvest time. Prayers for the recently deceased from the needy were exchanged with the giving family.

而穷人们对那些吝啬不给食物的人通常会以恶作剧来惩罚他们，或是诅咒他们下一年都会厄运缠身。大部分人都认为不给糖就捣蛋是起源于恶作剧之夜和要灵魂饼干 (going-a-souling) 的习俗。 Those not offering goods were usually punished with a trick on Halloween night or hexed with misfortune for the next year. The term “trick-or-treat” is thought to have first originated in Britain where Halloween was known as “Mischief Night” and the practice of “going-a-souling” was common.

Pumpkin Carving 众人皆知的杰克番瓜灯是刻在番瓜上，但人们一开始是在萝卜，马铃薯或甜菜上刻灯笼，然后挖空并点燃蜡烛在里面，形成灯笼。这些灯笼代表着过世的亲友，并被放置在窗边或门廊上，以欢迎他们回来。他们也被视为可趋魔避邪的象征。在北美洲，萝卜，马铃薯和甜菜很罕见，因此常见的番瓜就成了非常适合的代替品。 Carved pumpkins are traditionally known as “Jack-o-lanterns.” Traditionally, the jack-o-lantern was carved from a turnip, potato, or beet and lit with a burning candle. These lanterns represented the souls of departed loved ones and were placed in windows or set on porches to welcome the deceased. They also served as protection from evil spirits freed from the dead on Halloween night. In North America, turnips, potatoes, and beets were not as readily available, so the pumpkin was used and found to be a suitable replacement.

Jack-o-lanterns People have been making Jack-o-lanterns at Halloween for centuries. The practice originated from an Irish myth about a man known as “Stingy Jack.” Stingy Jack one day invited the Devil to have a drink with him. Not wanting to pay for the drink, he tricked the Devil into turning himself into a coin, and then put the Devil into his pocket next to a cross that prevented the Devil from changing back into his original form. Jack freed the Devil after the Devil promised not to bother Jack or, should he die, claim his soul. 万圣节刻杰克南瓜灯的习俗已经有几世纪的历史了。为什么要取名为杰克呢？在爱尔兰人的传说中有个有名的小气杰克。有一天小气杰克请魔鬼喝酒，喝完后，小气杰克却小气地不想付钱，所以他就骗魔鬼，要魔鬼把自己变成一枚硬币，魔鬼变成硬币后，小气杰克迅速地把硬币放在口袋里，和十字架放在一起，以防魔鬼变回原形。之后，魔鬼对小气杰克发誓，他绝对不会对小气杰克报仇，也保证杰克死了也不会让他下地狱。这时，小气杰克才让魔鬼变回原形。  

Eventually, when Jack did die, God would not take him into Heaven, and the Devil, who had promised not to claim Jack’s soul, could not take him into Hell. Thus, the Devil sent Jack’s spirit into the night with only a burning candle to light his way. Jack put the candle into a carved out turnip and has been roaming the Earth ever since. The Irish began to refer to this ghostly figure as “Jack of the Lantern,” and then simply as “Jack-o-lantern.” 到小器杰克死掉后，上帝不允许他进入天堂，而魔鬼曾答应过他不会让他下地狱，所以杰克死后哪都去不了。因此，魔鬼就让他的灵魂漂泊在黑夜里，只留给他一根燃烧的蜡烛来指引他．从此以后，杰克就把蜡烛放在挖空刻好的萝卜里，并且一直留在人间吓人。爱尔兰人一开始称之为杰克的南瓜灯笼( Jack of the Lantern)，后来简称为杰克南瓜灯( Jack-o-lantern)。  

Symbols of Halloween 现代人用许多东西来庆祝万圣节，让这个节日变得更有趣。你知道 是哪些东西吗？ Modern day Halloween celebrations use many symbols to help make the holiday more festive……… Some of these include………… 现代人用许多东西来庆祝万圣节，让这个节日变得更有趣。你知道 是哪些东西吗？  

蝙蝠是其中一项，因为蝙蝠只住在坟墓，洞穴和废弃的教堂或建筑物中，又因为蝙蝠常令人联想到女巫或吸血鬼，因此他们被视为邪恶的象征。在传说中，女巫和吸血鬼可以化身成蝙蝠，又因为吸血蝙蝠是唯一一种饮血维生的哺乳类动物，因此蝙蝠常让人联想到死亡或邪恶的仪式。   BATS Because bats only fly at night and live in tombs, caves, and abandoned churches and buildings, they are believed to be omens of evil. They are commonly associated with witches and vampires. It is superstition that witches and vampires can take the form of a bat. Since the vampire bat is the only mammal that feeds on blood, they are often linked to death and occult rituals.

女巫因为会算命又会下好咒语和坏咒语，人们相信女巫们的能力在10月31日这天会最强，所以让很多人很害怕她们。几世纪以来，女巫的形象改变许多，以前人们认为，女巫都是绿皮肤，长的很老，脸上布满皱纹。现在则很多人认为女巫的能力可以是邪恶或具有智慧的。 WITCHES Witches were thought to be tellers of fortune and to cast spells, both good and bad. This frightened many because it was believed that these powers were strongest on Halloween night. The image of a witch has greatly changed over the centuries. Once thought of as old, wrinkled, green skinned hags, many people associate witchcraft to either evil or as being wise.

女巫和扫把形影不离已有几世纪之久，通常女巫会骑着扫把在夜晚飞行，而她们的同伴黑猫会坐在扫把的另一端陪着她们飞行．会什么女巫会和扫把形影不离呢？因为在万圣节那天，通常会下着雨，而女巫们需要用扫把扫掉地上的大水坑，或地上的积水以便行走。 Broomsticks Witches and broomsticks go hand in hand. They have been associated for centuries. Often, witches are depicted riding them across the night sky with a black cat on one end. It is believed that because Halloween occurred during the rainy season, women used their broomsticks to vault over large puddles and to sweep water out of their paths while walking. Thus, the two became associated.

Superstitions suggest that owls ate the souls of the dying by swooping to Earth. Owls screeches and their glassy stare are an omen of death and disaster. The owl is rarely seen during the day and is associated with night behaviors. 传说中，猫头鹰会从天空俯冲下来吃掉人的灵魂。猫头鹰的叫声和眼神让人联想到死亡和灾难。再者，猫头鹰很少在白天出现，也都让人不得不认为他们是属于黑暗和恐怖。   OWLS

Cats, for centuries, have been considered to be spiritual animals that have the ability to sense good and bad spirits. Western superstitions detail that black cats are able to represent spirits or incarnated humans, thereby linking them to witchcraft. Black is also the color most commonly associated with evil. 从几世纪前，人们就认为猫是一种有灵性的动物，它们能感应到好或坏的灵魂。西方的传说里，有一种说法，黑猫是灵魂的化身。此外，黑色也是邪恶象征。   BLACK CATS

Ghosts & Skeletons Ghosts are universal symbols for the departed. Skeletons and bones are symbols of death and shortness of life. Since Halloween’s origins lie as the festival of the dead, it seems only fitting that ghosts and skeletons would be used. 鬼魂是公认的死亡象征﹔骷髅象征死亡和短暂的生命。既然万圣节一开始就是一个鬼节，当然鬼魂和骷髅就理所当然成了万圣节必见的东西。  

Spiders & Webs 很多文化都视蜘蛛和蜘蛛网为编织生命的象征，但在万圣节，他们却象征着黑暗，恐怖的地方或长久被遗忘的鬼屋。 While many cultures feel that the spider and web represent the weaving of life, in reference to Halloween, they represent dark, spooky places and haunted houses long forgotten. 很多文化都视蜘蛛和蜘蛛网为编织生命的象征，但在万圣节，他们却象征着黑暗，恐怖的地方或长久被遗忘的鬼屋。

Other Symbols 其它还包括了黑色和橘色，乌鸦，月亮，吸血鬼，狼人和面具。 Other symbols related to Halloween include the colors black and orange, scarecrows, the moon, vampires, werewolves, and the wearing of masks. 其它还包括了黑色和橘色，乌鸦，月亮，吸血鬼，狼人和面具。