The Pagan Mysteries of Halloween

September 24, 2001

Markale, a French specialist in Celtic traditions, traces the history of Halloween from its origins as a Samhain festival, discussing its juxtaposition with the Christian All Saints Day and its modern renaissance as a mischievous children's holiday. Although the text is generally quite evenhanded, some oversimplifications creep in, as when Markale calls November 2, the Day of the Dead, "a kind of 'ancestor worship' that dares not say its name," or when he claims that "we know" that the dead walk about on Halloween night "because some people have witnessed it." Markale is best when he sticks to history, claiming, for example, that after centuries of suppression in Europe, Halloween found new life among 19th-century Irish immigrants to America.