If you believed the origins of Halloween began with witchcraft somewhere in the darkened depths of Salem, you’d be very mistaken.

In fact the tradition began a lot closer to home here in the UK.

Halloween is believed to have started as a pagan religious festival, originating from an ancient Celtic tradition in Ireland about 2,000 years ago. It was known as the festival of ‘Samhain’, a Gaelic word meaning ‘the first day of November’, and it marked the start of a new spiritual year and the end of the summer and harvest season.

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