Halloween Costumes--Not Just for Children

The holiday of Halloween originated as Hallows╒ eve in ancient Celtic, Irish, and Gaelic cultures. It started as the day before All Saints Day, a religious holiday celebrated on November 1. Now, October 31 is a secular holiday, a time for Halloween costumes and games.
Modern Halloween colors are orange and black. Halloween imagery calls up death, evil, magic, and monsters. Celts placed skeletons on their windowsills to represent the dead. Carved turnips or rutabagas formed the first lanterns, which the ancients used to frighten off superstitions. North Americans started the tradition of carving pumpkins. The use of the name Jack-o-lantern for a carved pumpkin started after a farmer called Stingy Jack tricked a devil, and the devil retaliated, or so the story goes.
Children╒s costumes reflect the traditional scary symbols of Hallows╒ eve. Typical characters include devils, black cats, ghosts, witches, vampires, goblins, skeletons, spiders, and bats. Masks hide the identities of the wearers. Modern costumes bring a lighter side to the holiday, with fairies, angels, princesses, sports figures, and movie stars. According to the National Retail Federation╒s 2008 Halloween Survey, the two most popular costumes for children that year were princesses and witches.
Costumes became popular Halloween items in the United States in the early 1900s. Adults enjoyed costumes as much as children. The first mass produced costumes, which appeared in stores in the early 1930s, included plus size costumes. Witches and pirates were the most popular Halloween costumes for adults in 2008.
Trick-or-treating is a major Halloween tradition in the United States. Razor blades found in apples raised concerns about the safety of food given out to children and resulted in the increased use of pre-wrapped candy. Worries about the safety of children traveling the streets after dark also put a damper on some trick-or-treating. Despite the concerns of parents, it is still a popular practice. The National Confectioners Association reported that 80 percent of adults in the U.S. planned to give out candy to trick-or-treaters in 2005 and that 93 percent of children planned to go trick-or-treating.
Halloween parties include classic games such as bobbing for apples and pin the tail on the donkey (or pin the warts on the witch). Halloween food includes orange candy corn, candied apples, popcorn balls, and taffy wrapped in orange and black papers. Party supplies follow the holiday theme, with orange and black napkins, plates, and streamers. One little girl celebrated her first birthday on Halloween with a chocolate cake with orange icing.
The tradition of making costumes at home was a fun part of preparing for the holiday in the 20th century. Turning a sheet into a ghost was perhaps the most basic costume. Some families continue to make their own costumes, but more and more people rely on manufactured outfits. The National Retail Federation╒s 2005 study found that 53.3 percent of consumers polled planned to buy a Halloween costume. Expected average price was $38.00 (an increase of $10.00 over the year before). Without a doubt, Halloween is big business in the United States.