Last year Canadians spent some $1.64 billion on Halloween. Pretty scary, right? And that might make you think North Americans “invented” the holiday (which isn’t technically a holiday since it doesn’t involve a day off). In fact, our traditions were brought here in the 19th century by Irish immigrants. Halloween, or Samhain in Gaelic, is as old as Ireland itself. Just ask Leasider Catherina Maughan.
“October 31st goes back to the Pagan era,” explains Catherina. In ancient Celtic times, the end of October was considered the last day of the year since it was the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter. It was also the day when the Celts believed the boundary between the living and the dead was at its thinnest, and that allowed spirits to roam the earth, according to Dr. Kelly Fitzgerald, head of the School of Irish, Celtic Studies and Folklore at University College, Dublin.
This belief led to several rituals still practised today and which Catherina remembers well from her childhood in Dublin. “There were bonfires everywhere, which were meant to offer protection from the ‘bad’ souls that might want to mingle with the living, and carved jack-o’-lanterns, which were turnips rather than pumpkins,” she recalls.
It was named after a blacksmith, Jack, who fooled the devil and so was destined to wander Ireland with only a lit, hollowed-out turnip for guidance. And the festival holiday meal always ended with Barmbrack (bairin breac in Gaelic), or fruit loaf. The day I visited, Catherina’s was done to perfection – moist, just the right consistency and loaded with raisins, dried fruit and cinnamon. Another staple at the family meal is colcannon, a hearty dish of potatoes, kale and onion.
Catherina recalls that “after the meal we would go door-to-door with friends chanting ‘Help the Halloween Party’ rather than ‘trick or treat’.” Instead of chocolate or candy she would receive mixed nuts or apples dropped in her bag. Costumes were home-made and simple and always included a mask “so that the spirits wouldn’t recognize us.” Oftentimes they were invited into homes where they would bob for apples. Catherina’s husband David remembers at the end of the night trying to open Brazil nuts in the door jambs at home and leaving gouges in the soft pine wood much to the consternation of his parents.
Fat-free Barmbrack isn’t just a sweet treat; it’s a fortune-telling fruitcake. It was part of the ancient end-of-year ritual of predicting the year ahead. So baked into the loaf are objects such as rings, coins, peas, matchsticks – even rags. Catherina recalls that a ring signified marriage, a coin, wealth, a matchstick, strife in your love life and a piece of rag, impending poverty. “My sisters and I waited anxiously when mum served us our slice to see what our future would be,” she says.
So, this October 31st, as you dress up for an evening’s revelries, consider kickin’ it old school – even ancient school. Serve Barmbrack after dinner. I predict you are going to fall hard for it, and that’s no trick. Oiche Shamhna shona duit!
