It’s amazing how traditions manage to survive, many of the surviving ancient traditions have changed considerably since the time of their historic roots. For example, and I like to use this one a lot, Halloween gets its name from All Hallows Eve, which was the Christianized version of the Celtic holiday of Samhain, Samhain was the Celtic New Year celebration, it was believed the veils between the lands of the living and the dead were at their weakest at the point where one year ends and another begins.
A lot of the practices we see with Halloween have roots in traditions that are much than most people think. Keeping with the example I started with, for consistency’s sake, the practice of dressing up in costumes on Halloween has its roots in the practices of Samhain involving dressing up as Faeries and Goblins then dancing around to distract them from the festivities of Samhain and the practice of wearing scary masks to frighten away malicious spirits (as well as fey and goblins that weren’t distracted by the dancing about) from the celebration grounds. The practice of the Jack-o-lantern is newer by comparison but very old, it has its roots in the Old Irish tradition of carving giant Beets and Turnips into lanterns.
It even has a story called Jack of the Lantern, which tells the story of the namesake of the Jack-o-lantern, I highly recommend reading up on the story if you haven’t yet; the whole pumpkin carving tradition that is often associated with Halloween is a result of people choosing to use gourds (of which pumpkins and squash are both considered) as substitutes due to the lack of overly large beets and/or turnips in mainland Europe and the US when the practice left its native Ireland and was introduced to those regions. So, if you really want to get authentic with your Halloween celebrations, go buy a sugar beet, the mature ones can get pretty big, and carve into an actual lantern. At the very least, your jack-o-lantern will be less like the rest you see around that time of the year.
It is fascinating to learn what practices certain holidays added and left out. It ends up changing the entire context of the tradition all together. Though carving giant beets and turnips doesn’t sound nearly as fun and cool as carving pumpkins. We’re looking to create interesting customs for all the species of Wukrii too! I’d totally would want to have a Halloween equivalent in this world. This is all good info for us to get inspired by. I’ll definitely have to look up that Jack of Lateran story you mentioned. Thanks for the interesting Halloween tradition tidbits Dracone!
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dracone
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No problem, but I’m going to provide a little clarity. The giant beets and turnips, usually beets, were just carved into lanterns, nothing quite like the artistic flourishes that are seen with pumpkins in modern Halloween, they were just carved into something basic that could be an alternative to a cumbersome torch or the like.
Also, the beets and turnips that were carved were quite large (often described as “giant”), not the size you usually see at the store or a dining area
It’s amazing how traditions manage to survive, many of the surviving ancient traditions have changed considerably since the time of their historic roots. For example, and I like to use this one a lot, Halloween gets its name from All Hallows Eve, which was the Christianized version of the Celtic holiday of Samhain, Samhain was the Celtic New Year celebration, it was believed the veils between the lands of the living and the dead were at their weakest at the point where one year ends and another begins.
A lot of the practices we see with Halloween have roots in traditions that are much than most people think. Keeping with the example I started with, for consistency’s sake, the practice of dressing up in costumes on Halloween has its roots in the practices of Samhain involving dressing up as Faeries and Goblins then dancing around to distract them from the festivities of Samhain and the practice of wearing scary masks to frighten away malicious spirits (as well as fey and goblins that weren’t distracted by the dancing about) from the celebration grounds. The practice of the Jack-o-lantern is newer by comparison but very old, it has its roots in the Old Irish tradition of carving giant Beets and Turnips into lanterns.
It even has a story called Jack of the Lantern, which tells the story of the namesake of the Jack-o-lantern, I highly recommend reading up on the story if you haven’t yet; the whole pumpkin carving tradition that is often associated with Halloween is a result of people choosing to use gourds (of which pumpkins and squash are both considered) as substitutes due to the lack of overly large beets and/or turnips in mainland Europe and the US when the practice left its native Ireland and was introduced to those regions. So, if you really want to get authentic with your Halloween celebrations, go buy a sugar beet, the mature ones can get pretty big, and carve into an actual lantern. At the very least, your jack-o-lantern will be less like the rest you see around that time of the year.
It is fascinating to learn what practices certain holidays added and left out. It ends up changing the entire context of the tradition all together.
Though carving giant beets and turnips doesn’t sound nearly as fun and cool as carving pumpkins. 
We’re looking to create interesting customs for all the species of Wukrii too! I’d totally would want to have a Halloween equivalent in this world. This is all good info for us to get inspired by. I’ll definitely have to look up that Jack of Lateran story you mentioned. Thanks for the interesting Halloween tradition tidbits Dracone! 
No problem, but I’m going to provide a little clarity. The giant beets and turnips, usually beets, were just carved into lanterns, nothing quite like the artistic flourishes that are seen with pumpkins in modern Halloween, they were just carved into something basic that could be an alternative to a cumbersome torch or the like.
Also, the beets and turnips that were carved were quite large (often described as “giant”), not the size you usually see at the store or a dining area
Those beets and turnips would have to be mighty big in order to carve anything significant on them I imagine.
Also, there were things called. “cumbersome torches” that used to be made?! I’m discovering all these new uses for certain produce!
Sooooo
No one is gonna talk about the 4th panel? Anyone? Just me OK
Yes, those trivial ritual details truly are amazing!
If any of the rituals call for a full moon, I think we might have found an alternative method of providing one.
Her tail looks really fluffy.
She knows how to properly brush and groom her fluffy tail.