Dla tych z Was, którzy interesują się kulturą krajów anglojęzycznych postanowiłam stworzyć serię artykułów dotyczących świąt, zwyczajów i ciekawostek. Artykuły te będą pisane po angielsku z uwzględnieniem różnych poziomów zaawansowania. Po każdym z nich znajdziecie mini quiz sprawdzający zrozumienie przeczytanego tekstu. Życzę przyjemnej zabawy z językiem! :)
Halloween
Origin
Halloween
is celebrated on the 31st October.
The word Halloween comes from All
Hallows' Evening also known as Hallowe'en or All Hallows' Eve, which can be
translated as All Saints’ Day.
Halloween
originates from the ancient Celtic tradition connected with the festival known
as Samhain. Samhain was celebrated at the end of the harvest season. It was
believed that on the 31st October the worlds of the living and the dead meet
each other.
Activities
The
activities people participate in on the occassion involve: bonfire making,
dressing up, throwing fancy dress parties, trick-or-treating, playing tricks,
visiting „haunted houses” and carving jack-o-lanterns.
Fancy dress parties
The
idea of dressing up as witches, devils, skeletons, deaths, mummies, etc. and
wearing weird masks results from the fact that in the past it was the very way
of appeasing the dead not to do any harm to the alive. Today, people put on
strange costumes, go to parties, visit cemeteries, make bonfires and tell frightening
stories.
Trick or treat?
This
is the most popular game among kids. Children dress up as well and visit their
neighbourhood. They go from house to house screaming: trick or treat?! This is the way they ask for sweets and candies
and whether they are not given any, they play various tricks on their
neighbours and their possessions.
Jack-o-lanterns
Another
activity is carving out faces in pumpkins and putting the lights inside. These
are called jack-o-lanterns. This name
comes from an Irish folktale about a man nicknamed Stingy Jack. According to
the legend, Stingy Jack invited the devil to have a drink with him but didn’t
want to pay the bill. He tricked the devil to turn into a coin so Jack could
pay for the drinks. By means of the silver cross Jack was carrying by himself,
the devil wasn’t able to return into his previous self until Jack freed him.
However, before freeing the devil, Jack manager to set a deal with the devil:
he will not be bothered by the devil for a year and his soul will not be taken
by the devil when he dies. After a year, Jack deceived the devil the second
time and the devil had to promise not to bother Jack for ten more years. When
Jack eventually died, he was not allowed neither to heaven nor to hell. He had
to walk through the earth carrying a carved turnip with a candle inside to
light his way. The custom was brought by the Irish immigrants to the USA and
there carving pumpkins became more popular.
Quiz
Welcome
to the Halloween Quiz! Let’s see how much have you found out!
1.
What
does Halloween mean?
A.
All
Saints’ Day B. All Souls’ Day C. trick-or-treating
2. Who were the first who introduced
Halloween?
A. Americans B. the British C.
Celts
3. When was Halloween originally
celebrated?
A. in the late summer B. in the early spring C. in autumn
4. Which of the given activities aren’t
practised during Halloween?
A. making a fire B. chasing witches C. trick-or-treating
5. Which of them are popular
Halloween costumes?
A. witches and monsters B.
princesses and dwarves C. Disney
characters
6. How can you explain ‘trick or
treat’?
A. misbehaving or candies B. screaming loud or
candies C. misbehaving or
treating well
7. What are jack-o-lanterns?
A. turnips B. pumpkins C.
tomatoes
8. Where does this custom come from?
A. Ireland B. England C.
the USA
9. What does ‘stingy’ mean?
A. honest B. mean C.
generous
10. Where did Stingy Jack end up
after death?
A. heaven B. hell C.
earth
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