Here in NEw Zealand we have a mix of cultures, religions, etc. Of course, all that gives way to CONSUMERISM, CAPITALISM and the huunger for the almighty DOLLAR.
any idea what these things are? have yo uconsidered what effects our greedy society is having on us , our communities and our planet?
do you care? probably not - you're only little squidlets who need not overly concern yourselves with the ways of th eworl djust yet. however! i know some of you are very socially, morally and environmentally conscious. I feel relieved that there are such good people thinking and acting - perhaps the human race will redeem itself.
8>)
my rant aside, i am wondering what you think about the various things we celebrate here. you may realise it is different in different countries. g-man's speech enlightened us about differences in Spain when recognising birthdays.
halloween has only recently become something we acknowledge here. is it a good thing? what is the point of it? do you have any idea what it's all about? or is it just about threatening poor neighbours into giving you treats? that seems a bit rude to me. of course, i'm all for dressing up and having fun too.
let the discussion begin...
18 comments:
hmmm i really don't know.
halloween hmmmm:
Halloween originated from the Pagan festival Samhain, celebrated among the Celts of Ireland and Great Britain.
It was a day of religious festivities in various northern European Pagan traditions,[2] until Popes Gregory III and Gregory IV moved the old Christian feast of All Saints' Day from May 13 to November 1.
In the southern hemisphere, spring is in full swing by October 31, and the days are rapidly growing longer and brighter. This does not mesh well with the traditional Celtic spirit of Halloween, which relies on an atmosphere of the encroaching darkness of winter. However, Halloween has recently gained a large amount of recognition in Australia and to a moderate extent New Zealand, largely due to American media influences, with many young families in Australia embracing the tradition.[24][25] In 2006, costume shops reported a rise in sales on Halloween-themed costumes,[26] on October 31, 2006 and have reported a steady increase on Octobter 31, 2007. On Halloween night, horror films and horror-themed TV episodes are traditionally aired, and currently, Halloween private parties are more commonly held than actual "trick-or-treating", however both are still observed. Trick or treating is generally only done in the trick-or-treater's neighbourhood.
Wikipeadia.
I think that halloween origionated as a serious event although, I think its just a time for fun, like christmas. No-one does tricks (not really...ahhhh...well....um) anymore and you can decorate if you welcome people. There are dangers but really its just a fun day. At this time of year its light so as less dangerous. And well worth the effort of walking for the MOUNtAIN of lollies (sadly this year i'm restricted to lieing on my bed...I WAS SICK!!!!!!! whaaaaaaaaa)
83)
THE ORIGIN OF HALLOWEEN:
(kit de kat bate me to it, oh well!)
the origins of halloween date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in).
celets lived 2000 years ago in the country known as Ireland, the United Kingdom, and northern France, celebrated their new years day on the first of november. This day was the official end of summer and the harvesting season and the beginning of a dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts had a belief that on the night before the new year was the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31, they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. In addition to causing trouble and damaging crops, Celts thought that the presence of the otherworldly spirits made it easier for the Druids, or Celtic priests, to make predictions about the future. For a people entirely dependent on the volatile natural world, these prophecies were an important source of comfort and direction during the long, dark winter.
To commemorate the event, Druids built huge sacred bonfires, where the people gathered to burn crops and animals as sacrifices to the Celtic deities.
During the celebration, the Celts wore costumes, typically consisting of animal heads and skin, and attempted to tell each other's fortunes. When the celebration was over, they re-lit their hearth fires, which they had extinguished earlier that evening, from the sacred bonfire to help protect them during the coming winter.
By A.D. 43, Romans had conquered the majority of Celtic territory. In the course of the four hundred years that they ruled the Celtic lands, two festivals of Roman origin were combined with the traditional Celtic celebration of Samhain.
The first was Feralia, a day in late October when the Romans traditionally commemorated the passing of the dead. The second was a day to honor Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit and trees. The symbol of Pomona is the apple and the incorporation of this celebration into Samhain probably explains the tradition of "bobbing" for apples that is played as a game today on Halloween.
By the 800s, the influence of Christianity had spread into Celtic lands. In the seventh century, Pope Boniface IV designated November 1 All Saints' Day, a time to honor saints and martyrs. It is widely believed today that the pope was attempting to replace the Celtic festival of the dead with a related, but church-sanctioned holiday. The celebration was also called All-hallows or All-hallowmas (from Middle English Alholowmesse meaning All Saints' Day) and the night before it, the night of Samhain, began to be called All-hallows Eve and, eventually, Halloween. Even later, in A.D. 1000, the church would make November 2 All Souls' Day, a day to honor the dead. It was celebrated similarly to Samhain, with big bonfires, parades, and dressing up in costumes as saints, angels, and devils. Together, the three celebrations, the eve of All Saints', All Saints', and All Souls', were called Hallowmas.
reference/good place to visit for halloween stuff:http://www.history.com/minisite.do?content_type=mini_home&mini_id=1076
feeling scared yet? i know you are! (most of it is in my own words!) happy halloween(this is so coming on to one of my blogs!)
i think halloween would started out has a serious religious belief which has now been turned into a good way of getting lollies from people! have a nice holiday everyone!
did you copy and paste that kitty kat....ooooooh naughty!(i think you did from the numbers and stuff!)
um well from what i learnt from wikipedia put in my own (simplish :)) words....basically halloween is when on october the 31st the boundry between life and death blurred giving the dead the abilty to walk through life. Humans dressed as ghosts, witches etc to blend in on this day. they also celebrated with bonfires, fireworks and all sorts of other stuff. 'trick or treating' oringinated from children going to their neighbours and asking for fruit, nuts, and lollies for the festival.
A game that was played in Ireland was like this...
The Halloween Brack traditionally contained various objects baked into the bread and was used as a sort of fortune-telling game. In the barmbrack were: a pea, a stick, a piece of cloth, a small coin (originally a silver sixpence) and a ring. Each item, when received in the slice, was supposed to carry a meaning to the person concerned: the pea, the person would not marry that year; the stick, "to beat one's wife with", would have an unhappy marriage or continually be in disputes; the cloth or rag, would have bad luck or be poor; the coin, would enjoy good fortune or be rich; and the ring, would be married within the year.
some other things we celebrate are....
easter
christmas
birthdays
guyfawkes
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween#Ireland
Hooray for celebrations
maniac me and penguin8jessica came over to trick or treat with me. we also met piglet who was with our friend shannon.
we were thinking of getting my mum to drive us to your house so we could give you a surprise, but my mum said no.
hehe...
Yea! oh well it was fun enough getting a billion lollies!!
I wonder if countries with other main religions have Halloween or there own version of it?
yes, they do! see wikipedia. miss cany, your comment is really long, you should consider summerising as it also is more appealing to read if there is not as many words.
yea it would be pretty interesting to find out?...
England
All Saints' Day (All Hallows Day) became fixed on November 1, 835, and All Souls' Day on November 2, circa 998. On All Souls' Eve, families stayed up late, and little "soul cakes" were eaten by everyone. At the stroke of midnight there was solemn silence among households, which had candles burning in every room to guide the souls back to visit their earthly homes, and a glass of wine on the table to refresh them. The tradition continued in areas of northern England as late as the 1930s, with children going from door-to-door "souling" (i.e., singing songs) for cakes or money. The English Reformation in the 16th century de-emphasised holidays like All Hallows Day and its associated eve. With the rise of Guy Fawkes Night celebrations in 17th century England, many Halloween practices, especially the building of bonfires, were moved to November 5.
US and Canada
Halloween did not become a holiday in the United States until the 19th century, where lingering Puritan tradition restricted the observance of many holidays. American almanacs of the late 18th and early 19th centuries do not include Halloween in their lists of holidays.[17] The transatlantic migration of nearly two million Irish following the Irish Potato Famine (1845-1849) finally brought the holiday to the United States. Scottish emigration from the British Isles, primarily to Canada before 1870 and to the United States thereafter, brought the Scottish version of the holiday to each country.
Mexico
Halloween is largely uncelebrated in the Caribbean. However, like Australia and New Zealand, the event is not unheard of in the Caribbean and is seeing some increase in popularity.
People's Republic of China
There is no Halloween in Chinese tradition, but there is a similar Chinese holiday called Ghost Festival. The Ghost Festival is a traditional Chinese festival and holiday, which is celebrated by Chinese people in many countries. In the Chinese calendar (a lunisolar calendar), the Ghost Festival is on the 14th night of the seventh lunar month, which is called Ghost Day. In Chinese tradition, the ghosts and spirits, including those of the deceased ancestors, come out from the lower world.
WIKIPEDIA
halloween is kinda of like evolution, it has grown to suit different purposes, eg, fun! it has also changed to suit different cultures, like the US and Canada.
I got a new computer!!!! YAY!
Yes, Sorry 'bout the big comment that I left...I agree with room5ian...
Ms Candy! I put the source...duh!!! ;3)I think celebrations are really interesting...maybe we should study them as one of our learning objects for this Microsoft thing we're starting tomorrow.
I think keep your posts/comments short and sharp if they're information based so that they are more appealing to read for others.
THREE CHEERS FOR MR WOODY!!!
HIP HORRAY HIP HORRAY HIP HORRAY
THREE CHEERS FOR MISS OBIWAN KANOBE
HIP HORRAY HIP HORRAY HIP HORRAY
hehe! sorry about the long comment!yeah go miss birdie! I cant wait to do the filming thing you talked about on tuesday! can we do it before miss birdie leaves
yeah, it will be great!!
Mr woody, kitty kat and i have two people this week (and the week before -we wont seriously base it on that week though becaues we know that some of you wernt here for the week) to reward for blogging, so can we give the prize to them in monday?
Weren't we supposed to reward them today
yes we were pom
yes we were but we didnt have any time as we had speeches after interval and then discus after lunch. but they will hopefully be presented on monday.....
kitty kat i might have another person but we'll see how they go over the weekend.
congratulations with the speech finalists!! great effort, you guys did and awesome job.... well done
it takes a lot of guts to get up in front of that many people.
hey!
i am so excited for that filming thing !!!!!!! it's like gunna be the highlight of my year!!
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