Halloween is a popular Western holiday celebrated on October 31st. On Halloween, people throw costume parties and enjoy horror-themed entertainment, such as scary movies, haunted houses, ghost stories, and more. Prevalent themes of the holiday include ghosts, witches, vampires, werewolves, and other supernatural characters. Children in particular enjoy the custom of “trick-or-treating”, in which they go door to door, collecting candy from their neighbors. Carving pumpkins as ghoulish faces to hold candles has become a popular part of the festival.

Halloween originally began as a pagan festival in ancient Great Britain and Ireland. It was absorbed into other holidays, and became associated with “All Saints Day”. Immigrants from Europe brought the tradition to North America where it gained popularity. Due to the prominence of American pop culture, the holiday has since spread to most of the English-speaking Western world.