万圣节原本其实是赞美秋天的节日，就好像五月节是赞美春天一样。古代高卢、不列颠和爱尔兰的祭司——德鲁伊德有一个赞美秋天的盛大节日，从10月31日的午夜到次日11月1日，持续整整一天。他们认为，在那天晚上他们伟大的死神——萨曼把那年死去人的鬼魂统统召来，这些恶鬼要受到托生为畜类的惩罚。下面是万圣节英语作文800字【Today is Traditions of Halloween】，望大家喜欢。
作文一
The American tradition of "trick-or-treating" probably dates back to the early All Souls' Day parades in England. During the festivities, poor citizens would beg for food and families would give them pastries called "soul cakes" in return for their promise to pray for the family's dead relatives.
The distribution of soul cakes was encouraged by the church as a way to replace the ancient practice of leaving food and wine for roaming spirits. The practice, which was referred to as "going a-souling" was eventually taken up by children who would visit the houses in their neighborhood and be given ale, food, and money.
The tradition of dressing in costume for Halloween has both European and Celtic roots. Hundreds of years ago, winter was an uncertain and frightening time. Food supplies often ran low and, for the many people afraid of the dark, the short days of winter were full of constant worry. On Halloween, when it was believed that ghosts came back to the earthly world, people thought that they would encounter ghosts if they left their homes. To avoid being recognized by these ghosts, people would wear masks when they left their homes after dark so that the ghosts would mistake them for fellow spirits. On Halloween, to keep ghosts away from their houses, people would place bowls of food outside their homes to appease the ghosts and prevent them from attempting to enter.
作文二
Halloween is a well-known holiday all over the world even though it is not celebrated1 in every country. The main traditions of Halloween are wearing costumes, carving umpkins, telling stories, and going trick-or-treating. But how did they start? Like Halloween itself, the traditions began from older customs in Ireland, Scotland, and England. Different religions have also helped shape Halloween into the holiday we know today.
Modern Halloween began as Samhain, an Irish festival that celebrates the end of harvest. During the festival, people would wear costumes or masks to make themselves look like evil spirits.
Carving pumpkins started long ago with the Celts, who were rumored to be head hunters. They believed that on October , spirits walked among the living. Skulls of enemies were taken out and displayed on this day to scare away any evil spirits that came to the house. After the Celts stopped collecting skulls, they began carving faces out of gourds. When their descendents went to North America, they discovered that pumpkins were larger and easier to carve. The tradition of the jack-o'-lantern6 has been carried on ever since.
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow ells the tale of a headless ghost that rides a horse. It wandered around the countryside with a pumpkin3 on its shoulder. Every Halloween, children enjoy being frightened by this scary story.
即使不是每个国家都会庆祝万圣节，它仍是个举世闻名的节日。万圣节主要的传统活动为变装、刻南瓜、说故事及讨糖果。不过它们是怎么开始的?正如同万圣节本身一样，这些传统源自于爱尔兰、苏格兰与英格兰境内更古老的习俗。不同的宗教信仰也有助于使万圣节成为我们今日所熟悉的节日。
现代的万圣节起源于Samhain节，这是一个庆祝收割结束的爱尔兰庆典。在庆典当中，人们会变装或戴面具，试着让自己看起来像恶灵一般。
雕刻南瓜是许久以前由凯尔特人所起，据说他们皆为猎头族(编按：凯尔特人是欧洲古老民族之一，其分布地甚广)。他们认为在十月三十一日这天，鬼魂会现身于人间。凯尔特人会将敌人的头骨拿出来展示，用以吓走任何接近民舍的恶灵。凯尔特人停止搜集头骨之后，便开始在葫芦上刻出人脸。当凯尔特人的后裔到了北美洲时，他们发现南瓜更大也更易于雕刻。自此以后，南瓜灯笼的传统也就这么延续下去。
《断头谷传奇》述说着关于一位无头幽灵骑士的故事。它的肩上顶着一颗南瓜，在乡间到处纵马驰骋。每年万圣节，孩子们都喜欢被这恐怖故事吓得直打哆嗦。