When was Halloween first given it’s name? How did people celebrate the holiday at that time? Just as all other holidays have special meanings, the holiday we know as Halloween was molded from special roots as well.

According to historychannel.com, the origins of Halloween date back to the ancient Celtic festival, Samhain. The Celts lived in the area that is now known as Ireland, the United Kingdom and Northern France.

They celebrated their new year on Nov. 1. Since that time of year was often associated with human death, the Celts believed that on Oct.31, the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred.

So, the Celts celebrated Samhain on that night. To celebrate Samhain, the people of that time would wear costumes around bonfires. Costumes that were worn at that time were usually made of things like animal heads and skins.

The History Channel also states that after conquering much of the Celtic territory, the Romans began combining their festivals with the traditional Celtic celebrations.

The festivals that they combined were the Feralia and the day to honor Pomona.

The Feralia was a day that the Romans used to commemorate the passing of the dead. Pomona was the Roman goddess of the fruit and the trees.

By the 800’s, Christianity had become very important throughout the Celtic territories, and Pope Bonaface IV named Nov. 1 as “All Saints Day.”

The celebration of the night before, formerly known as Samhain, then became known as All-hallows eve, later to be called Halloween.

Costumes and “trick-or-treating” aren’t new trends either. Historychannel.com further states that “Trick-or-treating” dates back to the early All Souls Day parades that were held in England.

During the parades, the poor would beg for food. In return for promising to pray for the family's dead relatives, they would receive “soul cakes.”

The practice of the poor’s begging was later called “going a-souling,” which over the years, became known as “trick-or-treating.” Costumes evolved from both the European and Celtic roots.

Many people believed that by wearing masks when leaving their homes after dark, ghosts would mistake them for fellow spirits.

Costumes weren’t the only way that residents scared the ghosts away. They also kept bowls of food outside their homes.

Halloween didn’t hit America until the late 1800’s. Once Halloween began to be celebrated in America, its center was changed from ghosts, pranks and witchcraft to community and neighborhood get-togethers.

Parties for both children and adults became a great way for any person to celebrate the holiday.

By the twentieth century, Halloween had lost most of its superstitious and religious overtones. The practice of “trick-or-treating” was revived between 1920 and 1950.

“Trick-or-treating,” costumes and candy are just some of the things children look forward to every year as Halloween approaches.

While the practices of Halloween are fairly inexpensive for “trick-or-treaters” and party-goers, historychannel.com names Halloween as the country's second largest commercial holiday because of its annual $6.9 billion gross.

While it may seem strange to try to understand these ancient actions, it is good to know the roots of our Halloween practices.

For more information on your favorite holiday or other history events, visit www.historychannel.com.