We love Halloween. But did you ever think about how it all started? It actually goes back

thousands of years to ancient Ireland. Irish folks, or Celts, celebrated their autumn festival

with costumes, treats, and jack-o-lanterns, just like you. I'm Patty Steele. But unlike you,

at least I hope, they also celebrated with bloody human sacrifice.

That's next on the backstory.

This is an I-Heart podcast.

The backstory is back.

I know you're getting ready for Halloween between autumn leaves,

jackalanderons, giant skeletons, little kids and adults dressed in all sorts of costumes and

of course, boatloads of candy. It's a festive time. Even Hollywood joins in with Halloween-themed

movies and shows that are just as thrilling as they are spooky.

But where did this all come from?

Well, here's the thing.

Our festive celebrations were all part of traditions that were born from some not-so-very-festive traditions in ancient Ireland.

And those traditions have a really dark, frightening origin involving torture

and human sacrifice. Irish folks, or Celts, worshipped pagan gods, as well as nature and the land

itself. Ancient Ireland was a place of rugged coastlines, misty valleys, and deep green forests. So let's go back. Imagine as

the golden leaves are falling and the air is crisp, you and your clan are taking in the harvest

and preparing for the frost and ice of the winter to come. Your religious beliefs include

fairies, mysticism, and animal as well as human sacrifice.

You and the Celts have a celebration called Salon.

It's both a harvest festival and the time of year when you believe that the walls between our world and the next become translucent and almost fragile.

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