Hallowe’en? It started here in Scotland

The annual spook-fest that is Hallowe’en has long been a pumpkin-sized phenomenon, particularly in the US, where it rivals Christmas for its parties, decorations and sheer commercial razzamatazz. We tend to think of it as an American cultural tradition imported over here to Europe, but some say the truth is very different. Its roots are said to lie in the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, which commemorates the dead and once involved carving skulls from turnips. The annual festival was carried across the Atlantic by early Scottish and Irish immigrants, later evolving into the ghoulish extravaganza that we know today.