Halloween is also known as All Hallows' Eve especially among the Christian community and is celebrated one day before All Saints' Day. It originated as the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain where people dressed up to ward off ghosts and evil spirits.

Is Halloween celebrated in Australia?

Although Halloween, celebrated globally on October 31, is not a nationwide public holiday in Australia, it is becoming a growing trend across the country, especially from a commercial perspective. As in other parts of the world, many Australians celebrate it, but it is the retail and party venues that promote it the most.

As part of the Halloween, celebrations are spooky costumes and decorations items such as pumpkins, bats, spiders, cobwebs, witches, candies, black cats. So you can easily find decorated houses and theme parties across the country. You may also see some children going trick-or-treating around this time of the year, but it occurs especially in some suburbs. Eating lollies and watching scary movies are also popular.

Many Australians, however, don't consider the celebration as part of the Australian culture. They refer to Halloween, as 'an American thing' or an imported product. In fact, it became very popular in the USA due to Irish migration, and Americans were responsible for spreading the festivity widely in its current form. The rejection can be also attributed in part to Australia’s history, which has traditional ties to Britain, rather than the USA.

The people who are favourable to Halloween, say the benefits of celebrating it is to bring families closer spending time together (creating costumes and theming), strengthening community and neighbourhood bonds or starting a conversation amongst members, as well as children spending time together and going outside.

How about you? Do you celebrate Halloween? What is your opinion about it?