Halloween
/ˌhæl.əˈwiːn/noun
The evening of October 31, traditionally observed before All Saints’ Day.
Did you know?Halloween developed from the Christian observance of All Hallows’ Eve, while many of its customs became associated with older seasonal traditions, especially the Gaelic festival Samhain; the exact historical continuity is debated.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*kailo-
“Whole, uninjured, sound, or of good omen; the reconstructed ancestor associated with later Germanic words for holiness.”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*hailagaz
“Holy or sacred; the source of the Germanic family that produced English hallow and holy.”
Old English
Old English
hālig / hālgian
“Holy; to make holy or consecrate.”
8th–11th Century
Old English
eall hāligra æfen
“The eve of all holy ones, referring to the vigil before All Saints’ Day.”
14th Century
Middle English
Alhalwe-even
“All Hallows’ evening or the evening before All Saints’ Day.”
16th Century
Scots
Hallowe’en
“A contracted form of All Hallows’ Even, the evening before All Saints’ Day.”
Modern English
English
Halloween
“The established modern name for October 31 and its associated customs.”