Halloween is celebrated each year on October 31, and its roots go back over two thousand years to ancient Celtic practices, Christian traditions, and folk beliefs. The date and the rituals all evolved over centuries to become the holiday many of us know today. Here’s how that came to be.

The ancient Celts (in what are now Ireland, the UK, and parts of northern France) marked November 1 as the beginning of their new year. This date signified the end of summer and the harvest, and the onset of what they considered “the dark half” of the year.

The evening before (October 31) was Samhain (pronounced “sow-in”) — a time when it was believed the boundary between the living world and the spirit world thinned. Ghosts or spirits might roam, and people sought to appease or fend them off. Fire, costumes, and rituals were part of the observance.

As Christianity spread into Celtic lands, the church sought to incorporate or reframe existing traditions. In the 7th–9th centuries (roughly), All Saints’ Day was set for November 1 to honor all Christian saints.

The evening before became known as All Hallows’ Eve (hallows = saints), which eventually morphed into “Halloween.”

Another related day, All Souls’ Day (November 2), honors more broadly the faithful departed. Over time, the three days (Oct 31 – Nov 2) are collectively known by some as Allhallowtide.

Many of the spooky trappings associated with Halloween today—costumes, ghost stories, jack-o’-lanterns, trick-or-treat (or its older equivalents), bonfires, and the sense that the “veil is thin”—come originally from Celtic Samhain, adapted by Christian observances, and later shaped again by immigrants (especially to the US) and secular culture.

So that is why Halloween is in October 31: it’s the eve of November 1, the Christian feast of All Saints, which was placed in that time to overlap or succeed older pagan practices.

If you want to experience a bit of history plus chills, one place stands out in Johannesburg: The Old Fort at Constitution Hill.

• The Old Fort (also known previously as the Johannesburg Jail) was built in 1893 by President Paul Kruger to house criminals in a rapidly growing mining town.
• Later, especially during the Jameson Raid (1895-96) and the Second Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902), it was fortified, occupied, and used for imprisoning people (including Boer soldiers).
• It’s not just its age or its punitive past that lend it a haunted atmosphere, but the stories, the architecture, the cells, and the human suffering that echoes from its history. The sense of confinement, the echoes, and the dim corridors naturally feed into ghost lore and haunted imagination.

Visiting the Old Fort -It’s part of Constitution Hill, which is now a living museum and heritage site. Visiting gives you both the factual history (apartheid, colonial history, political prisoners, etc.) and the atmospheric potential for a “haunting” experience — whether literal or psychological.

• Tours typically include access to the Old Fort and other parts of Constitution Hill, where you can see the old cells, learn the stories of inmates, guards, and the political prisoners. At dusk or in off-hours, the place carries a powerful sense of presence.
• If you like ghost tours, or walking at twilight, this is one of the best spots in Joburg to try to imagine the past. Bring a flashlight, go with someone else, and let the history set the mood.

Halloween’s placement on October 31 is the result of layers of tradition: Celtic Samhain marking the end of harvest and thinning of the veil between life and death; the Christian holidays of All Saints and All Souls; and the later secular embellishments that made it into what it is today. For those in Johannesburg (or visiting), you don’t have to go as far as the old Celtic lands to feel the weight of the past — places like The Old Fort at Constitution Hill offer both a powerful history and the kind of atmosphere that brings Halloween’s roots to life.