Overview
- Survey data show nearly three-quarters of Americans plan to celebrate this year, with total spending expected to reach about $13 billion and average outlays rising to roughly $38 per person from $18 in 2005.
- Retailers are stocking and pricing earlier because a larger seasonal footprint makes moving inventory sooner economically advantageous, with full-price early sales followed by markdowns closer to Oct. 31.
- Core rituals trace to the Celtic festival of Samhain—marked by bonfires, disguises and beliefs about a thinned boundary with the spirit world—later layered with Christian All Hallows observances and carried to North America by Irish and Scottish immigrants.
- Jack-o'-lanterns evolved from carved turnips, trick-or-treating grew from guising and offerings, and late‑19th‑century mischief gave way in the mid‑20th century to child‑focused traditions reinforced by suburbanization and individually wrapped candy.
- Contemporary culture reflects both expansion—multi‑day parades, trunk‑or‑treats and elaborate decor—and ongoing critiques, including calls for less gory imagery and notes that some folkloric plants linked to ‘witches’ brews informed modern drugs like atropine, aspirin precursors and digoxin.