Night before Halloween

[DAK]

The day before a Christian feast day became the
"eve" ( originally the evening before ) of that day,
hence "Christmas Eve." In this case, "All Hallows
Eve," "All Hallows" is better known now as "All
Saints Day."  "All Saints Day" is followed by "All
Souls Day," which is better known in Mexico  ( and,
increasingly, in the U.S.) as El Dia ( looks odd
without the accent ) de los Muertos.  [ For a
similar concept, but different season, see
"Walpurgisnacht."]

Mark A Mandel wrote:

> On Thu, 31 Oct 2002, Hollie B wrote:
>
> #Is All Hallow's Eve considered the night before or the
> #night of Halloween?
> #
> #Annie Bush
>
> Same night.
>
> Halloween (I learned to write it as "Hallowe'en", in the prehistoric
> 1950s) < Hallow Even < All Hallows' Even.
>
> -- Mark A. Mandel