Halloween is a patchwork holiday,

萬聖夜是個拼拼湊湊而成的節日。

stitched together with cultural, religious and occult traditions that spans centuries.

由橫跨幾世紀以來的文化、宗教和神祕的傳統交織而成。

[sound of flute]

（笛聲）

It all began with the Celts, a people whose culture had spread across Europe more than 2,000 years ago.

一切由凱爾特人而起，超過兩千年前，這個民族的文化傳播全歐洲。

October 31st was the day they celebrated the end of the harvest season in a festival called Samhain.

他們在10月31日一個被稱作蕯溫節的慶典上，慶祝收穫季的結束。

That night also marked the Celtic New Year and was considered a time between years.

當晚也被標記成是凱爾特人的新年，人們認為是新舊年之間的時間。

A magical time when the ghosts of the dead walked the Earth.

是一段神奇的時間，鬼魂會在人世間飄蕩。

"It was the time when the veil between death and life was supposed to be at its thinnest."

在這段時間裡，人間和陰間相隔薄如蟬翼。

[wolves howling]

（狼嚎）

On Samhain, the villagers gathered and lit huge bonfires to drive the dead back to the spirit world and keep them away from the living.

在蕯溫節，村民會聚在一起並燃起巨大的營火來驅使亡靈回到陰間，讓它們離活人遠遠的。

But as the Catholic church's influence grew in Europe, it frowned on the pagan rituals like Samhain.

然而隨著天主教的影響力遍及歐洲，他們對像是蕯溫節這種異教徒的儀式就頗有微詞。

In the 7th century, the Vatican began to merge it with a church sanctioned holiday.

在西元七世紀，梵蒂岡開始把它跟教會許可的節日融合在一起。

So November 1st was designated All Saint's Day to honour martyrs and the deceased faithful.

所以11月1日被指定為「萬聖節」，向殉難者和已逝的忠貞之士致敬。

"Both of these holidays had to do with the afterlife and about survival after death."

「這兩個節日都和亡者以及死後存活有關。」

"It was a calculated move on the part of the Church to bring more people into the fold."

「這是教會精心策畫的一步棋，目的是為了將更多人納入門下。」

All Saint's Day was known then as Hallowmas.

當時的萬聖節稱為 Hallowmas（萬聖節的舊稱）。

'Hallow' means holy or saintly

「Hallow」意思是神聖的或是品德高尚的。

So, the translation is roughly - mass of the saints.

所以大概可以翻譯成「眾聖人」。

The night before, October 31st, was All Hallow's Eve, which gradually morphed into Halloween.

萬聖節的前一個晚上，也就是10月31日，稱為 All Hallow's Eve，慢慢演變成 Halloween（萬聖夜）。

The holiday came to America with the wave of Irish immigrants during the Potato Famine of the 1840s.

1840年代的愛爾蘭大饑荒時期，這個節日隨著愛爾蘭移民潮傳至美洲。

They brought several of their holiday customs with them, including

他們帶來好幾個節日習俗，包括

Bobbing for apples

水中咬蘋果

and playing tricks on neighbours like removing gates from the front of houses.

以及捉弄鄰居，像是把房子前面的柵欄移走。

The young pranksters wore masks so they wouldn't be recognized.

小孩惡作劇時會戴著面具，這樣就不會被認出來。

But over the years, the tradition of harmless tricks grew into outright vandalism.

隨著時間過去，無傷大雅的玩笑傳統演變成全然的破壞行為。

"Back in the 1930s, it really became a dangerous holiday. I mean there was...uh..such a hooliganism and vandalism."

「在1930年代，它變成一個危險的節日。我的意思是，呃，簡直就是流氓行徑而且肆意破壞。」

"Trick or Treating was originally a extortion deal."

「不給糖就搗蛋原本是一種敲詐。」

"Give us candy or we'll trash your house."

「給我們糖果，否則我們就胡搞瞎搞你的房子。」

Store keepers and neighbours began giving treats or bribes to stop the tricks and children were encouraged to travel

店家跟街坊鄰居開始請客或是賄賂，以免遭到惡搞，人們也鼓勵孩童

door to door for treats as an alternative to trouble making.

挨家挨戶去要東西，免得他們製造麻煩。

By the late 30s, Trick or Treat became the holiday greeting.

到了30年代後期，「不給糖就搗蛋」成為了節日的問候語。