スタディー−留学・英会話記事
	・カナダの秋と冬に留学するワケ	・こうすれば英語が上達する！	・海を渡った高校生
	・私の留学記	・Crosstalk	・留学無料代行手続き・問合せ

子供たちが仮装して近所の家からお菓子をもらって歩くハロウィーンの晩には、大人たちの仮装パーティーもよく行われている。

Katie: Do you know what you're going to dress up as for the school's Halloween party?

Masako: Halloween party? I don't even know what Halloween is!

Katie: Halloween is a holiday which we celebrate every thirty-first of October. It originated in Celtic Ireland in fifth century BC. Back then it was called Samhain, and the thirty-first marked the end of summer.

ハロウィーンは古代ケルト人が始めたお祭りで、秋の収穫を祝い、冬の始まりを迎えるにあたって悪霊を追い払うものだった。現在は10月31日に行われ、かぼちゃの中身をくりぬき、目鼻口をくりぬいたちょうちん作って家の前に飾り、子供たちは夜になると仮装して近所の家を訪ね歩き、「Trick or treat?」（いたずらされたくなかったら、お菓子をちょうだい）という決まり文句を言ってお菓子をもらうことになっている。

Masako: Wow! That's neat, but I'm still a little confused. What do you mean by 'dress up'?

Katie: At Halloween parties everyone dresses up as some sort of mythical creature. Usually something scary like a goblin, ghost or witch.

ハロウィーンの仮装で人気のあるものは妖精、お化け、魔女などだが、動物や映画のキャラクターなどを真似たユーモアたっぷりの仮装も多い。

Masako: Why is that, Katie?

Katie: There are many stories as to how this came about; however, the most popular one originates from the Celts again! They believed that every thirty-first of October the spirits of the people who had died throughout the year would come back to take over the bodies of the living! To prevent this they would dress up in ghoulish costumes and make lots of noise so that the ghosts would get scared away.

Masako: That's neat! So at Halloween parties everyone dresses up in scary costumes, and then what?

Katie: Well, often there are special foods that are served that people have come to associate with the holiday. Most of it has to do with pumpkins. For instance: pumpkin pie, or pumpkin seeds!

Masako: Why pumpkins?

Katie: That story comes all the way from Ireland again. Irish folklore tells of a man named Jack who was denied entrance to both heaven and hell. Instead he was doomed to wander through the darkness with nothing to light his way but a candle placed inside a hollowed out turnip. When Irish settlers came to North America they found that pumpkins were far more plentiful, and so despite the legend, they began using pumpkins instead of turnips. Now, every year, people hollow out and cut faces into pumpkins and then display them outside. Then they use the pulp and seeds from the pumpkin to make Halloween treats!

Masako: I can't wait! Halloween sounds like so much fun!