The Math Behind Halloween – The Spectrum of Science

It is celebrated when to_s Is a multiple of 90 degrees understandable. Spring and fall begin at the equinoxes, and have always been important days for planting. Many calendar systems mark the beginning of the year at the beginning of spring, which we can still see today on religious holidays such as Easter. It is also understood that celebrations take place on the winter solstice, when the long nights become shorter again. The fact that we do not celebrate Christmas exactly on the winter solstice, but a few days after it, is due to calendar reforms that have occurred over time.

Traditions change, but mathematics does not

Even a festival like Halloween, celebrated at the end of October, has a basis beyond the modern interpretation of a scary day for children. In many cultures, the exact days that fell between the solstice and the equinox were important—not the beginning and end of the seasons, but their midpoint. For example, May 1 is still a holiday today; And not just May Day: in Celtic culture Beltane Day was one of the most important festival days of the year.

Between the beginning of autumn and the beginning of winter we can choose between several holidays. According to Christian tradition, All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day can be celebrated on November 1 and 2 – or Reformation Day or Halloween on October 31. In Irish Celtic tradition, this was a day when the boundaries between the worlds of the living and the dead became permeable, reminiscent of modern Halloween celebrations. In fact, there is no evidence of the continued evolution of Celtic traditions into modern Halloween customs.