Halloween in Portugal: from Pão por Deus to Goat and Canhoto, how Portugal celebrates Witches' Day

Carved pumpkins, sinister masks and children knocking on doors. Besides Halloween, "Pão por Deus" survives: in Portugal these are two ways to mark the year's scariest time. Fake spider webs, witches' hats flying over ceilings, skeletons waving or glowing pumpkins smiling at us. This is the scene we now find in shops, schools and shopping centres. It means we are getting close to one of the scariest nights of the year: "Halloween". Although it is not a tradition of Portuguese origin, it is no surprise that on the night of 31 October a group of children in scary costumes knock on our door for the traditional "doçura ou travessura" - "trick or treat" in the English version. And although it is increasingly popular, Halloween is not the only event that marks this time of year. In Portugal there is another tradition which, despite the differences, has something in common with this imported celebration: children also go out into the streets and walk from door to door asking for offerings: it is "Pão por Deus". This tradition is reserved for the morning of 1 November, All Saints' Day in Portugal - a public holiday when those who have passed away are remembered - and it is still kept alive in some places. Although its origin is not agreed upon, it is believed that "Pão por Deus" emerged in the 15th century in a pagan context and is linked to ancient customs of sharing food in memory of the dead. The tradition took on another dimension because of the 1755 earthquake, which struck Lisbon precisely on 1 November and left thousands of people in misery. According to this version, a year after the tragedy the poorest began the custom of going from door to door asking for bread to stave off hunger. Nowadays it is mainly children who keep this practice alive, always with their cloth bags, often decorated by themselves or even handed out by local councils in some areas. The offerings also tend to be different: besides the traditional bread, cakes or dried fruit, people now give sweets or even money. The tradition also involves reciting verses and songs, and there is no shortage of different quatrains: "Pão por Deus, Fiel de Deus, little cake in the bag, you walk with God"; or "Pão por Deus, for the love of God, put it here in the little bag, let everything be for the love of God". In some regions people also sang: "Little cakes and little cakes for me and for you, to give to the departed who are dead and buried". The celebration takes different forms from region to region. In Estremadura it is known as "Dia do Bolinho", when the practice consists of giving traditional cakes of the season. In the Azores one of the traditions linked to this time of year is caspiadas, cakes shaped like skulls in honour of the dead, which still survive in some places. In Beira Baixa the tradition is more closely linked to godparents, who give a cake, the Santoro, to their godchildren. The Portuguese tradition tends to be peaceful. Unlike what happens with the traditional "trick or treat", there is no such obvious link between refusing to give something and possible pranks. In Pão por Deus the spirit of sharing prevails, along with the desire to keep alive a tradition that is passed down from generation to generation. Other traditional celebrations on "Halloween" night There is a Portuguese celebration that comes close to the Celtic roots that gave rise to Halloween and is held in the north of the country, in a village in the district of Bragança, Cidões. It is called the "Festa da Cabra e do Canhoto" and is organised by the Associação Raízes Aldeia Cidões (source in Portuguese). (source in Portuguese) As in the Celtic festival of "Samhain", which gave rise to Halloween, the tradition dictates that a large bonfire should be lit. The "canhoto" that gives the festival its name is a large burning log and represents evil and hidden forces. The tradition also says that the canhoto and the firewood have to be stolen and will only burn if this condition is met. Goat is cooked in large pots over the bonfire and roasted chestnuts are eaten. It is around the bonfire that the ancestral tradition of Celtic origin is revived. The Celts, including the tribe of the Zoelas, lived in the Bragança and Vinhais region and at this time of year celebrated the farewell to the "bright season" to make way for the "dark season". It was believed that in this transition the world of the living and the world of the dead met. The festivities are completed with Celtic-style performances such as dances, fire-breathers, pipers, drums and the arrival of the Careto, a figure from Trás-os-Montes, on an ox-drawn cart. Further north, in the village of Vilar de Perdizes, in the municipality of Montalegre, the "Noite dos Fachos" is celebrated, a tradition full of mysticism. The participants, usually younger people, tend to "steal straw" and climb to the top of the mountains of the Serra do Larouco with the fachos (lit torches), shouting to scare away spirits, demons or witches. The mountain range, at more than 1,500 metres above sea level, inherited the name of a Celtic deity, "Larouco", which helps to explain the link with these supernatural rituals. Halloween, which only arrived in Portugal in the 1990s, was already well established in Vilar de Perdizes, which marks the Day of the Witches under the banner of the "Aldeia Assombrada" (source in Portuguese). The true representation of globalisation The Halloween tradition as we know it today is already a version shaped by many influences and customs. Its roots go back in part to the Celtic festival of "Samhain", held at the end of October and associated with the end of the harvests and the arrival of winter. During this celebration it was believed that the world of the dead and the world of the living were closer together. The Celts thought that the spirits of the dead could return to the world of the living and, over time, customs emerged associated with this belief, such as lighting bonfires and wearing disguises. From the 7th and 8th centuries onwards, with the spread of Christianity and the celebration of All Saints' Day on 1 November, pagan and Christian traditions began to influence each other, helping to shape the celebrations that we now associate with Halloween. The term "Halloween" comes from the English expression "All Hallows' Eve", which means the eve of All Saints' Day. However, it was also with Irish immigration to the United States between 1845 and 1849, during the devastating Great Famine in Ireland, that the tradition began to take new forms and to move closer to what we know today. In the United States costumes, illuminated pumpkins and other practices that we associate with this night became increasingly popular. The city of Anoka in Minnesota calls itself the "Halloween Capital of the World" and is known for having organised in 1920 one of the first large-scale community celebrations dedicated to this date. It was in this city that a parade was organised which helped to consolidate a tradition of public Halloween celebrations. Today its best-known symbols include pumpkins, witches, skeletons and other frightening costumes. Other Halloween celebrations in Europe In many European countries Halloween is celebrated in a way very similar to the North American tradition, but in some places there are very distinctive ways of marking the Night of the Witches. Here are some examples. Transylvania, Romania The region of Transylvania in Romania is now associated with the celebration of Halloween, largely thanks to the vampire imagery created by the Irish writer Bram Stoker in his 1897 novel "Dracula". Bran Castle (source in Portuguese)is marketed as "Dracula's Castle" and has provided the perfect backdrop for Halloween celebrations, themed events and horror-inspired parties. Visitors are taken on a tour through a gloomy atmosphere, very much in the Halloween style. Bruges, Belgium From romantic streets to a dark setting, Bruges is transformed at Halloween. From a storytelling session about the tale of the water ghost that is said to haunt the Lake of Love, to a night-time walk through the city's darkest legends, myths and stories, anything is possible on the night of 31 October. The "Historium", an interactive and immersive tourist attraction located on the Markt (Market Square), also gets into the spirit with a spooky decoration of pumpkins, spider webs and bats, in the style of a haunted house. There is also a virtual reality experience dedicated to Halloween and a Museum of Torture for those brave enough. Edinburgh, Scotland In Edinburgh Halloween is taken very seriously with the Samhuinn Fire Festival (source in Portuguese), which is nothing more than a modern re-creation of the ancient Celtic traditions of the Scottish capital, with colourful costumes, fire performances and a lively procession through the cobbled streets. This festival also exists in Sintra, Portugal, where it is held at Quinta da Ribafria. Derry, Northern Ireland In the city of Derry in Northern Ireland the roots of Halloween are also revived with the Derry Halloween festival. Presented as one of the biggest Halloween festivals in Europe, the event features light shows, acrobatic banshees and circus performers inspired by Celtic traditions. Visitors can also pick out pumpkins or take part in craft workshops before live music and performances take over after dark