Halloween! A time for games, fun and fortune-telling, for ghosts stories and making mischief. At Halloween on October 31, millions of people celebrate a very old festival indeed.
For centuries, people believed that Halloween was a night when witches walked – or flew! – and ghosts and spirits were on the loose. What makes Halloween so special is its long and colorful history. For all the fun games, it is part of the story of Britain, Ireland and northern France – part of their 2000-year-old Celtic past.
Halloween was originally known as the Festival of the Dead. The church wanted to break its hold, and to do this called it All Hallows’ Eve. Hallow means holy, holy man or saint. This later became Halloween, and the church made November 1 All Saints’ Day. But Halloween was never really a Christian festival.
Many ancient people believed that on certain nights of the year the spirits of the dead went wandering. One such people were the Taino Indians. They lived on the island of Puerto Rico long before the Spanish arrived. The Indians thought the hungry souls of the dead might return to the family hut. For this reason they used to set out food offerings at night.
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«Halloween Parties»
Read the text and translate it
Halloween
Halloween! A time for games, fun and fortune-telling, for ghosts stories and making mischief. At Halloween on October 31, millions of people celebrate a very old festival indeed.
For centuries, people believed that Halloween was a night when witches walked – or flew! – and ghosts and spirits were on the loose. What makes Halloween so special is its long and colorful history. For all the fun games, it is part of the story of Britain, Ireland and northern France – part of their 2000-year-old Celtic past.
Halloween was originally known as the Festival of the Dead. The church wanted to break its hold, and to do this called it All Hallows’ Eve. Hallow means holy, holy man or saint. This later became Halloween, and the church made November 1 All Saints’ Day. But Halloween was never really a Christian festival.
Many ancient people believed that on certain nights of the year the spirits of the dead went wandering. One such people were the Taino Indians. They lived on the island of Puerto Rico long before the Spanish arrived. The Indians thought the hungry souls of the dead might return to the family hut. For this reason they used to set out food offerings at night.
Before northern Europe became Christian, people believed that every autumn there came a night of howling wind and frightening happenings. Witches rode the air, skeletons rattled their bones, and ghosts appeared out of the swirling mists.
The Christian religion has set aside a special day to honor all those saints who do not have name of their own. It is November 1, and it is called All Saints’ Day. In Europe, the night of the ghosts and witches was combined with the Christian holy day. Because that night fell on October 31, people called it Halloween. This means “hallowed evening” or “holy eve”.
Today’s Halloween customs in English-speaking America – mainly the USA and Canada - had their beginnings in England, Scotland, and Ireland long, long ago.
The snarling black Halloween cats with arched backs are said to have once been human beings who were punished for their evil deeds. The grinning jack-o’-lantern carved from the harvest pumpkin is said to be the head of a man named Jack. He was so mean he could not enter heaven or hell, but had to walk the earth forever.
On Halloween, people often go to parties at which fortunes are read and ghost stories are told. Children may dress up in the costumes and masks of witches, goblins, or skeletons and go trick – or- treating. They ring doorbells for candy, apples, or coins. If they do not receive a treat, they may play a trick.
Some Halloween tricks are messy and annoying. Children may slap at sidewalks or front doors with socks filled with flour. They may smear windows and parked cars with shaving cream or soap. But other tricks may permanently damage property and even harm people.
2. Answer the following questions:
When do millions of people celebrate Halloween?
What day is special for dead?
Where did Today’s Halloween customs have their beginnings?
What does the snarling black Halloween cat and grinning jack-o’-lantern mean?
What do people do on this day?
3. Find the English equivalents:
Страшные события; ведьма; призрак; День Всех Святых; наряжаться в костюм; разыграть шутку; фестиваль мертвых.
4. Write a recipe using at least one of the following ingredients. Name your recipe.
5. Use the following code to learn the secret. Write the letters on the correct lines
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
12 15 15 11 15 21 20
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ !
8 5 18 5 3 15 13 5 19 1
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
23 9 3 11 5 4 23 9 20 3 8
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ !
18 21 14 18 21 14 18 21 14
_ _ _! _ _ _! _ _ _!
6. Read and translate the story
The Green Ribbon
Once there was a girl named Lenny. She was like all the other girls, except for one thing. She always wore a green ribbon around her neck. There was a boy named Alfred in her class. Alfred liked Jenny, and Jenny liked Alfred. One day he asked her,
“Why do you wear that ribbon all the time?”
“I cannot tell you,” said Jenny. But Alfred kept asking,
“Why do you wear it?” And Jenny would say,
“It is not important.”
Jenny and Alfred grew up and fell in love. One day they got married. After their wedding, Alfred said,
Now that we are married, you must tell me about the green ribbon.”
“You still must wait,” said Jenny. “I will tell you when the right time comes.”
Years p[assed. Alfred and Jenny grew old. One day Jenny became very sick. The doctor told her she was dying. Jenny called Alfred to her side.
“Alfred,” she said, “now I can tell you about the green ribbon. Untie it, and you will see why I could not tell you before.” Slowly and carefully, Alfred untied the ribbon, and Jenny’s head fell off.
