Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Why Halloween is superfluous


Today is Halloween, that beloved American holiday celebrated with glowing jack-o-lanterns, trick-or-treating and costume parties. Houses, schools and stores are decked out in macabre decorations like spiderwebs, tombstones, skeletons and ghosts. We love it because it involves eating lots of candy, dressing up and indulging our fascination with all things scary, creepy and dangerous.

Friends at a Halloween party, ca. 1998
As an American expat living in Belgium, I've noticed a few indications of Halloween's approach, but they're feeble and half-hearted, as befitting a holiday that isn't native to this land. As with so many aspects of American culture abroad, TV shows and advertising have given Belgians an awareness of Halloween and its trappings, with the result that it's starting to make inroads here.

However, as much as I miss the all-out excess of Halloween in America, I have to admit that Halloween in Belgium just seems out of place. People my age didn't grow up with Halloween; they never went trick-or-treating or wore a homemade ghost costume to school. Many of them are parents now and make an effort at some kind of Halloween observance for the sake of their kids. But I can tell their heart isn't in it.

Maybe the reason Belgians don't do Halloween is that they don't need it. The things we love about the holiday are already part of other, traditional Belgian holidays. As kids, the thing we liked most was all the candy—and the once-yearly pass from our parents to eat as much as we wanted. Belgian children have Sinterklaas, the feast of St. Nicholas on December 6, which is as much about sugary treats (and sugar overload) as it is about presents.

Dressing up in costume? That's for Carnival, the period leading up to Lent that's celebrated with non-stop partying, drinking, festivals, and yes, crazy costumes. Even better than Halloween, Carnival lasts for days, and some of the traditions (and costumes) date back to the Middle Ages. Of course Carnival, like the version celebrated in New Orleans as Mardi Gras, is more for grown-ups, but children also get in on the fun at school and at Carnival parades especially for them.

One Belgian custom, although no longer widespread, closely resembles trick-or-treating. On Driekoningen ("Three Kings"), the feast of Epiphany on January 6, children dress up as little kings and queens and go door-to-door, singing a song and asking for treats and money. In some communities, this was also done during Carnival—but with different songs, and like the implied threat of TRICK-or-treating, the songs suggested that death would come to those who didn't give!

Children dressed up as Driekoningen

I don't really miss going to Halloween parties or having trick-or-treaters show up at my door. Part of being an expat is embracing a new culture, and that means learning to appreciate the things that are different. But there are a few Halloween traditions that I do miss, like carving pumpkins and eating candy corn. Making a jack-o-lantern is easy enough, and maybe I can get someone to send me some candy corn next year...

(A version of this post also appears on the website for Fans of Flanders, the new television program aimed at English-speaking expats in Belgium. I'm very honored to be one of the regular guest bloggers!)

11 comments:

  1. This may be a stupid question but is Fans of Flanders for expats in all of Belgium or only in Flanders?

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    1. Well, I can't speak for the show since I'm not involved in its production, but I think the audience is everyone, not just expats, with a focus on Flanders in terms of content.

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  2. I introduced pumpkin carving to my nieces 2 years ago and last year they asked for it again. They love it. I miss the pumpkin flavored everything...

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  3. Does anyone have a suggestion on where would be a good place to buy a medium-sized pumpkin in Brussels? I only come across small ones. I find bigger ones handier for carving. In any case, they give you more surface for creative carving.

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    1. Sorry, I can't help with finding pumpkins in Brussels... There are some farms around Hasselt that sell them, so maybe try farmer's markets?

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  4. Hi, I really like your blog and wanted to post some stuff on other entries, but I'll start with this one. ^^
    Although Halloween in its 'American' incarnation is something fairly recent and kind of forced upon us for commercial reasons, 'we' (as far as I know at least in (parts of) West Flanders) also had something similar - albeit more modest. I guess you're right that people of your age didn't do this (Halloween), few were really doing it when I was young (I'm 33 now), but it was tradition to cut out a Jack-O-lantern from beets, put a candle in it and walk from house to house (or just ramble along the fields, I don't know ...). Actually more or less what the Irish also did before they went to America and used pumpkins as no beets were present. I guess this custom has practically disappeared, skipped a generation (or two) and is supplanted by Halloween.

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    1. I'd heard that about the hollowed-out sugar beets! It was an older lady who told me about it but I can't remember where in Flanders she was originally from.

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    2. Well, I guess it might stem from some common Celtic/Germanic/(pre-)Christian tradition across Europe?
      Anyway, for you information, we called it 'kaovje' (~kave (Mnl.) = schoorsteen = chimney)

      Kind regards, hope to read from you soon :)
      Nice to read at least some people enjoy Belgium :)

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  5. in veel Vlaamse dorpen gaan ze op 11 november Sintemaarten zingen, de kinderen dan, ook voor snoep, ze zijn dan ook verkleed en dragen 's avonds een lantaarn mee, vroeger gemaakt van een uitgeholde biet

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  6. In my area we go "trick or treating" on the morning of the last day of the year. AND on the 6th of january ;).

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