In America (and elsewhere?) we have a tradition of trick-or-treating where on Halloween or the night before kids go around the neighborhood in a costume, knock on doors, and get candy. It’s a lot of fun.
But I was well into adulthood before I learned that not all places have kids tell jokes before they get candy. Apparently it’s only the city I grew up in that they do that! Not even neighboring cities do it.
Where I’m from Halloween you go around and ask for candy, the historical implication being you’d vandalize the property of or otherwise harass in costume anyone who refused. Which followed Cabbage Night, where you would TP people’s houses under the cover of darkness.
Where I grew up, we didn’t wear costumes but dressed in black and walked through the neighborhood in the dark with our carved pumpkins or turnips. We put them on the doorstep and after someone opened the door, we recited a poem.
In Michigan’s lower peninsula we had Devil’s Night on the eve before Halloween, where teenagers would wreak havoc on pumpkins and egg or T.P. property, but I’ve never heard of this.
You know what they got now? Devil’s Night greeting cards. Isn’t that precious?
That sounds exhausting for both the kids and the adults. And the parents taking the kids who have to listen to the same fucking joke every couple of minutes.
“Trick or treat!” is faster and easier. Especially when there’s a line of 20 kids at your house.
Also, pro tip: don’t give candy, order a bunch of cheap toys, temporary tattoos, etc. from a site like Oriental Trading Co. instead. Even the teenagers love them. We’re one of the favorite Halloween houses in the neighborhood. Light-up rings and glow-in-the-dark high bounce balls are especially loved.
We’ve heard, “yes! It’s the toy house!” multiple times over the years.
No joking here! Better costumes got more candy though.
My sibling in their little light up alien spacecraft with hatch for candy got way more than me little black cat costume.
Sadness.
Grew up in CT doing trick or treating and I’ve never even heard of that tradition before, that sounds like alot of work for everyone involved. Even after I came to OH, the idea of calling it “Beggar’s night” still seems wrong.
Nevermind that, what weird place are you in that calls Halloween “beggars night”??
“Is this heaven? No, it’s Iowa.”
What you’re describing is (or at least was) the traditional way of doing Hallowe’en here in Scotland (and also in parts of England Wales and Ireland I think).
Trick or Treaters, more traditionally known as Guisers (because they’re in disguise) are/were expected to earn their treat with some jokes, or a song, or something.
It’s largely dying out now, such is the influence of Halloween (without the apostrophe) and especially the American version of it. Part of me is a bit sad about that, but on the other hand, it’s a hell of a lot simpler if people just hand over sweets instead of requiring a performance! Kids do still usually have at least one joke to tell though, which is fun :-)
See also this article on the pagan festival of Samhain, from which…
Mumming and guising were part of the festival from at least the early modern era, whereby people went door-to-door in costume, reciting verses in exchange for food.
