Halloween in Ireland starts with Samhain, a Celtic festival held halfway between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice. The holiday celebrated today grew out of it, with the Church’s calendar and customs shared with England and Scotland added over the centuries. So did Halloween start in Ireland? In part: the festival, the fire and the date are Irish, and much of the rest arrived later.
This guide covers the Hill of Ward in County Meath, where the old texts place the Samhain fire, the customs that became Halloween, the festivals that run in Ireland today, and the Halloween trip we are planning for 2027.
Halloween in Ireland At a Glance
In short, Halloween has Irish roots, but the holiday is a blend of several traditions.
- Origin: Halloween descends from Samhain, a Celtic festival that marked the turn to the darker half of the year.
- Key site: The Hill of Ward (Tlachtga) in County Meath is where the old texts place the Samhain fire.
- Evidence: The texts were written down centuries later. Excavation found animal bone, large-scale burning and no houses, however, proving a direct connection between these burnt remains and Samhain remains difficult.
- Today: Derry and County Meath both hold Halloween festivals, with parades, processions and fire.
- With us: A Halloween itinerary for 2027 is in development, with small group, private and custom options.
Table of Contents
- Did Halloween Start in Ireland?
- What Was Samhain in Ancient Ireland?
- The Hill of Ward (Tlachtga): Where the Samhain Fire Burned
- How Did Samhain Become Halloween?
- How Does Ireland Celebrate Halloween Today?
- Haunted Ireland: Five Castles and Forts With a Story
- Seeing Samhain’s Ireland With Irish Experience Tours
- Halloween in Ireland: Where to Start
- FAQ
Did Halloween Start in Ireland?
Did Halloween originate in Ireland? In large part, yes. Modern Halloween descends directly from Samhain, an ancient Celtic festival marking the harvest’s end and the turning of the year, when people believed the boundary between the living and the dead blurred for one night.
The 17th-century historian Geoffrey Keating specifically places Samhain’s ritual centre and primary ceremonial fire at the Hill of Ward (Tlachtga) in County Meath.
However, the global holiday celebrated today is a rich cultural blend. Over centuries, the Christian Church superimposed All Hallows’ Eve onto the pagan festival calendar, while additional folklore, traditions, and customs from England and Scotland were woven into the observance.
Later, 19th-century Irish emigrants brought these cherished Samhain customs across the Atlantic to North America, where they evolved into the modern commercial holiday known worldwide today.
What Was Samhain in Ancient Ireland?
Samhain marked the turn from the lighter half of the year to the darker half, midway between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice. World History Encyclopedia says it began at dusk around 31 October and likely lasted three days. Samhain in Ireland was one of four seasonal festivals, alongside Imbolc, Bealtaine and Lughnasadh, and the encyclopedia calls it perhaps the most significant of the four.
The Turn From Summer to Winter
The four festivals divide the year into quarters. Bealtaine, the counterpart that opens the summer half, is covered in our guide to Bealtaine and May Day, including the Hill of Uisneach. Samhain is also the modern Irish word for the month of November.
What People Believed About the Otherworld
Much of what is known about Samhain beliefs comes from Irish mythology, which Christian monks recorded in the medieval period. In those stories, the veil between the Otherworld and the physical world lifts at Samhain, the sídh mounds open, and spirits, kind and hostile, act with more power among the living.
The manuscripts were written down centuries after the festival’s earliest days. They show how Samhain was remembered, not how it was first observed.
The Hill of Ward (Tlachtga): Where the Samhain Fire Burned
The Hill of Ward, also known as Tlachtga, sits in County Meath’s Boyne Valley, about 30 miles north of Dublin and about 12 miles from the Hill of Tara. The old texts place the Samhain fire here. Excavation has found large-scale burning and animal bones that point to feasting.
What the Old Texts Say About the Fire
Why are bonfires lit at Halloween? The custom traces back to the Samhain fire at Tlachtga. In his History of Ireland, the 17th-century historian Geoffrey Keating describes how King Tuathal Teachtmhar built the fortress of Tlachtga. On the eve of Samhain, the druids of Ireland gathered there to make offerings to the gods.
Every other fire in Ireland had to be put out that night, under penalty of a fine, and could be relit only from the Tlachtga fire. The king of Munster collected a tax of three pence on each fire kindled from it.
What Archaeologists Found
Stephen Davis of University College Dublin has led excavations at Tlachtga since 2014, using lidar and geophysical survey alongside digging, according to Archaeology magazine. The hill was built in three phases: a Bronze Age phase (1200 to 800 BC), a complex middle phase, and a Late Iron Age phase (AD 400 to 520).
The team found large quantities of animal bone in all three phases, which points to feasting on a large scale. They found no houses, so the hill appears to have been set aside for ritual or celebration rather than daily life.
Large-scale burning turned up early in the dig, but Davis says linking it to Samhain is “difficult to conclusively prove”. Metalworking, pottery or glass-making could also explain it. Other finds include scattered Bronze Age human remains and the burial of an infant, aged seven to ten months, around AD 450, with a deposit of cow bones.
Archaeological evidence confirms the hill served as a long-standing assembly site, aligning with Keating’s account of the ceremonial fire, though not definitively proving it.
How Did Samhain Become Halloween?
The Irish origins of Halloween were reshaped over centuries. Samhain became Halloween as the Church placed All Saints’ Day on 1 November and customs such as carved turnips gathered around All Hallows’ Eve.
The shift of All Saints’ Day from 13 May to 1 November under Pope Gregory III led to the preceding evening being called All Hallows’ Eve, or Halloween. While it is widely thought that the Church designated this date to supplant the ancient Celtic celebration of the dead, its precise motivation remains uncertain.
The table sets each of these Irish Halloween traditions against its earlier form and its place in the holiday today.
| Custom | Earlier history | Halloween today |
| Bonfire | Keating describes the Fire of Tlachtga, with every other fire relit from it | A Samhain fire is lit at Athboy as part of the Púca Festival |
| Turnip lanterns | In Ireland and Scotland, faces were carved into turnips and set in windows or near doors to frighten off evil spirits | The pumpkin, after immigrants took the custom to the United States |
| Costumes | Masks were worn so that ghosts would mistake the wearer for a fellow spirit | Costumes and parades, including the carnival parade at Derry’s festival |
| Going door to door | In England, the poor received soul cakes in return for praying for a family’s dead, a custom called going a-souling | Trick or treating |
Among Ireland’s many enduring contributions to global Halloween folklore, the custom of crafting carved turnip lanterns holds a central position. The practice of using large turnips as canvases for intricate vegetable carving originated in Ireland and parts of Scotland.
These carved lanterns, often lit from within using glowing coals or small candles, were placed in windows or near entrance doorways to illuminate the dark autumn nights and to safeguard households by warding off wandering evil spirits.
This vivid custom was closely tied to the legendary tale of “Stingy Jack,” an Irish folklore character renowned for his cunning trickery.
According to the traditional story, Jack repeatedly duped the Devil to save his own soul. However, when Jack eventually died, he was denied entry into both heaven and hell. Condemned to roam the earth in eternal darkness, he was given only a burning coal by the Devil to light his path, which he placed inside a hollowed-out turnip. Known as “Jack of the Lantern” or “Jack-o’-Lantern,” his shadowy figure became a cautionary symbol of the season.
The tale of Stingy Jack officially made its printed debut in literary publications during the 19th century. When vast waves of Irish immigrants crossed the Atlantic to North America, they carried this cherished folklore with them. Upon arriving, they discovered that native pumpkins were far larger, softer, and substantially easier to carve than turnips, leading directly to the widespread pumpkin jack-o’-lantern tradition celebrated across the world today.
How Does Ireland Celebrate Halloween Today?
Is Halloween celebrated in Ireland? Absolutely, local communities across the country celebrate Halloween with enthusiasm. Ireland hosts two prominent Halloween festivals, located in Derry and County Meath, which feature vibrant parades, torchlight processions, and bonfire celebrations.
Derry Halloween
Derry’s Halloween festival takes place in the Walled City. Derry Halloween lists a carnival parade with fireworks, trails after dark and family activities in its programme. Derry is in Northern Ireland, and our guide to things to do in Northern Ireland covers the city and its walls, about 1.5 km around and walkable.
The Púca Festival in County Meath
The Púca Festival, a Samhain festival in Ireland’s County Meath, runs across Trim and Athboy. Its programme includes a Púca Procession through Trim, a Samhain fire lighting at Athboy, projections on Trim Castle, and music, comedy, tours and workshops.
Planning Around October
October in Ireland brings temperatures of about 10 to 12°C and roughly 10 to 11 hours of daylight, according to our guide to Ireland in autumn, which also covers the Bram Stoker Festival in Dublin. Our guide to the best time to visit Ireland compares all four seasons, with autumn quieter and more rain in the west.
Haunted Ireland: Five Castles and Forts With a Story
Five castle and fort stories for haunted Ireland come from our guide to the 10 most haunted places in Ireland. Each is told here as local legend. For the wider picture of Irish castles, from Norman motte-and-bailey sites to Victorian Gothic Revival houses, see our guide to castles in Ireland.
| Site | County | The story as it is told |
| Leap Castle | Offaly | In the Bloody Chapel, one O’Carroll brother is said to have killed another during mass |
| Charleville Castle | Offaly | In 1861, Harriet, daughter of the Earl of Charleville, fell to her death sliding down the grand staircase bannister, and visitors report a small figure in a blue dress |
| Loftus Hall | Wexford | A stranger with cloven hooves, said to be the Devil, visited in a storm in the 18th century and flew through the roof in a ball of fire; Anne Tottenham, who found him, is said to have died of shock |
| Charles Fort | Cork | The White Lady: a soldier who fell asleep on watch on his wedding night was shot by his commanding officer, the bride’s father, and the bride is said to have thrown herself into the ocean |
| Malahide Castle | Dublin | Puck, the castle’s jester, was said to have loved a noblewoman, was found stabbed outside the walls and vowed to haunt the castle |
Seeing Samhain’s Ireland With Irish Experience Tours
Our cultural tours of Ireland cover Celtic mythology and folklore alongside culinary traditions and traditional music sessions. A Halloween departure for 2027 is now in development.
A Halloween Departure in 2027
Our Halloween departure for 2027 is a small group trip that follows Ireland’s darker stories from Dublin to Derry.
As on all our small group tours, departures are guaranteed with just two guests and a maximum of 16 travellers.
Stops may include:
- Dublin: Bram Stoker’s Dublin and the city’s ghost stories.
- Clonmacnoise: the early medieval monastery.
- Connemara and Kylemore: the mountains and lakes of Connemara, with a visit to Kylemore Abbey.
- Carrowmore: the megalithic cemetery in County Sligo.
- Derry: the city walls, then Halloween night in the Walled City.
Ask us about the 2027 Halloween departure and we will share the dates and details as they are confirmed.
To see Carrowmore and Derry on a tour that already runs, the 5-Day Giant Ireland Getaway includes a walking tour of Derry and its walls and a day with Carrowmore Megalithic Cemetery, and the 6-Day Legends of the North & West visits both Carrowmore and Derry.
Halloween in Ireland: Where to Start
From the ancient fires of Samhain at the Hill of Ward to the vibrant street celebrations in Derry and County Meath, Ireland is where the magic of Halloween truly comes alive. Uncover centuries of history, captivating folklore, and timeless traditions as you journey through the heart of the festival’s Celtic origins.
If you want to see these places on one route, explore our cultural tours of Ireland, or get in touch to ask about the 2027 Halloween itinerary.
FAQ
Is Halloween a bank holiday in Ireland?
No, 31 October is not a public holiday. In Ireland, the October bank holiday occurs on the final Monday of the month. You can review the complete list of public holidays on Citizens Information.
How do you pronounce Samhain?
Samhain is pronounced “SOW-in” (rhyming with “cow-in”) or “SAH-win”, reflecting its origins in the Old Irish language where it translates roughly to “summer’s end”.
Did Samhain involve sacrifices?
Keating’s account says the druids burned their victims in the Tlachtga fire. Historians believe the festivities included animal sacrifices, dancing and costumes, though much of the exact practice remains uncertain.
What is Barmbrack and how is it used at Halloween?
Barmbrack (Báirín Breac) is a traditional Irish fruit bread baked at Halloween containing small objects used for fortune-telling, such as a ring predicting marriage or a coin predicting wealth.
What is the Púca in Irish Halloween folklore?
The Púca is a shape-shifting creature from Irish mythology that becomes active at Samhain, bringing either good or bad fortune to those it encounters after the harvest.