Scary Traditional Halloween Stories
Modern Halloween stories are well known to many. But what did people think of this holiday centuries ago? Five spooky tales at your service.
A Frightful Celebration Makes Its Way to the Checklist Blog
It’s clear that this blog celebrated National Checklist Day which took place on October 30. But what to do on October 31? Guess, it’s time for a Halloween article. Especially when there are literary guides at hand.
Some people — or, to be precise, Amy Wallace, Del Howison, and Scott Bradley — authored “The Book of Lists: Horror” [1]. I must admit that calling these people “somebody” is a slight misrepresentation. One of the authors, Amy Wallace, co-authored the very first “The Book of Lists” [2], which launched an entire genre of books. So, we’re talking about respected authors releasing a themed book dedicated to horror.
Within this horrifying book, there’s a list titled “Five Scary Traditional Halloween Stories”. So today, we won’t be diving into modern-day tales about children finding a ghost and some odd monsters in darkness in the woods. No, today we’ll focus on ancient stories that are, in a sense, more mature.
All the girls and boys, I hope you are ready for some trick or treating. Let’s dive into these old as world haunted places and see something dark or funny.
So, the List of Traditional Scary Stories
Cruachan (ancient Celtic legend)
On Samhain (the Celts’ Halloween), a warrior named Nera first brings a corpse to life, then follows a fairy army into the underworld; a year later, he leads a raid on the underworld to steal an ancient crown, but winds up staying there forever.
Interestingly, the full version isn’t as definitive. In it, Nera remains in the underworld only until Doom [3]. A bleak yet hopeful prospect.
You can read the full version of the story under the name “The Adventures of Nera”.
Tamlane (traditional Scottish ballad)
Janet falls in love with Tamlane, a young man stolen by fairies; her only chance to rescue him is to pull him from his horse when he rides with the fairies on Halloween night. The malevolent fairies turn Tamlane into a snake, a toad, and a burning iron, but Janet hangs on through- out and is finally triumphant.
What a brave woman, setting an example for everyone else on this list. I love how in folk tales, incredibly complex problems get resolved swiftly. There are many poems about Tamlane. Well, stricter said, many versions of one poem. Find that you like more on the Tam Lin Balladry website.
The Young Man in the Fairy Knoll (Irish folktale)
On Halloween, two young men are invited to join in a fairy dance. One young man sticks a needle in the doorway of the house, and escapes, but his friend is trapped in the fairy underworld. When he’s en- countered a year later, he’s pulled from the underworld, but dies instantly, having danced himself to skin and bones.
This story about this dance in the haunted house is so condensed that it is mostly described in the paragraph above. When I found the original text, it took a while to confirm it was indeed the one — it’s that brief. The discovered text was written by Scottish folklorist John Gregorson Campbell [4] in the 19th century. So perhaps it’s not entirely “folk,” or maybe John simply documented it.
You can read the full text on the “Project Gutenberg” website. Just the first paragraph is it all.
Red Mike’s Rest (Irish folktale)
An Irish Halloween party turns sour when local bully “Red Mike” (so called because of his red hair) draws a bad lot in a fortune-telling game. Red Mike curses the partygoers, then flees into a nearby bog and is never seen again. Although a priest removes the curse, all travelers are warned to avoid “Red Mike’s Rest.”
Red Mike turned out to be such an obscure character that even the Internet has little information on him. You can read about what the young man endured that fateful night in Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, Issue 73. And it’s wise to remember that stomping through swamps isn’t the best idea. Walk slowly and check the way if you have no other options.
November Eve (Irish folktale)
A late-night traveler stumbles on a great Halloween gathering, full of dancing and drinking. Although he recognizes some of those present as fairies, it takes a while before he realizes the rest of the revelers are the spirits of the dead. He escapes, but the next day his arms are covered with bruises from where the ghosts grabbed him, trying to pull him into their dances.
Yes, it seems that the Irish had a knack for associating dancing with supernatural phenomena. Who knows if this is that every Irish kids’ mother instilled a deep-seated fear of entering any room with a dance floor? I certainly hope not!
The full English version of this short story is available on Library Ireland.
A Few Final Words for the Upcoming Spooky Fun
Let’s hope that these mentioned mischiefs didn’t cause you any harm and won’t scare you in a bed at night. The collection of the Halloween stories from the past is far bigger than are covered in this short article. And it seems that people of the past really didn‘t like fairies! A fairy indeed looks like a witch most of the time. I guess it’s a positive feature that we have this distinction in the modern life.
Either way, create costumes, play with friends and enjoy your Happy Halloween!
Have you not heard such ancient tales before? Subscribe to the “So List” blog — there are many more amazing lists and checklists in the world. You’ll also learn how to solve many issues with these simple yet powerful tools.
List of Links
[1] Amy Wallace, Del Howison, Scott Bradley, The Book of Lists: Horror, ISBN 978-0061537264
[2] David Wallechinsky, Irving Wallace, Amy Wallace, The Book of Lists, ISBN 978-0-688-03183-1
[3] The Adventures of Nera from Ancient Texts
[4] John Gregorson Campbell on Wikipedia
[5] Lisa Morton, A Hallowe'en Anthology, ISBN 978-0786436842
