Though Halloween is an age-old holiday in the United States, many international students at Boston University find themselves scratching their heads at the annual celebration.
Globally, Halloween celebrations vary in fervor and importance.
Halloween is mostly celebrated in Western, English-speaking countries such as the U.S., Canada and the U.K., but in recent years it has spread to some degree throughout the world.
Still, in many countries, Halloween is a far more minor holiday than in the U.S.
“In Nepal, Halloween is not really celebrated,” said Smriti Kattel, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences.
“There is a summer festival to ward off evil spirits, Gathe Mangal, in Kathmandu. People go to stores and buy lots of rings, and wear metal rings for protection. Here in the U.S., however, children in our family go trick-or-treating from house to house,” Kattel said.
In China, Halloween is a low-key event. Ceci Hu, a sophomore in the School of Management, said that it’s typically not celebrated, but becoming more commonplace.
“Students living in residential colleges, and other places where there are foreigners generally dress up…It’s becoming more popular in the last two years” Hu said.
Rachel Di Wang, a CAS freshman who is also Chinese, agreed with Hu, but added that the country does celebrate a similar festival.
“There’s Ghost Day in honor of spirits. There’s a ceremony to avoid encountering ghosts. Some people believe in ghosts,” Wang said.
In Malaysia, Halloween is more common.
“Halloween is pretty much restricted to parties,” said Dorothy Cheam, a sophomore in SMG. “It’s not a big deal. People go to clubs, but they don’t really decorate homes, it’s more of a get-together. It’s very casual, not really big.”
“Some popular costumes are nurses and bunnies,” Cheam said. “There are pumpkins, but not at doors, only at restaurants or commercial areas.”
South Korea celebrates Halloween to a small extent as a result of American influence, said Sarah Choi, a junior in the Berklee College of Music.
“It’s celebrated but it’s not in Korean culture,” Choi said. “It’s not a full-fledged holiday. As American culture and media spread more, people are starting to celebrate Halloween.”
Japan celebrates the festival somewhat as well.
“If it’s Halloween, it’s subtle,” said Dasom Lee, a sophomore in the College of Engineering. “We do have some celebrations, though it’s not official. People decorate rooms but they don’t walk outside in costumes though. People don’t dress up, unless it’s a party,”
But in areas of Japan strongly influenced by America, Lee said, Halloween is much more popular.
“Tokyo Disneyland has a Halloween special and it gets really crowded,” she said.
Still, globalization hasn’t fully made Halloween a worldwide celebration, international students said.
“I’ve never seen a child go trick-or-treating in Istanbul,” said Elif Agaoglu, a senior in CAS from Turkey.
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