50 Fun Facts About All Saints' Day

Which popular holiday falls on the vigil of All Saints' Day?

All Hallows' Eve is October 31; the feast itself is November 1 and All Souls' Day follows on November 2.

What is the name of the three-day season that includes All Saints' Day?

It runs from October 31 to November 2, and in some traditions extends to Remembrance Sunday.

Which pope extended the November 1 observance to the whole Catholic Church?

The date had already spread from churches in the British Isles during the 9th century.

When do the Eastern Orthodox churches commemorate all saints?

All Saints' Sunday marks the close of the Paschal season in the Byzantine tradition.

In the Coptic Orthodox tradition, All Saints' Day falls on which new-year feast?

Celebrated on September 11, it opens the Coptic year and its first month, Thout.

What festal rank does All Saints' Day hold in Catholicism?

It is a festival in Lutheranism and a Principal Feast in the Anglican Communion.

The liturgical celebration begins with first vespers on the evening of which day?

That evening is All Hallows' Eve, better known as Halloween; the feast ends at compline on November 1.

In Catholic theology, the day commemorates all who have attained what?

The feast reflects belief in a bond between the Church triumphant, militant and penitent.

Those in heaven are traditionally called the Church what?

The living are the Church militant and the faithful departed the Church penitent.

From which century did feasts for all Christian martyrs begin to appear?

They were held on various dates near Easter and Pentecost: May 13 in Edessa, the Sunday after Pentecost in Antioch.

Which Roman building did Pope Boniface IV consecrate to Mary and all the martyrs in 609 or 610?

The anniversary feast, dedicatio Sanctae Mariae ad Martyres, has been kept in Rome ever since.

The May 13 date may have been chosen to replace which Roman festival of restless spirits?

Some liturgiologists argue the feast of all the dead grew directly out of it.

Which pope dedicated an oratory to all saints in Old St. Peter's in the 730s?

Some sources say the dedication was on November 1, which is one theory for the date; others put it on Palm Sunday 732.

Which Northumbrian scholar at Charlemagne's court recommended the November 1 feast in 800?

He wrote to his friend Arno of Salzburg and may have brought the Irish-Northumbrian feast into the Frankish Empire.

Which emperor made November 1 a holy day of obligation across the Frankish Empire in 835?

His decree was issued at the urging of Pope Gregory IV and with the assent of all the bishops.

Which Celtic festival did James Frazer argue lay behind the November 1 date?

Ronald Hutton disagrees, arguing Samhain was a harvest festival and that the date was a Germanic idea.

Which pope added an octave to All Saints' Day in the 15th century?

The vigil and octave were suppressed in Pius XII's liturgical reforms of 1955.

In which year were the All Saints vigil and octave suppressed by Pope Pius XII?

Some Traditional Catholic communities still observe them.

What is the liturgical colour for All Saints' Day in the Lutheran churches?

In Lutheran countries such as Sweden and Finland the day is a public holiday.

The United Methodist Church celebrates All Saints' Day on which day?

Congregations often read the names of members who died in the past year, lighting a candle for each.

Who wrote the hymn "For All the Saints"?

Its best-known tune, Sine Nomine, is by Ralph Vaughan Williams.

Which composer wrote Sine Nomine, the familiar tune for "For All the Saints"?

Other hymns sung on the day include "I Sing a Song of the Saints of God" and "Ye Watchers and Ye Holy Ones".

Which Byzantine emperor is credited with expanding the feast from martyrs to all saints?

He built a church for the relics of his wife Theophano and, discouraged from naming it for her, dedicated it to All Saints.

In the Church of England, All Saints' Day is ranked as what?

It may be kept on November 1 or on the Sunday between October 30 and November 5.

In Lutheran, Anglican and Reformed churches, All Hallows' Eve doubles as which commemoration?

All Hallows' Eve has traditionally been a fasting day in Western Christianity.

What braided pastry do Austrian and Bavarian godparents give godchildren on the day?

Similar breads in Switzerland were originally for children and the poor who said a prayer for the dead.

Which flower do Belgians and the French traditionally place on graves for the day?

In France the day is La Toussaint, and November 2 is Le jour des morts.

What is All Saints' Day called in France?

Wreaths called couronnes de toussaints are placed at tombs; November 1 is a public holiday.

In how many German federal states is Allerheiligen a public holiday?

Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Rhineland-Palatinate, North Rhine-Westphalia and Saarland treat it as a "silent day".

Which Croatian cemetery's All Saints' liturgy is broadcast on national television each year?

Croatian cities provide free public transport to cemeteries on the holiday.

What is the Polish name for All Souls' Day, the day after All Saints'?

November 1 is a public holiday in Poland but November 2 is not, so families tend graves on the holiday.

Portuguese children go door to door for cakes and sweets in which All Saints' tradition?

Also called bolinho or santorinho, it closely resembles trick-or-treating.

Which play is traditionally performed in Spain on All Saints' Day?

Spaniards also take flowers to the graves of dead relatives on the national holiday.

What cold dish of meats and vegetables do Guatemalans prepare for All Saints' Day?

Some is left at cemeteries for the dead, and giant kites are flown in towns like Sumpango.

Why do Guatemalans fly kites on All Saints' Day?

Festivals with giant colourful kites are held in Santiago Sacatepéquez and Sumpango.

In Mexico, All Saints' Day coincides with the first day of which celebration?

The first day commemorates children who have died; the second, all deceased adults.

What is the All Saints' and All Souls' season commonly called in the Philippines?

The name comes from the Spanish honras, meaning honours; families clean tombs and hold reunions at the graves.

Which pre-colonial Filipino custom of singing house to house as spirits resembles trick-or-treating?

If the household gave no biko rice cakes, the "spirits" played tricks such as stealing slippers or chickens.

What do Filipino children make from the melted candles left at tombs?

The round shape symbolises that everything returns to where it began, as the living return to dust.

In Finland, Estonia and Sweden, the All Saints public holiday falls on which weekday?

It lands on the Saturday between October 31 and November 6; the preceding Friday is a half-holiday in Sweden.

Which South American country keeps All Saints as a public holiday on November 2 instead?

Most other countries mark All Souls' Day on that date.

In which Indian state is All Saints' Day a public holiday?

It coincides with Karnataka Rajyotsava, the state's foundation day, on November 1.

How many of Switzerland's 26 cantons keep All Saints' Day as a public holiday?

They include Ticino, Valais, Luzern and Zug; special breads like Allerheiligenzopf are baked.

In Hungary, the day after All Saints' is known as what?

Literally Day of the Dead; since only November 1 is a holiday, most Hungarians visit cemeteries then.

The Syro-Malabar and Chaldean Catholic churches keep All Saints' Day on which day?

In East Syriac liturgy departed souls are normally remembered on Fridays.

What is the traditional Maronite equivalent of All Saints' Day called?

It is one of three Sundays preparing for Lent; Lebanon's November 1 holiday reflects Western Catholic influence.

Which 5th-century bishop preached annually for all martyrs on the Sunday after Pentecost?

The Comes of Würzburg later listed that Sunday as the "Sunday of the Nativity of the Saints".

November 1 is a public holiday for employees of which supranational body's institutions?

The European Commission does not set member states' holidays, but its own staff get the day off.

In Antigua and Barbuda, November 1 is celebrated as what?

It is Revolution Day in Algeria and Liberty Day in the US Virgin Islands.

What do candles at graves symbolise for Christians during this season?

Lamps at the tombs of Christian martyrs date back to the early Christian period.