26 Halloween quiz questions, from Samhain to pumpkins

Halloween is a gift for a quiz host. Almost everyone takes part in some form, almost nobody knows where any of it comes from, and the real history is stranger than the decorations suggest.

These 26 questions cover the origins of the festival, how it's marked in different countries, and the modern version with its pumpkins and films. They run from easy to hard, so you can pull the first ten for a family night or run the lot as a full themed round at the end of October.

Origins and history

1Halloween has roots in an ancient Celtic festival, celebrated around 1 November to mark the end of harvest and the beginning of winter. What was it called?Use in quizUse

Answer:Samhain (pronounced roughly "sow-in"). The Celts believed the boundary between the living and the dead thinned on this night.(click to reveal)

2The name Halloween is a contraction of an older phrase meaning the evening before a Christian feast day. Which feast day?Use in quizUse

Answer:All Saints' Day, on 1 November. All Hallows' Eve became Hallowe'en.(click to reveal)

3Before pumpkins became standard, what vegetable did people in Ireland and Scotland carve into lanterns?Use in quizUse

Answer:Turnips (swedes also accepted). Irish immigrants to America found pumpkins far larger and easier to hollow out, so they switched. Anyone who has tried to carve a turnip will understand why.(click to reveal)

4The name "jack-o'-lantern" comes from an Irish legend about a man called Stingy Jack. Why is he said to wander the earth with only a carved vegetable for light?Use in quizUse

Answer:He tricked the Devil and was then refused entry to both Heaven and Hell. He was given a burning coal to light his way, and put it inside a hollowed-out turnip.(click to reveal)

5Trick-or-treating evolved from a medieval practice called souling. What did people receive in return for praying for the dead?Use in quizUse

Answer:Soul cakes, small spiced cakes handed out on All Souls' Day.(click to reveal)

6In Scotland and parts of Ireland, children traditionally had to perform a song, poem or joke before receiving anything. What is this practice called?Use in quizUse

Answer:Guising(click to reveal)

7Which 1692 witch trials in colonial Massachusetts, in which twenty people were executed, remain the most notorious episode of their kind in American history?Use in quizUse

Answer:The Salem witch trials(click to reveal)

8Bobbing for apples is thought to derive from a festival honouring a Roman goddess associated with fruit and orchards. What was her name?Use in quizUse

Answer:Pomona(click to reveal)

Traditions around the world

9In Mexico, which multi-day celebration honouring the dead overlaps with Halloween and features marigolds, sugar skulls and decorated altars?Use in quizUse

Answer:Día de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead. It's a distinct celebration with pre-Columbian roots rather than a version of Halloween, and families build altars called ofrendas to guide spirits home.(click to reveal)

10In Ireland, a fruit loaf is traditionally eaten at Halloween with small objects baked inside, each predicting the finder's fortune. What is it called?Use in quizUse

Answer:Barmbrack. Finding the ring is supposed to mean marriage within the year.(click to reveal)

11Which country holds the Hungry Ghost Festival, a separate occasion when the dead are said to return and offerings are burned for them?Use in quizUse

Answer:China (Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia also observe it)(click to reveal)

12In parts of Austria and Germany, a horned figure accompanies Saint Nicholas in December to deal with badly behaved children. This figure is now a staple of horror films. What is he called?Use in quizUse

Answer:Krampus(click to reveal)

13What name is given to the night before Halloween, associated with pranks in parts of England, Ireland and North America?Use in quizUse

Answer:Mischief Night (Devil's Night also accepted)(click to reveal)

The modern version

14What are the two traditional colours of Halloween?Use in quizUse

Answer:Orange and black, usually explained as the orange of harvest and the black of darkness and death.(click to reveal)

15Which 1962 novelty song by Bobby "Boris" Pickett returns to the charts every October?Use in quizUse

Answer:"Monster Mash"(click to reveal)

16Which 1983 Michael Jackson music video, directed by John Landis, runs almost fourteen minutes and features a graveyard dance sequence?Use in quizUse

Answer:"Thriller"(click to reveal)

17Which 1993 Disney film about three resurrected witches in Salem has become a Halloween staple, despite performing poorly on release?Use in quizUse

Answer:Hocus Pocus(click to reveal)

18In the 1978 John Carpenter film that shares its name with the festival, what is the name of the fictional Illinois town where it's set?Use in quizUse

Answer:Haddonfield(click to reveal)

19What sweet, made in layers of orange, yellow and white, is strongly associated with Halloween in the United States and divides opinion sharply?Use in quizUse

Answer:Candy corn(click to reveal)

20Which fictional family, created as a cartoon series in The New Yorker and later adapted for television and film, lives in a gloomy mansion and includes a disembodied hand called Thing?Use in quizUse

Answer:The Addams Family(click to reveal)

The harder ones

21What is the term for a fear of Halloween itself?Use in quizUse

Answer:Samhainophobia(click to reveal)

22Mary Shelley's novel is often misremembered when it comes to names. Who or what is Frankenstein in the book?Use in quizUse

Answer:The scientist, Victor Frankenstein. The creature he makes is never given a name.(click to reveal)

23Bram Stoker's Dracula is often linked to a fifteenth-century ruler of Wallachia known for his brutality. By what name is that ruler usually known?Use in quizUse

Answer:Vlad the Impaler (Vlad III Dracula). The extent of the connection is debated by historians.(click to reveal)

24The concept of the zombie entered Western popular culture from the folklore of which country?Use in quizUse

Answer:Haiti(click to reveal)

25A full moon falling on Halloween night is unusual. Roughly how often does it happen: every 5 years, every 19 years, or every 50 years?Use in quizUse

Answer:Every 19 years on average, following the cycle that brings the phases of the Moon back to the same calendar dates.(click to reveal)

26Which vegetable, by weight, holds the record for the largest ever grown, with winners regularly exceeding a tonne at autumn competitions?Use in quizUse

Answer:The pumpkin(click to reveal)

Running a Halloween round

Pitch it at the traditions rather than the films if you don't know your crowd. Plenty of people don't watch horror, and a round built from slasher sequels loses them completely, while nobody is excluded by a question about turnips.

Costume-based picture rounds work well in late October. Famous horror characters in silhouette, or cropped shots of recognisable costumes, give you a visual round that takes ten minutes to make.

If the quiz is on the night itself, keep it shorter than usual. People have somewhere to be, or are already in a costume that's uncomfortable to sit in.

For a broader film round, our film quiz questions span every era and genre. There's also an autumn quiz covering the wider season, and our quiz round ideas post has 20 formats if you want to build a full night. The quiz creator will handle the slides and answer sheets.

Bonfire Night is five days later, and the Bonfire Night quiz questions make a good follow-up. The quiz calendar lists every other themed date for the year.