The Best Halloween Tattoos for Spooky People

When you’re fascinated with all things dark, macabre, and spooky, Halloween is more than just pumpkins and candy. It’s a lifestyle, and it’s not limited to October.

To honor that dark love, we dug into the history of Halloween and gathered up some of the best Halloween tattoos we could find.

A Brief History of Halloween

Halloween has its roots in an ancient Celtic tradition called Samhain. The festivals of Samhain were held in late October, ushering in the dark winter. Historians believe that the celebrations lasted three days and nights, with roaring bonfires, sacrifices of crops and animals, fortune-telling, and elaborate feasts.

Not participating in Samhain wasn’t an option (sorry, introverts), as the Celts believed that party poopers would receive their punishment from the gods, usually in the form of illness or even death.

Legend says that the barrier between the natural and spiritual worlds all but disappeared during Samhain, allowing spirits and other entities to move freely between the realms. Fires offered one level of protection, but revelers also dressed up as monsters and animals to ward off ill-intentioned spirits. Jack-o-lanterns were carved out of turnips first, then out of pumpkins, another modern tradition with an ancient history.

Over the years, the traditions of Samhain merged with the fall traditions of other cultures, starting with the Romans who invaded Celtic lands. Christians later built on the old pagan traditions, creating All Saint’s Day to honor their dead. Many of the original Celtic traditions like bonfires and costumes remained intact, regardless of the holiday’s new name or identity, with new customs added. Eventually, people began to go house to house asking for food and money, the earliest form of trick-or-treating.

In the late 19th century, Americans tried to remove witchcraft and spiritual conversations from Halloween, reimagining it as a community holiday. It’s this version of Halloween that we see most often today. However, the age-old traditions of Samhain lie not far under the surface for anyone who is looking.