Open day at the school of fine art at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design has turned ghoulish.
In the spirit of halloween Claire Russell, Jackie Ritchie and Diane Lawrie from the school of fine art decided to give students a real halloween treat by dressing up this year as witches.
Why is it called halloween?
The truth is nobody can be sure! What is agreed is that it was originally a pagan festival of the dead that has been adopted and adapted by various civilisations and communities over the centuries. The exact origin of 'Halloween' is not certain. Some say it is a corruption of the Catholic Church's All Hallows Eve which falls on 31st October. This is followed by All Hollows Day (or All Saints Day or All Souls Day) on 1st November, which is a day of observance in honour of saints.
Another possible derivation is from the old word 'Hallow', which means holy, and from 'e'en' which is a Scottish word for evening. Yet another derives from Celtic Ireland, where in the 5th century BC summer officially ended on 31st October. The day was called Samhain (sow-en), the Celtic New Year.
Happy Halloween!