Halloween Conference

International Conference on Halloween

31 October - 1 November 2006, Glasgow Caledonian University

Despite its increasing importance as both a cultural and an economic phenomenon in a growing number of countries, Halloween remains a surprisingly under-researched and under-theorised topic in academic writing. Seen by some as originating in the Celtic festival of Samhain celebrating the Celtic new year in Ireland and Scotland, Halloween moved from there to America in the nineteenth century with Scottish and Irish emigrants, only to return to Europe towards the end of twentieth century as a not universally welcome guest (it was, for example, condemned by the French bishops in 1999 and now exists in some degree of tension with traditional religious days such as All Saints and All Souls). It has also become a high-profile media topic, not only in films such as the Halloween series, but also featuring in television news and in (often scare-mongering) stories in the press, and even in cartoons, and its growing economic importance as a source of merchandising and even of tourism-related activities is increasingly in evidence. In Scotland and Ireland , where Halloween in its modern form has been celebrated for well over a century, changes in the form of those celebrations are only too apparent.

This conference brings together speakers from twelve countries who will be exploring the origins and transformations of Halloween, the "arrival" of Halloween in a range of European countries, the various ways in which Halloween is celebrated and how these are changing, the link between Halloween and tourism, and how Halloween is represented in literature and the media (radio, film and television). The four keynote speakers are:

• Salvador Cardús, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona , Catalonia , Spain
• Jonas Frykman, Lunds universitet, Sweden
• Lothar Mikos, Hochschule für Film und Fernsehen "Konrad Wolf", Potsdam , Germany
• Jack Santino, Bowling Green State University , Ohio , USA

The cost of the conference is £220, which includes lunch both days as well as the conference dinner on 31 October - which will itself be preceded by a performance of The Cauldron by the Port Seton Dramatic Society. Registration is via this website.

The full conference programme and abstracts are also available on this site.

For registration enquiries please e-mail Halloweenregistrations@gcal.ac.uk

For general enquiries e-mail: Halloweenenquiries@gcal.ac.uk

Or contact:

Prof. Hugh O'Donnell
Cultural Business Group
Glasgow Caledonian University
Cowcaddens Road
Glasgow
G4 0BA
Scotland (UK)

Tel: +44 (0)141 331 3262
Fax: +44 (0)141 331 3264
e-mail: hod@gcal.ac.uk

Updated: 9 November, 2006 | Site editor | Legal