Folklore & LegendsNo. 7326 · The 2026 edition
Halloween (poem)
Whispering winds stir the night, Leaves crunch under ghostly feet, Jack-o'-lanterns light the way, Halloween's magic, oh so sweet!
Our own summary of the original — the full post and photos live at en.wikipedia.org.
This poem captures the eerie charm and festive spirit of Halloween, evoking the spooky atmosphere and cherished traditions of the holiday through vivid imagery and rhythmic verse.
About this
A Wikipedia revision page about Robert Burns's 1785 poem 'Halloween'. It provides publication details, stanza count, and language, plus a Background section on John Mayne's earlier 1780 Halloween poem that influenced Burns. It also includes Burns's own notes on Halloween folklore, references, and links to the poem's full text and related works.
Facts from the original
- 'Halloween' is a poem written by Scottish poet Robert Burns in 1785.
- It was first published in 1786 and included in the Kilmarnock Edition.
- It is one of Burns's longer poems, with twenty-eight stanzas.
- The poem employs a mixture of Scots and English.
- John Mayne from Dumfries, described as 'a comparatively obscure follower of the Scottish Muses,' wrote a poem about Halloween in 1780.
- Mayne's poem had twelve stanzas and noted Halloween pranks with the line 'What fearfu' pranks ensue!'.
- Mayne's poem also referenced the supernatural, specifically 'Bogies' (ghosts).
- Mayne's poem appeared in Ruddimans Weekly Magazine, November 1780, published by Walter Ruddiman in Edinburgh.
- Burns saw and was influenced by Mayne's composition, appearing to communicate with Mayne's work and echoing some of his imagery.
- According to Burns, Halloween is 'thought to be a night when witches, devils, and other mischief-making beings are all abroad on their baneful midnight errands'.
- Burns's note adds that particularly the fairies are said to hold a grand anniversary on that night.
- Burns's note identifies Cassilis Downans as certain little, romantic, rocky, green hills near the ancient seat of the Earls of Cassilis.
- Burns's note identifies the Cove of Colean as a noted cavern near Colean house, famed in country story as a favorite haunt of fairies.
- External links point to the full text of Halloween at Wikisource and to Poems And Songs Of Robert Burns by Robert Burns.
- Categories include 1785 poems, Poetry by Robert Burns, Narrative poems, Halloween fiction, and 1786 in Scotland.
From the original
This Wikipedia revision page covers 'Halloween', a 1785 poem by Scottish poet Robert Burns. It explains that the poem first appeared in 1786 in the Kilmarnock Edition, runs twenty-eight stanzas, and mixes Scots with English. The Background section credits John Mayne's 1780 Halloween poem as an influence, noting Mayne's twelve-stanza work and its themes of pranks and ghosts. The page also includes Burns's own notes on fairies, witches, and devils, plus references and external links.
