A story about Halloween traditions includes comments by professor Janet Langlois of the English Department. An expert in folklore, Langlois points out that many believe that Halloween customs were brought to this country by Irish Immigrants who came here during the Great Potato Famine. The Celts, who lived in what is now Ireland about 2,000 years ago, observed a festival call Samhaim in which the ghosts of deceased persons came back to the outer world to mingle with the living." She said some Halloween traditions, such as trick-or-treating, jack-o-lanterns and pranks date back to the Celtic era, while others came about in more recent times.