The phrase “trick or treat” originated near Calgary
Posted Oct 30, 2010 1:26 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Sunday night during Halloween, the phrase “trick or treat” will be heard from St. John’s, Newfoundland to San Diego, California; from Anchorage, Alaska to Orlando, Florida.
Candy-seeking youngsters — disguised as everything from Darth Vader to Snow White — can actually thank a village close to Calgary for that profitable stick-up line.
The Herald reports, that according to internet sources, the first printed reference to the phrase dates back to 1927. Even people in Blackie — about 80 kilometres southeast of Calgary, population 350 — weren’t aware that their village might actually be home to the origins of the phrase. It was first noted by a visiting journalist from Minot, North Dakota, who filed a report back home noting heavily disguised children would go door-to-door demanding, “trick or treat.” He added to treat was to be un-tricked.
So kids, take a moment and give thanks to the village of Blackie, Sunday night.
But for some kids in Southern Alberta, they can give thanks tonight. Some towns south of Lethbridge, including Raymond, observe the occasion on Saturday night when Halloween falls on a Sunday. The towns have large Mormon populations, which feel Sundays are reserved for family activities. In Raymond, Sunday Halloween dates have been celebrated on Saturdays for the last 100 years — without complaint.
