For those of us from North America, Halloween is a North American tradition. We celebrate it equally in the U.S. and in Canada: We wear costumes, children "trick or treat" through their neighbourhoods, and adults often celebrate at parties with alcohol. For others in the know, Halloween actually has European origins and is still celebrated here, especially in Ireland.

In Germany, however, Halloween is a fairly recent phenomenon that can be heavily attributed to globalization and the westernization of much of the world. Celebrating Halloween has been increasing in popularity over the last two decades but there are a few parties to be found, and few outward signs of the secular holiday that exist in North America.

Pumpkins are popular in Germany, both for cooking and decoration. More and more, carved pumpkins can be seen with candles flickering inside during October and at Halloween. But don’t expect to walk the streets of Anytown Germany and see Jack-O-Lanterns in windows and pots of candy by the door. Trick or treating is not common practice. The one place you will definitely find it is on U.S. military posts here.

In fact, Carnival in Germany is more like Halloween than Halloween is. At Carnival, participants dress up in costume, watch or take part in parades where sweets and small gifts are tossed into the crowds, attend Carnival-themed parties, and generally celebrate well into the night.

Also similar to Halloween is St. Martin's Day which is celebrated on November 11 in Germany. It is hugely popular, with children dressed in costume, carrying lighted lanterns, and participating in parades.

All in all, Halloween in Germany is not a big event and that is okay to many. Secular holidays that reek of commercialism are not very popular here. The same sentiment about Halloween is also reserved for perceived American holidays such as Valentine’s Day. Critics suggest that holidays such as these are for commercial purposes only and therefore "importing" them doesn’t serve any great purpose but to fill the pockets of companies that produce the bric-a-brac associated with these "made up" holidays.

To see if I am off the mark or not, I just went for a walk through my little German neighbourhood. Not a Jack-O-Lantern in sight, nor a trick-or-treater. Maybe next year.