By now you’ve seen it all: clowns, skeletons, nurses and superheros. The most popular Halloween costumes have been the same for a long time now. What some may not know is that Halloween costumes’ original purpose was to be terrifying, but that meaning has been lost over the years.

The celebration of this spooky holiday has been traced back over 2000 years when people genuinely believed the dead would rise on every October 31. This is why in the 19th and most of the 20th century, people dressed in the most spine chilling costumes possible to try and scare off these spirits. Homemade masks were quite common; this added to the creepy element. Each was unique and was sure to cause uneasiness.

In the modern day, Halloween was the perfect opportunity to dress your toddler in the most adorable ladybug costume complete with little antenna headbands. Parents seemed to be in love with the idea of their little ones dressing up as superheroes, princesses and baby animals.Tinkerbell, Cinderella and The Little Mermaid were always at the top of the list for princesses. For boys, Superman, Spiderman and Batman were all perfectly acceptable options. They all have one thing in common though, trick or treating, with adult supervision of course.

“I was Winnie the Pooh for Halloween when I was 3 or 4. My mom thought it was really cute,” junior Morgan Petersen said.

Flashforward to 2018, high schoolers love to play up a classic costume and put a revealing spin on it. Any costume will do once you make it your own. Even the scarier costumes like vampires have a cute modern twist to ensure you’re not totally freaky and unapproachable. The boys mostly enjoy sporting a sports jersey of their choice and calling it a costume. But for those who do choose to go all out, a classic movie character is usually a go-to.