Meet Jack
A Curious History of Jack-‘O-Lanterns…
The jack-o’-lantern tradition began long before pumpkins became the grinning faces of Halloween. Its roots are generally traced to Ireland and other parts of the British Isles, where people carved turnips and other root vegetables, sometimes placing a light inside them. The eerie creations became associated with Halloween traditions and supernatural folklore.
The name “jack-o’-lantern” has an even older history. For centuries, the term was used for mysterious flickering lights seen over marshes and bogs, also known as will-o’-the-wisps. Irish folklore eventually connected the name with the tale of Stingy Jack, a trickster condemned to wander the earth carrying a glowing ember inside a hollowed-out turnip.
When Irish immigrants brought their Halloween customs to North America in the 19th century, they encountered pumpkins — plentiful, larger and considerably easier to carve than turnips. The pumpkin gradually became the jack-o’-lantern Americans recognize today.
Fun Jack-O’-Lantern Facts
- Pumpkins weren’t the originals. Turnips and other root vegetables were carved before pumpkins became popular.
The name predates the pumpkin tradition. “Jack-o’-lantern” was once a name for strange lights seen hovering over marshy ground. - Pumpkins are native to the Americas. That helped transform an Old World tradition after immigrants arrived in North America.
- Early carved faces could be creepy. They weren’t necessarily the cheerful, toothy faces common today.
- The tradition changed meaning over time. What was once connected to folklore and frightening away supernatural forces became a playful Halloween custom. Pumpkins made carving much easier. Their size, softer flesh and hollow center offered a much better canvas than a hard turnip.
