Carving Jack-o’-lanterns has been a long-standing Halloween tradition for centuries. Incorporating pumpkins into fall décor has yet to go out of style despite modern spins on typical ghoulish carvings. But how did this bizarre tradition come to be? We’ve got the inside scoop on the creepy history of the Jack-o’-lantern and some unique carving suggestions for Halloween.
The traditional Irish tale centers around a mischievous character named “Stingy Jack” who manages to outsmart the Devil not once but twice. As the story goes, Stingy Jack invites the Devil to have a drink with him, but—living up to his unsavory nickname—he doesn’t want to have to pay. Instead, he convinces the Devil to transform himself into a coin to pay for the drinks. After the Devil transforms, Jack pockets the coin, keeping it next to a silver cross. The cross prevents the Devil from changing back, and he’s stuck in Jack’s pocket until he decides to free him, under the condition that the Devil leaves him alone for a year and won’t claim his soul should Jack die.
The following year, Jack tricks the Devil again, convincing him to climb a tree and pick a piece of fruit. While the Devil is in the tree, Jack carves a cross into its bark trapping the Devil in the tree. The Devil can’t come down until he promises Jack that he’ll leave him alone for 10 years.
Unfortunately for Jack, he dies soon after the 10 years are up. Unimpressed by Jack’s impishness, God decides he doesn’t want such a shady character in Heaven. The Devil, staying true to his word and not forgetting Jack’s treacherous schemes, refuses to claim Jack’s soul. Having been denied access to Heaven and Hell, Jack’s soul is left to roam the Earth with only a burning coal to light his way. Jack puts his coal into a carved-out turnip and has kept it with him ever since.
The Irish began to call this creepy cast-out ‘Jack of the Lantern,’ which over time became shortened to simply ‘Jack- o’-lantern’— hence the name we all know today.
In Irish and Scottish history, people mimicked the myth by carving creepy faces into turnips or potatoes, making their own versions of a Jack-o’-lantern. It wasn’t until they immigrated to America and were introduced to pumpkins that
the orange gourds became the carving canvas of choice. The history behind the spooky carvings was to ward off Stingy Jack and other evil spirits by placing Jack-o’-lanterns in windows and close to doors.
Now that you know the history, what will you use to make a Jack-o’-lantern this year? Will you stick with the traditional pumpkin or try your hand at carving a root vegetable?
Decorating your home with carved-out turnips or potatoes will undoubtedly put a fresh spin on the holiday. Not to mention, it will open the floor to retelling the spooky history of how the Jack-o’-lantern came to be. After all, there’s always room for a new tradition!
Don’t limit yourself to carving potatoes and turnips, either. According to history, in England, people would carve their Jack-o’-lanterns out of beets called mangelwurzels. Imagine the rustic look you could create with an assortment of root vegetables sporting various colors, sizes, textures, and of course, creepy carved faces!
If you find yourself inspired by this Jack-o’-lantern history, you can find all sorts of root vegetables at our Greenstreet Gardens locations. Share your Jack-o’-lantern plans with us in the comments or in person when you visit our stores—we’d love to hear them!
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