Why Are Scary Faces Carved Into Pumpkins On Halloween

Any guesses as to why we carve scary faces into pumpkins at Halloween and call them Jack-O-Lanterns? Well, if you are not aware of it, then let me tell you, the reason really goes back in time to the ancient Celtic religion.

Earlier, October 31st was celebrated as the Pagan holiday of Samhain (pronounced sow-in), which means, the official end of summer and the harvest season. The ancient Celts believed that at Samhain, the difference between the worlds of the living and the dead was extremely thin, allowing the dead to cross over into the world of the living. So, the spirits of the dead sometimes appeared in the form of apparitions and animals, black cats in particular. Hence, the living people lit bonfires and dressed in various costumes to confuse the spirits to prevent them from re-entering the world.

But when Christianity spread to Ireland and Scotland, it simply converged the three day festival of Samhain into All Hallow’s Eve observed on October 31st, All Saints Day on November 1st and All Souls day on November 2nd, and the original Pagan Samhain blended seamlessly into the new Christian celebration. In Europe, they always stressed on All Saints Day, while in Ireland and Scotland, because of the Celtic past and the legacy of Samhain, All Hallow’s Eve gained greater emphasis. 

In Ireland, children carve out potatoes or turnips as “Jack-O-Lanterns” and light them from the inside with candles on Halloween. You may wonder who this jack is and what the lantern is about. Well, this practice originated from an Irish myth about a man nicknamed “Stingy Jack” who invited the Devil for a drink with him and then didn’t want to pay for his drink. It’s a long story, but to put it in a net shell for you, Jack tricked the Devil into climbing up a tree to pick a piece of fruit. While the devil was up in the tree he carved a sign of the cross into the tree’s bark so that the devil could not come down unless and until he promised not to bother Jack for ten more years! Soon after, Jack died and God would not allow such an unsavory figure into heaven while the Devil, upset by the trick Jack had played on him, besides, bound by his promise not to claim his soul, would not allow Jack into hell. In this bargain, Jack was condemned to wander the earth between heaven and hell with only a burning piece of coal in a carved out turnip to light his way.