Lighting pumpkins on Halloween is a tradition that stems from the Irish legend of Jack-o’-lantern. The story tells of a man named Stingy Jack, a cunning blacksmith who managed to outwit the devil several times. When Jack died, he was not accepted into heaven or hell, and was condemned to wander for eternity with only a burning coal to light his way. Jack placed the coal inside a hollowed-out turnip to create a lantern.
Irish immigrants brought the tradition with them to the United States, where they found that pumpkins, native to the Americas, were larger and easier to hollow out than turnips. So, they began using pumpkins to create their Jack-o’-lanterns. The light inside the pumpkins symbolizes the burning coal that Jack used to light his way. Today, Jack-o’-lanterns are a common Halloween decoration, representing both the story of Jack and the ghoulish allure of the holiday
