What’s up with Jack? The History of Pumpkin Carving:

People have been carving pumpkins for centuries, and the tradition originated from an Irish myth, according to History.com. The term jack-o-lantern comes from an old tale about a man named Stingy Jack who got into a twist with the Devil. Jack and the Devil made a deal that when Jack died, the Devil would not claim his soul for hell. But, when Jack finally passed, God would not claim his soul for heaven either! So, Jack’s spirit was left to roam the Earth with only a burning piece of coal to help light the way. The legend says that Jack carved out a turnip and put the goal inside, making his own lantern. The Irish people referred to this character as “Jack of the Lantern,” according to History.com, and then the name was shortened to “Jack O’Lantern.”

Soon after, people of Ireland and Scotland began to carve scary faces into various vegetables and place them in window sills to ward off Jack O’Lantern and other spirits. Nowadays, we use a fruit native to Central America, pumpkins, to make jack-o-lanterns and scare off any spirits that come our way!