Zone1 Why "We" Put Carved Pumpkins at Our Front Door on Halloween

[Carl in Michigan]

To ward off evil spirits from their households,

The Celts were known to set carved pumpkins (or turnips) in front of their doors. If they went out at night they wore costumes so that if they encountered an evil spirit they would be mistaken for an evil spirit themselves and thus be protected from evil and trouble.

So when we go trick or Treating, we dress up as fallen spirits (demons) so we can walk undetected among them

When People Carved Turnips Instead of Pumpkins for Halloween

Revelers in Ireland transformed the root vegetables into lanterns designed to ward off dark spirits

www.smithsonianmag.com

 

[candycorn]

Never got into the mysticism of idols and such. If that is what does it for you though; more power to you.

 

[Mack The Finger]

Carl in Michigan :

That is some good general knowledge....which I love.

And I'm guess your not Carl the drunk truck driver I use to talk with.

He was always fun to talk with sober)...he use to call from all over country (except the Northeast) when he needed a phone fix. Sometime he would call me really drunk right before he was ready to go to sleep. I would tell him he had the wrong # and hang up on him.

 

[Moonglow]

Never got into the mysticism of idols and such. If that is what does it for you though; more power to you.

He says he has fairy dust fer cheap.

 

[Moonglow]

Carl in Michigan :

That is some good general knowledge....which I love.

And I'm guess your not Carl the drunk truck driver I use to talk with.

He was always fun to talk with sober)...he use to call from all over country (except the Northeast) when he needed a phone fix. Sometime he would call me really drunk right before he was ready to go to sleep. I would tell him he had the wrong # and hang up on him.

He's actually Carlton, the doorman.

 

[Dante]

To ward off evil spirits from their households,

The Celts were known to set carved pumpkins (or turnips) in front of their doors. If they went out at night they wore costumes so that if they encountered an evil spirit they would be mistaken for an evil spirit themselves and thus be protected from evil and trouble.

So when we go trick or Treating, we dress up as fallen spirits (demons) so we can walk undetected among them

When People Carved Turnips Instead of Pumpkins for Halloween

Revelers in Ireland transformed the root vegetables into lanterns designed to ward off dark spirits

www.smithsonianmag.com

AI Overview

We put carved pumpkins at our front doors on Halloween as a tradition with roots in both the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain and the Irish legend of "Stingy Jack". Originally, turnips were carved with frightening faces to ward off evil spirits believed to be wandering the earth on that night, but Irish immigrants in America switched to pumpkins because they were larger and easier to carve. The practice continues as a way to celebrate the harvest and continue the tradition of using the jack-o'-lantern to scare away supernatural beings.


Origins of the tradition

• Celtic Festival of Samhain:
  The tradition began with the Celts' festival of Samhain, which marked the end of summer and the beginning of winter. They believed that on this night, the line between the living and dead worlds blurred, and spirits walked the earth.
  

• Warding off evil spirits:
  To protect their homes, people would hollow out turnips, potatoes, and beets, carve scary faces into them, and place them outside to frighten away roaming spirits.
  
  
• The Legend of "Stingy Jack":
  The name "jack-o'-lantern" comes from an old Irish folktale about a man named Jack who tricked the devil. After Jack died, he was denied entry into both heaven and hell, and was cursed to roam the earth for eternity, guided by a single burning ember he carried inside a hollowed-out turnip.
  

The transition to pumpkins

• Irish immigrants in America:
  When Irish immigrants came to the United States, they found that the native pumpkin was much larger and easier to carve than a turnip.
  

• The modern jack-o'-lantern:
  They adopted the tradition of carving, and the pumpkin quickly replaced the turnip as the iconic symbol of Halloween jack-o'-lanterns.
  
  
• Harvest and Halloween symbol:
  The pumpkin became an enduring symbol of both the fall harvest and the spooky traditions of Halloween, tying together themes of death and rebirth

 

[Dante]

Carl in Michigan :

That is some good general knowledge....which I love.

And I'm guess your not Carl the drunk truck driver I use to talk with.

He was always fun to talk with sober)...he use to call from all over country (except the Northeast) when he needed a phone fix. Sometime he would call me really drunk right before he was ready to go to sleep. I would tell him he had the wrong # and hang up on him.

That was you?

Why did you change your scream name here @ usmb?

 

[Mack The Finger]

That was you?

Why did you change your scream name here @ usmb?

Isn't Mack a hint....I have had the same name for years and have been from Philly until I move to Tennessee. I was suppose to meet Karl the Drunk at the local Walmart but he called me and told they changed his load.

 

[ChristisKing]

To ward off evil spirits from their households,

The Celts were known to set carved pumpkins (or turnips) in front of their doors. If they went out at night they wore costumes so that if they encountered an evil spirit they would be mistaken for an evil spirit themselves and thus be protected from evil and trouble.

So when we go trick or Treating, we dress up as fallen spirits (demons) so we can walk undetected among them

When People Carved Turnips Instead of Pumpkins for Halloween

Revelers in Ireland transformed the root vegetables into lanterns designed to ward off dark spirits

www.smithsonianmag.com

Oh give me a break!! Dressing up in costumes and getting candy is simply just dressing up in costumes and getting candy. You're really overthinking this.