Which side of the Atlantic does the jack-o'-lantern come from?
score:8
Accepted answer
What I'm seeing there for good attestations are the following:
- In Irish folklore, a Jack-o'-lantern appears to have been the same as what was called a will-o'-the-wisp in English folklore. In other words, ignited swamp gas visible at night, with lots of creative folklore built up around it. This is attested to as known folklore before we know of the term being applied to man-made objects.
- There was an existing pranking tradition among English peasants of making lanterns out of turnips on full moons (Halloween being one) in order to scare people. However, they reportedly called them "Hobany's Lantern".
- The earliest attestations of the term being used for carved pumpkins are all from North America. Of course this shouldn't be too shocking, as North America is where pumpkins are native plants.
So it looks like the modern Jack-o'-lantern was a minor evolution from multiple very similar folk traditions already existing in the British Isles. The final evolution probably happened in North America, where all these traditions had a chance to intermix among the common settlers, along with a conveniently large native gourd. However, it didn't take very long for the entire activity (pumpkins excluded due to lack of availability) to be attested in the Scottish Highlands on Halloween, so the exact location can't be pinned with any certainty.
More post
- 📝 Why did Mettius Fufetius not join the Veiites in directly attacking the Roman King Tullus Hostilius?
- 📝 Where can I buy a tank trap?
- 📝 What does it mean to grant a church to a priory?
- 📝 In Britain, what was the "Junior Service" in 1913?
- 📝 Who governed while Alexander the Great was away conquering Asia?
- 📝 How common was cavalry in medieval Brittany?
- 📝 Historical Statistical Analysis on the Length of Court Proceedings in the US?
- 📝 Did De Gaulle really say "I am France" (Je suis la France)?
- 📝 What's this flag flying on a fort at Kodiak, Alaska?
- 📝 Was hay invented only in the Middle Ages in Europe?
- 📝 How do historians deal with inconsistencies?
- 📝 Why did Nazis burn 628 Belarusian villages to the ground?
- 📝 Why did Russia inherit the USSR status as a permanent member of the UN Security Council with veto power?
- 📝 What was the significance of the BEF moving into the gap between German forces in First Battle of the Marne?
- 📝 Did the Allies ever seriously contemplate a "Northern Intervention" in Russia during World War II?
- 📝 What historical evidence do we have regarding the Lost Colony of Roanoke?
- 📝 Did anyone ever try to beat the Great Wall of China by digging secret tunnels under it?
- 📝 When did $10,000 banknotes become available to the public in the British colonies of South East Asia?
- 📝 Did Edward the Confessor choose Harold Godwinson as his successor?
- 📝 Need help to identify this circa WW1, American uniform
- 📝 What was the role of a 'Tidy Man' and what might their duties have been?
- 📝 Was the speed of the attack at Jena critical to victory?
- 📝 What advantages did Catholic missionaries to the Indians have over Protestant missionaries in old Oregon Country?
- 📝 Is there art or written evidence of crescent shaped arrows being used for bird-hunting in Medieval Europe?
- 📝 What would a 9th-century German count do if he wanted to spend some time with his wife?
- 📝 Was Robert McNamara present at Los Alamos, 1945?
- 📝 How do I interpret this 17th century English ledger?
- 📝 What caused the decline in support for the Protectionist Party of Australia?
- 📝 In medieval England was heresy dealt with in the king's courts or church courts?
- 📝 When was the silk route active?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Which side of the Atlantic does the jack-o'-lantern come from?
- 📝 Does the idea of white Europeans being the "true Aryans" come from the British India?
- 📝 If the Union Jack joins the flag of England and Scotland, why does it have a different shade of blue than the Scottish flag?
- 📝 Why does German money from the 1940s not bear Nazi symbols?
- 📝 Under which conditions does the losing party actively commemorate a battle?
- 📝 Where did the “vikings wear helmets with horn” stereotype come from and why?
- 📝 Where does the name 'D-Day' come from?
- 📝 Where does the name of the country "Belarus" come from?
- 📝 Which European monarch of the middle ages died furthest from home?
- 📝 Colonisation of India: Which regions of the United Kingdom did colonial personnel come from?
- 📝 Was there ever any doubt which side the USA would join?
- 📝 What were the thoughts of the Celts, Romans and other ancient European people about the standing stones which survive from prehistoric times?
- 📝 Which state capital did the Apollo 11 command module NOT visit after it returned from the moon?
- 📝 From where does the superstition about Friday the thirteenth originate?
- 📝 Where did the money come from to build the Colosseum?
- 📝 Why did the British "Indian" army come disproportionately from particular regions?
- 📝 Which was the official position of the Catholic Church on the Atlantic Slave Trade?
- 📝 Where does the concept of traffic keeping to the "right" side of the street originate?
- 📝 Which car was the first to come with a cigarette lighter receptacle?
- 📝 Where does Akbar the Great's "Great" come from?
- 📝 Does any copy exist of the Papal bull which authorized the Spanish Inquisition?
- 📝 In the coat of arms of Georg von Frundsberg, where does the ostrich come from?
- 📝 Why did antique guns and swords from the Franco-Prussian War make part of the demilitarization program to which Germany was subjected?
- 📝 How close did Germany come to interdicting Soviet oil shipments from the Caucasus in 1942?
- 📝 How close would a peasant from middle ages England ever come to interacting with the king?
- 📝 In which direction does the thumb point in the "pollice verso?"
- 📝 Why does the Star of David feature on these African coins from 20th century?
- 📝 Which Allied forces held the French-Italian border from Operation Dragoon to the end of WWII in Europe?
- 📝 Apart from the White Ship in 1120, have there been any other maritime disasters in which an heir to a throne and/or many notable people died?
- 📝 Where does the phrase "behind the wind" come from?