From Mangelwurzels to Pumpkins: The Lore of Root-Vegetable Lanterns
Long before the bright orange pumpkin became the symbol of Halloween, the people of Britain and Ireland looked to their own soil for materials to shape their autumn rituals. The roots that sustained them through winter — turnips, swedes, beetroots, and the humble mangelwurzel — were not just food; they were protectors, storytellers, and symbols of survival in the dark half of the year.
The Mangelwurzel: A Root of Many Uses
The mangelwurzel (from the German mangel, meaning “scarcity,” and wurzel, “root”) was introduced to Britain in the late 18th century as a hardy fodder crop for animals, but rural communities soon found other uses for it. Its large, bulbous shape made it perfect for carving, and its pale flesh glowed eerily when hollowed out and lit by a candle.
In the West Country of England, particularly in Somerset and Dorset, this led to the creation of “Punkie Night.” On the last Thursday of October, children would carve grotesque faces into mangelwurzels, place candles inside, and carry them through villages while singing old rhymes such as:
“It’s Punkie Night tonight,
It’s Punkie Night tonight,
Give us a candle, give us a light,
If you don’t, you’ll get a fright!”
The light of these lanterns was said to guide travellers home or ward off wandering spirits that roamed during the thinning of the veil between the living and the dead. Farmers also believed that keeping a glowing root lantern near the doorway protected their animals and stores from misfortune during the dark months ahead.
Root Lanterns and the Spirit World
Across the British Isles, the idea that light could protect against malevolent forces was deeply ingrained. The lanterns carved from roots were thought to keep away fairies, witches, and the souls of the restless dead — beings believed to walk abroad at Samhain, the ancient Celtic festival marking the end of harvest.
Each region had its own variation:
In Ireland, people carved turnips into fierce faces to keep away the ghost of Stingy Jack, the trickster doomed to wander with only a glowing coal in his hollowed turnip.
In Scotland, “tumshie” (turnip) lanterns served a similar purpose during Halloween, their grimacing expressions reflecting both humor and superstition.
In Somerset, mangelwurzel lanterns became the local guardian lights — part of community pageantry and harvest storytelling.
To carve a root was an act of transformation: turning a common vegetable into a vessel for the spirit-fire, a small talisman against the long night.
The Shift to Pumpkins
When Irish and British immigrants arrived in North America during the 18th and 19th centuries, they carried these old customs with them. There they encountered the pumpkin — native to the New World and far easier to carve than a tough old turnip or mangelwurzel.
The pumpkin’s soft rind and abundant size made it the perfect replacement, and soon the American jack-o’-lantern emerged, fusing Old World folklore with New World abundance. The legend of Stingy Jack found a new home, and the pumpkin became a universal emblem of Halloween — a glowing face that connects harvest, fear, and festivity.
Folkloric Symbolism
Root vegetables like turnips, beets, and mangelwurzels held symbolic meaning beyond their practical use:
Protection – They were grown underground, close to the spirit realm, and thus seen as both powerful and liminal.
Transformation – Hollowing out a root and lighting it from within symbolized bringing light into darkness — an echo of the human desire to find hope through the turning of the seasons.
Harvest & Mortality – As the year waned and crops were stored, these carved roots reminded communities of the cycle of life, death, and renewal.
Echoes of the Past
Today, the pumpkin reigns supreme — bright, cheerful, and commercial. But every time a candle flickers inside a carved face, it carries whispers of the old ways: of farmers’ fields, mist-covered moors, and children parading with glowing roots in the dark.
The lanterns made from mangelwurzels and turnips were not merely decorations; they were beacons — a promise of light against the encroaching dark, and a reminder that even in the deepest night, warmth and laughter can endure.
References
https://www.britannica.com/story/why-do-we-carve-pumpkins-at-halloween
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-irish-roots-of-the-jack-o-lantern-2393780
https://www.history.com/topics/halloween/jack-o-lantern-history
https://calendarcustoms.com/articles/punkie-night
https://www.nts.org.uk/stories/6-scottish-halloween-traditions
https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/jack-o-lantern-turnips-ireland
https://manxnationalheritage.im/whats-on/detail/hop-tu-naa-festival
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-somerset-41760077
