Friday, October 31, 2025

Who is Jack of ‘jack-o’-lantern’?

Carving jack-o'-lanterns is a beloved Halloween tradition that can be traced to Irish folklore and even further back to the pagan festival Samhain.
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Vocabulary

Who is Jack of 'jack-o'-lantern'?

Carving jack-o'-lanterns is a beloved Halloween tradition that can be traced to Irish folklore and even further back to the pagan festival Samhain.

Jack-o'-Lantern carved pumpkins outside front door

E very Halloween, you get a big, round, orange pumpkin, cut around the top, scoop out the innards, and carve a face. Voila! You have transformed a pumpkin into a jack-o'-lantern. But why Jack? Why not a "Sally-o'-lantern" or "Fred-o'-lantern"? Who is Jack?

The roots of the carving tradition go back to the mid-19th century, when about 2 million people emigrated from Ireland to the United States as a result of the Great Famine of 1845 to 1852. The Irish people made significant contributions to American culture in politics, organized labor, religion, literature, music, art, and folklore, including Halloween traditions.

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Black cat emoji

Black Cat

Meaning: Represents a black cat, often associated with superstition, Halloween, and witchcraft in Western cultures, but also seen as a symbol of good luck in some other cultures.


Evolution: The Black Cat emoji is a combination of the Cat emoji ๐Ÿˆ and the Black Large Square ⬛, made using a zero-width joiner (ZWJ). This clever combination allows for a distinct black cat without creating an entirely new emoji.


Usage: [Caption on a photo of a black cat crossing a path:] Just met my new lucky charm ๐Ÿˆ‍⬛✨

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

The Haunting of Hill House

Published in 1959, "The Haunting of Hill House" is an iconic haunted house story. A group of people are drawn to a mysterious mansion that seems to feed on fear itself. Author Shirley Jackson was a master of psychological horror. With its eerie atmosphere and unsettling ambiguity, this is a spine-tingling gothic classic.

Samantha Abernethy, Word Smarts Writer

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Group of white ghosts
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Zombies, Ghosts, and Devils Come From Around the World

The roots of ghostly words come from cultures around the world. Get into the Halloween spirit with these spooktacular words.

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