Jack-o'-lantern Coloring Pages

Brightening Up the Dark Night! Jack-o'-lantern

A Jack-o'-lantern is a lantern made from a pumpkin. People put them in towns and houses when the Halloween season comes around. They scoop out the inside of the pumpkin and cut out scary or cute faces. Then, they put a candle or a light inside to make it glow. People say it works as a charm to keep bad ghosts away on Halloween night. Be sure to check out our Halloween coloring pages, too!

The History of the Jack-o'-lantern and Differences Around the World

The Jack-o'-lantern is said to have started long ago in a European country called Ireland. In the past, people celebrated the autumn harvest and welcomed the spirits of their ancestors around Halloween time. They started lighting these lanterns back then so bad spirits would not enter their homes.

• How it started in Ireland: A long time ago, people carved out big turnips or similar root vegetables. Even today, you can still see turnip Jack-o'-lanterns in Ireland and parts of the UK.
• Spreading to America: When people moved from Ireland to America, they started using orange pumpkins because they grew a lot in America and were easy to scoop out. This spread all over the world and became the style we see today.
• Many different designs around the world: Orange pumpkins are famous in America and Japan, but people sometimes make them with yellow or green pumpkins, too. For the face, people carve animal faces or words, as well as classic triangle eyes and big mouths!

How to Choose Your Colors

When you color your Jack-o'-lantern coloring page, try to make it look spooky and fun just like Halloween!

• Pumpkin color: Bright orange is the most famous color. But if you mix in a little green or yellow at the top or bottom like a real pumpkin skin, it will look super real! It is also cool to try making a green or white pumpkin.
• Eyes and mouth (the glowing parts): For the cut-out face parts, try coloring them with yellow or orange so it looks like a candle is glowing inside. If you add some red or gold, it will look like a flickering flame!
• The stem: Color the stem on top of the pumpkin with brown or dark green. This will make the orange color of the pumpkin stand out!

Let's Show Lights and Shadows!

A Jack-o'-lantern glows at night, so thinking about lights and shadows will make it look even cooler.

• Make the area around the face bright: Try coloring the skin around the eyes and mouth with a light yellow. It will look like light is spilling out from the holes!
• Add shadows: If you color the deep lines and the bottom of the pumpkin with dark orange or brown, it will look nice and round!

Let's Have Fun with the Background

If you color the background dark, the Jack-o'-lantern light will stand out even better! Try drawing a night sky with a full moon, starry skies, a spooky castle, or a witch's broom. Drawing bats and spiderwebs will make it feel even more like Halloween!

Tips for Enjoying Your Coloring Page!

Just like a real Halloween, it is totally okay to draw your own fun face or color a colorful "rainbow pumpkin"! Let's make your very own original Jack-o'-lantern.

It wasn't a pumpkin at first?!

In Ireland, where the Jack-o'-lantern was born, people used to carve turnips or rutabagas instead of pumpkins. When people moved to America, they started using big pumpkins because they were easy to carve. That is how today's orange Jack-o'-lantern spread all around the world!

The name means "Jack with a lantern"

It is written as "Jack-o’-Lantern" in English, and it means "Jack of the lantern." This comes from an old story about a tricky man named Jack. He tricked the devil, so he could not go to heaven or hell. Now he wanders through the dark night forever with a lantern made from a turnip.

A charm to chase away bad ghosts

People believed that lots of bad spirits and ghosts came from the other world on Halloween night. The scary face and bright flame of the Jack-o'-lantern had an important job as a charm to keep bad ghosts away and protect your home!