The next year — yet again — Jack tricked the Devil by convincing him to climb up a tree to retrieve a piece of fruit. Once the Devil climbed the tree, Jack carved a cross into the trunk so the Devil couldn't come down and made him swear he wouldn't bother Jack for another ten years.
Eventually, when Jack died, the legend says that God didn't allow him into heaven and the Devil couldn't allow him into hell. Instead, Jack was sent into a sort of limbo, eternal night, and was said to use a burning coal inside a carved-out turnip to light his way through the darkness, forever roaming the earth alone. The Irish referred to the ghost as "Jack of the Lantern," which eventually turned into "Jack O'Lantern" (via Irish Central).
So next time you're carving figures and faces into a pumpkin to celebrate Halloween, make sure you keep Stingy Jack in mind — as legend has it that he still roams the earth to this day.
