We had a bit of a discussing going on facebook yesterday when I asked the question: Have you heard of a pumpkin grinner or are they just jack o’lanterns to you?
Some people were familiar with the term Pumpkin Grinner while others had never heard of it before. It varied within the provinces. While I grew up hearing the word pumpkin grinner, some in Nova Scotia were familiar with it, while others were not. I can’t even say it’s just a rural thing. While it seemed no city folks had heard of it, there were some from rural areas who hadn’t either.
While I might be inclined to say jack o’lantern or even Halloween pumpkin, I prefer to use the term pumpkin grinner.
Happy Halloween!
Laura Best 
Dave Ebright
/ October 31, 2010We just called ’em punkins. Used to cut through the woods & sneak into a field & steal ’em from a cranky old farmer who fired his shotgun at us. Had to watch out for the pigs too. He raised some faaaast pigs that old boy did.
Lemme tellya – a headfirst dive over a fence, holdin’ a punkin’ ain’t an easy thing to do when you’re a 10 year-old.
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Laura Best
/ October 31, 2010ah yes, some people around these parts have been known to call them “punkins” as well.. hehehe
As I was reading your comment, Dave, I could see it all happening, and it made me giggle. Something tells me you’re full of such great stories..
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writerwoman61
/ October 31, 2010I’ve never heard “pumpkin grinner” before…must be a Nova Scotia thing…
Happy Halloween, Laura!
Wendy
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Laura Best
/ October 31, 2010Nope not all places in Nova Scotia has heard of pumpkin grinners.
Happy Halloween, Wendy!
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Carol Ann Hoel
/ October 31, 2010Yes, it looks like a pumpkin grinner, although I’ve never heard the term. Have a great Halloween!
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Melanie
/ October 31, 2010That most certainly is a pumpkin grinner! 😀 Happy Hallowe’en!
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Linda Cassidy Lewis
/ October 31, 2010I’ve never heard that term, but it definitely fits. Of course, not everyone wants their pumpkin to grin, so maybe those would be pumpkin growlers. 🙂
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Carol Benedict
/ November 1, 2010I never heard the term pumpkin grinner, but I like it!
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Corey Nordin
/ December 22, 2011I’m from just outside of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. I never heard of this term before. I always called them jack o’lanterns. I live near New Minas, NS now. My wife is from the Canning area. She has been calling out nine month old boy a pumpkin grinner. Instead of asking, I googled it, and your site is what I found.
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Laura Best
/ December 22, 2011One never knows what will come up when they use Google. I grew up calling them Pumpkin Grinners. It seems to be certain places here and there in the province that uses the term.
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Rick McCarthy
/ October 22, 2020Hi Laura: Hoping you are still monitoring your Blog 10 years later. I grew up on the Bay of Fundy shore in Nova Scotia and we called a carved pumpkin a “Pumpkin Grinner”. My wife, a city slicker from Halifax, Often makes fun of my country bumpkin expressions and always called a carved pumpkin 🎃 a jack-o-lantern. Amazing that societies a 150 km away from each other 75 years ago would have such different cultures. Today we are all blending together and the next generations will not know these old expressions and differences except through forums/blogs like your’s.
Rick
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Laura Best
/ October 22, 2020Hi Rick, Thanks for visiting my blog. Was that post really from 10 years ago? Wow! Time certainly slips by. Good thing WordPress let’s me know when someone leaves a comment. 😀
I quite like the term Pumpkin Grinner, and yes, it’s strange the words we grow up with, how they can differ in what is really a small geographical area. I think you’re right, we country pumpkins have some unusual expression. I try to bring that out in the books I write and sometimes my “city-slicker” editor questions as to the meaning of certain terms.. Some things are definitely being lost over time. Makes me feel a little sad in some ways.
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