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Pumpkin Facts

What’s the difference between a pumpkin and a squash? Where did those words come from? We've gathered some facts about these beautiful and tasty fall treats!

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What’s the difference between a pumpkin and a squash?

Answer:
There is much confusion about when to use the two terms. In Australia, for example, all squash are called pumpkins! In the US, the two names are generic terms that refer to many different forms of winter and summer squashes from the family Cucurbita.

Squash is usually divided into two categories. Summer squash is picked young; it has thin skin and soft flesh. Winter squash is left in the field or garden longer; it has a hard skin (suitable for storing over the winter months) and coarser flesh. A pumpkin, therefore, is a variety of winter squash. There are many different varieties of pumpkins, several of which are associated with the Halloween “jack-o-lantern.”

Where did the words “pumpkin” and “squash” come from?

Answer:
In 1584, explorer Jacques Cartier reported from the St. Lawrence region that he had found gros melons, a phrase translated into English not as “big melons” but as “pompions”—hence the root of our word “pumpkins.” The word “squash” is borrowed from the Native American askutasquash, but many of the early explorers after Columbus called squashes “gourdes.”

Where were pumpkins and squash first cultivated?

Answer:
The squash family was part of the culinary riches discovered in the Americas and described by early explorers. They were unknown in the Old World before Columbus. Some say that squashes were supposed to have grown in the gardens of Babylon, and that Pliny, Apicius, and Martial all mention them. This stems from the fact that the Latin word for squash can also be translated as “gourd.” What was actually being eaten in the Old World was fruit from the Cucumis section of the family Cucurbitaceae: cucumbers, melons, and edible gourds. This is supported by the fact that there is no word for squash in Sanskrit, and no squash is mentioned either in the Bible or in any of the ancient Chinese writings. No trace of squash has ever been found in Egyptian tombs.

Are pumpkins and squash nutritious?

Answer:
Squash and pumpkins are rich in vitamin A, folic acid, and potassium, plus small amounts of the B vitamins, fiber, and iron. Not only are they rich in nutrients, they’re very satisfying and low in calories!