Category Archives: Folk Beliefs

Minor Genre: Gesture – The Moutza

  1. Text: Gesture of someone thrusting their open hand forward at someone else, all five fingers spread out. Used in Greek culture.
  2. Informants Context: I come from a family of Greek immigrants who haven’t necessarily chosen to teach me about this gesture, but I’ve inevitably learned it from them. The moutza is the Greek equivalent of the middle finger, for better or worse. It’s definitely less offensive than the middle finger and can be used more playfully. It’s ultimately a confrontational gesture though, meant to be displayed as a form of disagreement. The sign also has some superstitious connotations as technically the person giving the moutza is sending a curse to whoever is receiving it. This curse generally just means bad luck. The place I most often learned and observed this from was with my Papou (grandfather). He’s an entrepreneur, completely self-made from the villages and may rank among the smartest, most boss guys I’lve ever known in my whole life. That said, sometimes he has been known to blow the fuse a little bit, and when he does, it’s the moutza that he whips out (laughter). If he wants to double insult someone, he might throw his other hand behind the one that is already thrust open, layering the two of them like pancakes. That’s the ultimate disrespect. This gesture is recognized by Greeks globally but rarely in other cultures. An open hand like the moutza might even be misunderstood as a friendly gesture by certain cultures, including in America where it could be seen as something like a high-five. I personally use the moutza in a mostly fun way, in the kinds of spaces where I could get away with that kind of offensive joke. For example, when I’m with some Greek friends and we’re having a laugh, I might throw it one of their faces to get a reaction. They’ll understand I’m being funny and play along.
  3. Collectors Interpretation: The moutza is firstly a demonstration of power by Greek people. When used in a non-playful context, the gesture is clearly rooted in a show of force or intention to shame people. This might reflect a greater value on the part of Greek people about personal pride and their eagerness to defend it. Moreover, as a potential way to “curse people”, the practice could be seen as a form of contagious magic. It functions on multiple levels as a demonstration of folklore. The fact that the gesture is not universally understood, reflecting different contexts in different parts of the world, continues to demonstrate its folklore roots. It is a practice specific to Greek people, inside the country and abroad, but nonetheless specific to culturally attuned Greeks. This might also reflect a broader culture within Greece surrounding how its people perceive confrontation. If the purpose of the moutza is to pass shame onto someone who has done you wrong, perhaps this reflects a value towards honor. Shame cannot be of value without dignity simultaneously being a high-priority as well.

Fields

AGE: 21

Date_of_performance: May 9, 2025

Language: English

Nationality: American/Greek

Occupation: Student

Primary Language: English

Residence: United States of America

Haldi Doodh- “Golden Milk”

Nationality: United States
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Language: English

Text: “Whenever I get sick, like with even a cold or just a runny nose, my mom will always make me haldi doodh. It’s warm milk mixed with turmeric, black pepper, and honey. She heats the milk then stirs in the spices and has me drink it before I go to bed. She always tells me how her mom gave her the same tea and now she has the privilege of doing the same for me. It has a weird earthy taste but it always helps and I start to feel better the next day.”

Context: This element of folk medicine was shared by the informant, D during a conversation about home remedies passed down through generations. D explained that whenever she is sick her mother will make haldi-doodh, also known as “golden milk”. This remedy comes from Indian tradition and is passed down through generations, with D’s mother having learned it from her own mom. While it has a strong earthy taste, D associates it with comfort and feeling better the next day. 

Analysis: This is an example of folk medicine passed through generations, emphasizing both cultural continuity and caregiving. Haldi doodh is both a physical remedy and a symbolic act of love and care. The turmeric, black pepper and honey that are used are tied to traditional Ayurvedic beliefs that view food as not just nutrition, but also as powerful medicine. Given that this remedy is always given before bed, it is also a comforting ritual. This practice shows how folk medicine not only physically heals but also acts as a vessel for expressing love across generations.

Banging Pots and Pans on New Years 

Nationality: Mexican-Filipino American
Age: 22
Occupation: Engineer
Residence: Irvine, CA
Language: English

Text

“Every New Year’s Eve, right when the clock strikes midnight, my family rushes outside and we start banging on pots and pans like our lives depend on it. It’s loud, chaotic, and silly if you are a neighbor watching next door.

We don’t do this tradition just to make noise for fun, we are scaring away bad spirits. My Lola would say, ‘Make it so loud the malas (bad luck) can’t follow us into the New Year.” i feel like this tradition is not about silence and reflection. It’s more about being loud, communal, and kind of joyful. It shakes things up and clears space for something better.

Every year, no matter where I am, I find something to bang. When I’m not at home, I’ll use a cup and spoon if need be. Because for me, the noise is more than just a tradition. It is a way of saying that we made it to a new year and that we should chase bad spirits away and welcome what is to come next.”

Context 

The informant reflects on a recurring family ritual: banging pots and pans at midnight on New Year’s Eve to ward off bad luck. She traces the tradition to her lola (grandmother) and describes how this action has remained central to her family’s New Year’s celebration.

The informant highlighted how rituals passed down through generations become markers of cultural identity even when performed in different settings from where her grandmother originally would do this to where her family does it now.

My interpretation 

From a folklore perspective, banging pots and pans on New Year’s Eve functions as a protective folk belief ritual that’s aligned with what James Frazer termed magic superstitions. In this case it would be conversion magic where action is required to prevent misfortune. The practice is not institutionally religious but it operates within a system of vernacular spirituality and community belief that’s passed down through generations in domestic spaces.

The ritual also fits within a life cycle of belief systems surrounding transitions and thresholds like what Victor Turner would call a liminal moment. The striking of the pots is part of a ritual of noise that marks and manages a cosmic shift. Symbolically, the sound disorients evil, clears spiritual residue from the old year, and prepares the household for prosperity.

This ritual functions as both cultural preservation and performance of identity. It’s an informal act of heritage that resists assimilation by rooting the celebrant in a shared memory and practice.

Adventist Communion Bread

Nationality: American
Age: 55
Occupation: Marriage & Family Therapist
Residence: Forest Falls, CA
Language: English

Text:

JB: “There’s a recipe for making Seventh-day Adventist communion bread, and there’s a tradition that whatever you don’t use, you’re supposed to take it outside and burn it. I think that some churches still do this – I don’t actually know. It’s supposed to be whole grain flour, salt, water, and oil. I think that because it’s been blessed, it shouldn’t be used for any purpose other than communion. I think it’s an Adventist tradition. And the recipe for the bread, I think it’s… you can either do part whole wheat flour and white flour or you can do all whole wheat flour. And then.. I don’t know the precise amounts but some salt, some water and some oil. And then you want it to be a pretty firm dough, you roll it out. A lot of times people will kind of score it and then bake it till it’s firm.”

Context:

Informant JB was raised in the Seventh-day Adventist church, which is a branch of Protestant Christianity that is distinct for its dietary restrictions and emphasis on the Sabbath. For Adventists, communion is a symbolic act of consuming the body (as unleavened bread) and blood (as grape juice — Adventists typically do not consume alcohol) of Jesus to commemorate his crucifixion. JB suggested that the tradition of burning leftover communion bread because according to the Bible, Christ’s body did not decay in the tomb.

Analysis:

The ritual preparation and burning of the unleavened bread reflects the church’s intentions to set apart the bread as sacred. Sometimes the leftover grape juice is also poured out. Interestingly, these acts are considered grave sins in the Catholic church, as the bread and wine which are blessed during Mass are believed to be literal manifestations of Christ’s body and blood. Leftover Eucharist is typically consumed by the priest or dissolved in water and disposed of in a respectful manner. This reversal of meaning reflects the broader Protestant departure from Catholic beliefs as well as the particular bias in the Adventist community against the Catholic church. Overall, this tradition points to the nature of reactionary movements in the history of religion as well as performances of sacredness in religious communities.

How to cure a cold (with optimism)

Nationality: American
Age: 59
Occupation: Psychology Professor
Residence: Forest Falls, CA
Language: English

Text:

“My cure to the cold is to drink lots of fluids, like tea, and to have an optimistic mental attitude. I synthesized this from drinking lots of fluids being good for you and tea kind of being a good warm…. like tea, so warm fluids being good, and the… I can’t remember where it is… and a combination of the Bible, in Proverbs or wherever it is, and kind of the medical stuff like… I don’t know. It seems like you can release endorphins, I don’t know if ‘endorphins’ is the right thing, but it seems like you can fight off infections that way. So I just put this stuff together and thought that you could have this optimistic attitude to fight off what’s coming. But it seems to me like it only works at the tipping point, like it could be right at the balance. But once you’re sick, you’re sick.”

Context:

Informant KB is a highly educated individual and has a background of studying psychology and religion. He was also raised in the Seventh-day Adventist church, which is distinct for its emphasis on health and dietary restrictions. Despite general anti-science and anti-evolution tendencies in the Adventist church, KB is an adamant believer in synthesizing his faith with the findings and practices of the scientific community. As for Biblical references, KB may be referring to Proverbs 17:22, which reads, “A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”

Analysis:

Cures to the common cold are numerous and variable, especially because there is currently no institutionally recognized cure. KB’s hypothesis is representative of the nature of folklore as “might be right” knowledge. KB draws on his background in psychology, citing the potential healing power of endorphins in response to a positive mindset. However, this particular cure implies that if one does not succeed in being optimistic enough, they are responsible for their own fall into illness. This may or may not intentionally parallel the common Christian view that if one does not take responsibility for their ‘sinful’ human nature, they are responsible for their eternal damnation.