Category Archives: Folk Beliefs

Santa Claus

Age: 22

Text:
“I started to really believe in Santa Claus, and I was very adamant about finding him when he came down my chimney. So I brought out my sleeping bag and put it under the tree and tried sleeping the night under my Christmas tree. My parents got really mad at me and told me that he wouldn’t come if I did that. So I reluctantly went back into my room, and just before I fell asleep, I heard a clomping on the shingles of my roof. To this day, I will never forget the sound of the hoofs, and knowing that Santa was about to come down my chimney. I had so many butterflies.”

Context:
A girl from Phoenix discussing a core childhood Christmas memory that she knows is fake but swears is real.

Analysis:
This is a demonstration of myths serving to keep children well behaved. She believed in Santa and wanted to see him so badly in real life, so she brought her sleeping bag under the tree. Since this is a naughty act, what Santa Claus monitors, her parents were able to use that as a ploy to get her to sleep in her bedroom, saying that he would not come at all if she did not sleep in her room. This served to keep the Christmas magic alive and also to maintain good behavior. I wonder what caused the “hooves on the roof” noise.

Catholic School Christmas Tradition

Age: 22

Text:
“When I was in grade school, I went to a Catholic School, so they taught us about the history and the tradition of Saint Nicholas. Around Christmas time, we would all have a set time where we would put our shoes outside, and then we’d have classes normal. All of a sudden, the teacher would say, ‘Oh! Saint Nicholas was just here. He left you guys gifts.’ We’d go back to the hallway, and our shoes would be filled with candy and gifts.

Context:
A boy from Kansas City, Missouri discussing a Christmas tradition/legend he experienced in his Catholic elementary school, celebrating the holiday through Saint Nicholas.

Analysis:
It is interesting to see that rather than discussing Santa Claus, the more commercial version, the Catholic school was pushing forward Saint Nicholas. It also reminds me of a holiday/tradition that I used to celebrate (a Latina girl from LA), called Dia de Los Reyes Magos, otherwise known as The Three Kings Day, which is celebrated on January 6th, commemorating their long journey to baby Jesus. You place your shoes outside, overnight, and the Kings fill them with candy and gifts. Christmas is typically celebrated with family, so this Catholic school adapted and combined the tradition of Santa bringing gifts and The Three Kings filling shoes with gifts to create a new Christmas tradition each year at this Catholic school.

Scary Story

Age: 22

Text:
“I went to sleepaway camp in Maine for seven summers, and I started when I was nine in 2013, and I went until 2019 when I was fifteen. The first three or four summers, obviously, I was pretty young. We would tell these scary stories after our Friday night campfires. Basically the whole camp would go and we’d do camp songs and cheers or whatnot. Then after we’d go and make s’mores by the bunk and sit outside by the lake and tell scary stories. One of the stories that stuck with me literally to this day was ‘Click, Click, Drag.’ It was one of the first horror stories that I was told by one of my counselors, who was an ex-camper. Basically, theres a girl and a guy walking outside, maybe it’s two girls or two campers, and they start hearing this sound: click, click, drag, click, click, drag. It follows them all the way home and picks up the longer they walk, eventually grabbing the girl by the foot and dragging her away. The boy sprints home, and shortly after, he hears knocking on the door. The voice of the monster talks as if it’s the girl, screaming, ‘Help! Help! Open the door! Open the door!’ The boy opens the door and is dragged out. He was never seen again.”

Context:
A girl from Palm Beach, FL who went to sleep-away summer camp in Maine every summer while growing up. She recalls a scary story that she learned from her counselor, who also went to the same camp when she was a kid.

Analysis:
This is a demonstration of folklore being passed through generations through storytelling. She learned this story from a former camper, suggesting that her counselor also learned the story in a similar setting. She also noted that she doesn’t remember the story completely and that some details were likely lost in her memory, which is what often leads to multiplicity and variation between the same stories. It is also interesting that scary stories are quintessential parts of summer camp and sitting around bondfires.

A Georgian home remedy for the flu

Interviewer: Do you have any special healing practices in your family? 

NJ: Yes. My grandma used to wrap garlic cloves in bread, put a little honey on them, and feed them to me to protect me from the flu.

Interviewer: I can’t decide if that sounds delicious or disgusting to me.

NJ: Oh, believe me, the honey didn’t help. It was still mostly garlic.

Interviewer: When was the last time she fed you this medicine? 

NJ: Not in a long time because I’ve learned how to say no to her, but she continues to try.

Context:

The informant is 22 years old and lives in Tbilisi, Georgia. The conversation was recorded over a video call. He lives in a large home with his parents, two brothers, and his grandma. 

Analysis:

This is an example of folk medicine. This preventative home remedy is meant to protect from the illness. In this case, the grandmother acts as a tradition-bearer and a domestic healer within this large household. The remedy uses ordinary home ingredients such as honey, bread, and garlic, which are common in folk medicine. The remedy has a performance of sorts associated with it. It is always fed by hand from the healer to the receiver. In this way we can think of this simple practice as a caregiving ritual performed by the elder woman of the household.

Don’t Whistle Inside The House

Interviewer: Is there anything you used to tell me as a kid that you inherited from your family? 

TK: Sure, I used to tell you that you shouldn’t whistle inside the house. Do you remember?

Interviewer: Oh yes, I do. I never understood the logic behind that one.

TK: Neither did I. I guess I was told this so many times as a kid myself that it developed into a habit. 

Interviewer: Wow, I could have been a whistling prodigy if it wasn’t for you. 

TK: Sure you could have, sweetie. It’s never too late. 

Interviewer: To tell you the truth, I used to secretly whistle all over the house when you weren’t at home. 

TK: Funny, I used to do the same thing when I was a kid. 

Interviewer: What do you think is the logic behind this belief? 

TK: I think it has to do with upsetting house ghosts, but I can’t be sure. My grandma told me once, but I forgot.

Context: 

This conversion happened with my mother over a phone call. She grew up in Tbilisi, Georgia. This rule was passed down to her from her mother and grandmother. She doesn’t believe in the rule, but anytime I whistle inside the house to this day, she gives me the stern “stop that” glance. 

Analysis: 

This is an example of a household superstition. This taboo against indoor whistling is common in Georgia to this day. Whistling taboo is a good example of intergenerational transmission where the taboo is passed down throughout generations. One interesting detail is that the rule is enforced even if the original motivation behind it gets lost. The habit that forms through customary repetition regulates behavior and connects generations.