Category Archives: Folk Beliefs

Swedish Mythological Creature: The Tomten

Nationality: Swedish and English
Age: 21
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: April 22, 2013
Primary Language: English

Contextual Data: After talking to me about the Spring-time witch pilgrimage in Sweden, my friend mentioned also that when she was in Sweden and her family went into the woods, they saw small cabins where moose hunters stayed, which were popularly referred to as troll houses. She then started talking about this gnome/troll-like creatures called Tomten. The following is an exact transcript of our conversation.

Informant: “Um, so one thing that they like to talk about is something called the Tomten, and the Tomten’s basically like—”

Me: “How do you spell that?”

Informant: “T-O-M-T-E-N. Um, and he’s kind of like… I don’t know, like a little gnome or like a mini Santa Clause kind of. And especially around Christmas the Tomten has like a Santa-like role, but he has like a little beard and he has like this red pointy cap and… But he’s also kind of mischievous and if you lived on a—in a in northern Sweden you would have to put out porridge every night for the Tomten and if you didn’t put out porridge, he would like, let foxes into your chicken coops and like let your sheep roam free. I mean it wasn’t like, ‘Put out porridge and the Tomten will like shine your shoes in the morning.’ It was like, ‘Don’t put out porridge and the Tomten’s gonna fuck you up’ [Laughs]. Um… So yeah. Um, but it’s actually kind of interesting because there are all these stories about—I remember reading them when I was little, like a little kid. Like illustrated books about the Tomten and kind of his—well actually how he cares for the farm animals and stuff and then goes and gets his bowl of porridge. So maybe it’s not always as sinister as I described, but—but if you don’t, like… You put out the porridge. You don’t not put out the porridge. Um, and I mean, so there are a lot of kind of traditions like that up north.”

– End Transcript – 

When I asked my informant what she thought the significance of this was, she said that she thought it had to do with the fact that many Swedes believe that there is a connection between the people and the land. She said that even nowadays people in Sweden see nature as having kind of a “magical quality to it” — thus the rise of these earth-based mythical creatures (i.e. creatures of “lower mythology”). This is why she feels the story has lasted.

Certainly this can be seen in the way that a Tomten (at least in stories) is perceived as caring for the farm and the animals. Leaving out the bowl of porridge could therefore suggest some form of repayment or offering of thanks. The stories in which the Tomten doesn’t necessarily care for the animals but causes chaos if he doesn’t receive his porridge could be seen as an indicator of beliefs about the power of the land and of these earth creatures—that they’re meant to be respected, and that in some way, something is owed to them for being able to live a peaceful life. Both of these ideas harken back to this perceived connection between the people and the land that my informant says is so important in Swedish culture.

Annotation: http://www.amazon.com/The-Tomten-Astrid-Lindgren/dp/0698115910/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1367443488&sr=8-1&keywords=tomten
This story, a picture book aimed at children and perhaps one of the ones my informant was referencing, depicts the Tomten as a friendly creature that is very much a part of the land and the farming culture.

Chinese Cooling Tea

Nationality: Chinese
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: San Marino, CA
Performance Date: April 20, 2013
Primary Language: English
Language: Cantonese

Contextual Data: I came home to my roommate boiling this loose-leaf tea on the stove. It was unlike most teas that I had seen before — there seemed to be sticks and roots poking out of it and it was almost an opaque black. She mentioned that it was a kind of herbal remedy and I asked her to explain to me a bit more about what it was and where she learned about it and why she was drinking it. The following is a transcript of her response.

“So what it is, is just this concoction of, like, all these different roots and herbs and dried things… I dunno, but after you—they’re, like, dried and aged and after you boil it in hot water for, like, uh, maybe like…just until it boils. Maybe like thirty minutes. It turns into this really weird black concoction and then it comes in, like…uh, different bitterness. So like the bitterer—the more bitter and more, like, black it is, the better it is for you. And then there are also, like, the really, like, light ones that you just put like sugar in and it tastes just like a sugary herbal tea drink. And then, um… So what it’s called trans—directly translated into English is called ‘cooling tea.’ And… um…So cooling tea. It comes from this whole theory in China—in Chinese. We just believe that there’s like a yin and a yang to everything that you eat. So we think that, um, that there’s things that are really hot and there’s things that are really cool. And then, um, if you have too many hot things you’ll, like, have—break out in acne, you’ll get a sore throat, and then you’ll get sick. And if you have too many cool things, then also bad things will happen to you. I dunno what, though. And so, and there’s also things like, because my mom made a lot of cool things when I was, like—when she was pregnant with me. Lots of like watermelons, and cucumbers are cool, and like Korean pears are cool. And then like chocolate and deep fried things and stuff would be like hot things. And like mangoes would be hot. So I have a cool base inside of me, so I can eat a lot of hot things and I’ll still be okay. But then if your mom ate a lot of hot things when you were… she was pregnant with you…and then you have a hot base, and then you can’t—you have to eat like a lot of cool things to like counteract that. So it’s just this whole balance between it. And so this cool—this cooling tea is just when I think I have like a sore throat or I just feel like… [Laughs.] There is really no scientific background to it. But I—and I’m like pre-med so I believe in science, but I also believe in this, ‘cause after I drink it I feel a lot better. I guess it’s like placebo effect, but I get—I feel a lot better after I drink this, uh, black herbal tea.”

– End Transcript – 

My informant did a fairly thorough job of explaining the significance of this herbal remedy. It is interesting to note that as a pre-Med student, she values science and scientific proof for different practices, but that she does still believe in the tea as a type of medicine, which can point to the either the value of the placebo effect or the fact that while herbal remedies may not have any scientific backing, they can still be valid and useful. The fact that it does seem to work is a big part of the reason why her family taught it to her and why she still makes it and drinks it.

Swedish Mythological Creature: Elves

Nationality: Swedish and English
Age: 21
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: April 22, 2013
Primary Language: English

Contextual Data: After talking to me about the Tomten, my friend mentioned that there was a similar tradition of elves in Sweden. They are seen as these mist-like creatures that come out at night over the lakes. The following is an exact transcript of conversation.

Informant: “One that I also think is really cool to talk about is, um…Has to do with elves. And in northern Sweden, when the temperature starts changing in the summer, um, you’ll get these clouds of mist [Mimes a sphere shape with her hands] that show up on like the lake surfaces — so the surfaces of the lakes, and obviously Sweden is one of the places that has, like, a ton of lakes just from the glacial paths and stuff. Um, and so at night obviously the lakes will be completely flat and then you’ll see these like balls of mist and the ball — and it’s weird because it’s not mist just like coating the lake, there are like balls of mist that are separate from each other, and I don’t know if it’s the wind or something but they kind of like twirl around. Um, and so when I was little and I saw them, my dad told me that they were, um…Elves that are dancing on the water and that’s kind of like a Swedish — well I mean at least in the northeastern part of Sweden where my family is from. Um…There’s this concept of the mist as being like the elves that come out of the forest at night and they dance on the water when you’re not watching. Um, and then of course by the morning — when the morning comes, the sun comes up and they disappear. So you can only see them in, like, the middle of the night when the temperature is just right… It’s actually really cool. And if you get too close, too, they kind of dissipate, so you can only see them — you can never actually get that close.”

Me: “Do you think that’s something they tell for the sake of the children? Or is there any other significance to it?”

Informant: “I think — That actually I don’t think that’s necessarily the case. I think that—and one thing that I really love about northern Sweden is that, um, the connection between, like, humans and the land I think is much stronger than it is here in the U.S. or even maybe in more urbanized part of the country. Um, you know, people really—It’s remote. And you live out there, and my — I know my family, um, they built their house. Like, they cut down the logs and built the house, and then they — they built a boat to take them from the mainland to their house [Laughs]. I mean they’re very, like, they live off the land and in a way that a lot of people don’t now. I mean my…my…Like they weave their own blankets and I mean they’re…It’s really intense. Um, and just like I said: there’s this connection that doesn’t exist here… Um, and I think that people see — even adults see more magic in the land than we do now. And I think that’s something that, you know, while it’s for kids… I think people are more willing to accept it because they understand that nature has, like, a magical quality to it. You know…”

– End Transcript – 

My informant seemed to provide a pretty thorough account of why this tradition sticks around in Sweden. In particular, this idea of the elves as dancing on the water really does seem to speak to the perception of nature as having “a magical quality to it.” Beyond this, it also seems to be a way of making sense of an unusual natural phenomenon — this description of the mist as forming little balls or clusters over the lakes rather than just existing as a sort of loose blanket, as one might expect it to.

Full Month Party

Nationality: Chinese
Age: 48
Occupation: Software Engineer
Residence: Naperville, Illinois
Performance Date: 4/9/13
Primary Language: Chinese
Language: English

MATERIAL

 

小婴儿出生后一个月之内，不去公共场所，但是当满一个月时，通常都要摆“满月酒”，亲戚朋友们要给小婴儿送钱或者礼物表示祝贺；婴儿的家人要请来宾喝喜酒、吃喜蛋表示感谢。

 

Before a newborn turns one month old, neither the mother nor the baby ventures outside of the house. The baby especially can never go to any public places. However, when the baby turns one month old, there is a full month party. Friends and relatives come to the mother’s house to celebrate the baby’s first month. They drink alcohol and give the baby money or gifts to congratulate his or her life. In return, the mother and father will provide hard-boiled eggs that are painted many different colors for their friends and family to eat to show their gratitude for them.

 

ANALYSIS

 

Up until a few decades ago, it was not uncommon for babies in China to die before they reached one month of age. Living conditions, especially in the rural areas of China, were not up to par and many diseases floated around. Therefore, it was a big deal for a baby to survive its first month, because it was much more likely for it to live a normal life without complications. In some areas, babies weren’t even given names until they turned one month old. The Chinese tradition of celebrating a baby’s first full month has carried over to the modern day, despite newborn mortality rates being much lower than ever before. The eggs that are given to guests to eat are a symbol of fertility.

 

This tradition is especially hits home for my informant. She was the youngest of 5 in her family, the oldest being her brother and then three older sisters. She was born and raised in rural China, only moving to the United States when she was 28 years old. After my informant’s mother had her son and the first two daughters, she gave birth to two boys one year apart from each other. The first boy died before he reached his first month, but the other lived to be two years old before passing away from disease. Although my informant never met her two older brothers, it is still something that the whole family will with their whole lives. So, the full month celebration for all of the babies in the extended family have been and will continue to be elaborate, grand parties with a lot of love.

Candle in Window

Nationality: Irish Catholic
Age: 21
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Performance Date: 4/7/13
Primary Language: English

MATERIAL

 

“On Christmas Eve, we put candles in our windows. We put them there to signal the warmth of our home, but I know in older times, it was considered a signal of welcome to travelers. It also represented safety and welcome to passing priests and signified to them that they had permission to perform Christmas mass in those homes. You light these candles on Christmas Eve and they are thought to bring good luck if they stay burning until Christmas morning. Usually, the youngest member of an Irish family must light the candle that’s placed in the window by an elder on Christmas Eve. It must be left undisturbed until Christmas morning. Now, for safety measures, we use plastic electronic candles that you plug in and they light up in the dark but go out in the morning, nowadays.”

 

ANALYSIS

 

In Catholic traditions, candles are very symbolic. They represent light, warding off evil, a burning love for God, truth, and welcome. In the 17th century, the Penal Laws made it illegal and dangerous for the Irish to practice their Catholic faith. As a result, many Irish Catholics placed candles in their windows at Christmastime to signify to wandering priests that they were welcome into the home and would be safe to conduct the traditional Catholic Christmas mass. Since the Penal Laws were retracted and now in many parts of the world, religious oppression is long over, a candle in the window of Catholic households is taken to mean that the household is warm and peaceful. It is now one of the most prominent and popular Irish Christmas decorations.