Category Archives: Folk Beliefs

Holiday Belief – Serbian

Nationality: Serbian
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA (Current)
Performance Date: April 25, 2011
Primary Language: Serbocroatian
Language: English

“On our Christmas, we make bread, and the mom puts one coin in the bread and she bakes it. And she doesn’t know where the coin is. On the lunch when she puts it on the table, everyone is getting a piece of bread. And the person who finds the coin will have luck for the whole year—luck will be on his side.”

“It’s tradition every religious family does in Serbia. Christians.

“I think that it is true because  every time that someone from my family found the coin it has come true. He did something big in the year, It was really really… seriously like it’s happened every single time. He will succeed on his goal or whatever.”

The informant is originally from Serbia and currently attending school in Los Angeles. She has been in the United States for less than one year.

The Winter Holiday season can be seen as a liminal time period as we move from one year to the next. The ritualization of baking the bread every year as well as the focus on divining the next year’s luck are results of this characteristic. The coin refers to fortune in money, as well as success in other aspects of life. Over all, the act of finding the coin is a success in itself. In this way, it is also a loose version of homeopathic folk magic; like causes like. The success of finding the coin will cause success throughout the year. The fact that the magic lasts for the whole year is a result of the cyclical time as the ritual will be repeated once the holiday occurs again.

Folk Belief – Polish

Nationality: Polish
Age: 22
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA (Current)
Performance Date: April 25, 2011
Primary Language: Polish
Language: English

“When your ears burn we say that someone’s talking about you.”

“That may be true actually. Kind of everyone believes in it.”

“I think I learned from my parents like during primary school.”

The informant is from Poland. She is currently attending university in Los Angeles, CA. She has been studying in the United States for the past four years.

The belief that when your ears are burning when someone is talking about you is in some ways an example of homeopathic magic. The fact that its their ears that are burning implies that they want to hear what is being said. Also, when people are embarrassed when they hear something about themselves, they often blush or their ears turn red. In this case, a person talking about whomever makes his or her ears burn from a far distance, like they may have done in person.

Folk Belief – Polish

Nationality: Polish
Age: 22
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA (Current)
Performance Date: April 25, 2011
Primary Language: Polish
Language: English

“If you sneeze while talking that means you are saying the truth. [when asked if she thinks its true] Mmm I don’t know. It happens sometimes and that’s just what we say—‘truth’.”

As to where she learned, the informant could not cite a specific source, but said, “My parents or friends probably sometime during primary school. A lot of people say it.”

The informant is from Poland and has been studying at a university in Los Angeles, CA for the past four years.

When asked if she knew any reasoning behind it, the informant said “No, it’s just something they say.” The idea that someone is speaking the truth when they sneeze is potentially related to the fact that the person is not focusing on lying, or potentially that if they were lying when they sneezed they would be distracted from their lie. There is a similar belief in Serbia–it states that when you drop something while speaking, you must be telling the truth.

Folk Belief – Polish

Nationality: Polish
Age: 22
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA (Current)
Performance Date: April 25, 2011
Primary Language: Polish
Language: English

“If you sit on the edge [corner] of the table it means you will never get married. It’s cause you’re on the outside—excluded.”

“I laugh at it. It’s really funny. But at the same time, I avoid it.”

The informant is from Poland. She is currently attending university in Los Angeles, CA. She has been studying in the United States for the past four years.

The superstition may stem from the fact that you’re not directly sitting next to anyone. It is typically the man and woman who sit at the heads of the table and those single who sit at the longer edges to mingle. By positioning yourself at the corners, you are not in either of the social categories; it places one at a liminal space which is neither single nor taken.

It falls into the category of homeopathic magic, for sitting at the corner of the table is said to result in one not getting married; like causes like.

Easter Folk Belief – Latvian

Nationality: Latvian
Age: 26
Occupation: Graduate student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA (Current)
Performance Date: April 25, 2011
Primary Language: English
Language: Latvian

“On Easter, you need to go and swing on a swing or otherwise the mosquitos are going to bit you all summer long.”

“I learned it from my parents. I definitely believe in it. If I don’t go swing—I’m really scared mosquitos are going to bite me during the summer.”

The informant is originally from Latvia but has been living in Los Angeles for more than five years. She practices Latvian Neo-Paganism.

Paganism is a religion that is passed down from generation to generation through folklore, and as such it is rich in folk beliefs. In the spherical calendar, which Paganism observes, Easter is situated in the midst of spring equinox, so needing to swing to prevent the mosquitoes is a kind of homeopathic magic to affect the future season. It is also a form of protection magic because through swinging, the person is protecting themselves from mosquitoes.