Category Archives: Folk Beliefs

Folk Belief – Massachusetts

Nationality: American
Age: 85
Occupation: Retired
Residence: Attleboro, MA
Performance Date: April 12, 2008
Primary Language: English

“Do not own or live with cats or they will smother your babies.”

This is a much older wives tale that my step-grandmother was insistent upon believing.  The act of smothering a baby is basically not allowing the child to breathe.  She repeatedly told my mother during my infancy that my mother should get rid of the cats that were living with us, because they would smother me.  Although my step-grandmother is getting older she was still able to tell me that she had heard this from her mother and grandmother during the time when she was young even before her pregnancy.  Ola grew up in the Burlington, Vermont area and spent most of her time between Vermont and Massachusetts, so presumably she probably heard this somewhere in that section of New England.

I believe that she felt so strongly about this belief because it was something that her mother and grandmother had instilled in her as a young girl.  When she told my mother, my mother thought she was crazy, however Ola still felt that she was 100% correct in saying that the cats would smother the baby.  I am not sure where the origin of this belief came about, but perhaps it was conjured out of pure fear of cats.  In addition, cats have often been associated with witches, magic, and sometimes evil, which could lead one to think that cats have some inherent wickedness to them.  In other märchen and superstition cats are usually mysterious or strange creatures, as exemplified by the well-known superstition that it is bad luck for a black cat to cross your path.

Folk Medicine – Norway

Nationality: Norwegian
Age: 24
Occupation: Student
Residence: Oslo, Norway
Performance Date: April 19, 2008
Primary Language: Norwegian
Language: English

“If you have a cold what you should do is take a sock, I think a wool one, and wrap it around your throat before you go to bed.  Also, rubbing oil on your neck helps as well.”

Sigurd said that his mother used to do this to him when he was sick, had a sore, throat, or had been coughing a lot.  Sigurd grew up in Norway his entire life and his primary language is Norwegian, yet he speaks English very well also.  He told me that his mother sometimes would rub lotion on his neck as well, which was supposed to help clear out his throat.  He said that the lotion smelled very strong sometimes and that it would help clear his sinuses too.  I was able to find similar versions to this remedy in Folk Medicine in Norway and the New Land by Kathleen Stokker.  There are two versions in the book that involve wrapping a woolen sock around a person’s neck when they are feeling sick.  One indicates that camphor oil should be rubbed upon the person’s throat, so I believe that the lotion that Sigurd was speaking of was most likely camphor oil.  The other version says that, ”You should wrap a black wool sock around your throat before you go to bed.  A warm one from your foot works best.”

Sigurd told me that he did not know where his mother learned the remedy, but he assumed that someone from her family had done it to her when she was young.  Sigurd also mentioned that because there are a lot of sheep in Norway, there is a bountiful amount of wool, which is probably why a woolen sock is recommended to wrap around the throat.  The camphor oil likely clears out the nasal passages and throat and the warmth of the sock may make it easier for the blood to flow freely to the throat area and help aid the recovery of the ill person.  I believe that this folk remedy is probably very old tradition in Norway, and due to the fact that Sigurd’s mom had used it in him, the remedy must have a positive effect on the person that is sick.

Folk Belief

Nationality: Chicana
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: Santa Cruz, CA
Performance Date: April 17, 2008
Primary Language: English
Language: Spanish

If you see a hummingbird, you will have good luck.

My grandmother, and then my mom would always say this when we were lucky enough to see these rare hummingbirds by our windows in the kitchen or outside in the garden behind our house. I am not very sure about why hummingbirds are lucky, maybe because they seem to be pretty rare, but they are definitely really beautiful, small and colorful, and also seemed to bring my grandma a lot of joy. I mostly think about this saying when I happen to see a hummingbird somewhere randomly and it reminds me of my relationship with these two very important women in my life and just how much I loved listening to their stories and advice when I was smaller.

Lorena thought of her grandma and mom’s words about the hummingbirds good luck blessings as more of a saying and simple story than actual truth. Having also grown up in a Mexican family with very strong females, I would also hear my grandma often say the same thing about hummingbirds. I tend to agree with Lorena’s belief that the hummingbird’s unique colorful beauty and rare presence in our daily lives seems to emphasize the hummingbird as a special bird or creature with mythical qualities.  It is definitely more common to see countless grey pigeons in the urban concrete jungle of Los Angeles, including Echo Park where Lorena’s family resides, than these charmingly bright birds that seem to captivate so many.  This may be why both of our grandmothers remind us of the good fortune to come that a “colibri” promises. (Colibri is hummingbird in Spanish).

Annotation: The Papyrus line of greeting cards, similar to Hallmark, uses a picture of a single hummingbird in flight as its primary marketing and branding symbol. This hummingbird appears on each of its greeting cards and similar products. Moreover, each of its products includes the following brief history of the legend of the hummingbird and its symbolic significance which best speaks to the significance of this storied bird;

“Legends say that hummingbirds float free of time, carrying our hopes for love, joy, and celebration. The hummingbird’s delicate grace reminds us that life is rich, beauty is everywhere, every personal connection has meaning and that laughter is life’s sweetest creation.”

Superstition

Nationality: African-American
Age: 40
Occupation: Athletic Director
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: April 29, 2008
Primary Language: English

When you sweep someone’s feet you have to spit on their feet seven times or you’ll have bad luck for seven years.

Bruce said he used to hear this from his mother whenever either she or he was sweeping with a broom and it happened to cross someone’s feet. This superstition, or slave superstition as he called it, has special meaning to him and his family’s personal history. He said his mother’s mother (his grandma) started this tradition and began passing it down first. His grandmother and his grandfather were sharecroppers in Texas and this superstition was part of their shared experiences and slave folklore.

This superstition feels incredibly personal and unique because of the historical and familial tradition Bruce was able to share with me after sharing this special piece of his family’s folklore. He did not comment much on the specific meaning of the actual superstition or its directives because he seemed to view them as merely a part of his ancestors’ thinking in the past. The superstition’s beliefs, however, may reveal a greater sense of his ancestors’ environment, daily activities/ tasks, and their cultural beliefs. For example, as domestic workers sweeping may have been both a task and also a symbolic ritual of cleansing energy and bad spirits from the space and in this case, perhaps even away from individuals. This was most likely an important gesture towards the person whose feet may have accidentally gotten swept across. It also seems like an act of self preservation though. This superstition advises quick action on the sweeper’s part to prevent seven years of bad luck by spitting on their feet seven times and undoing any curses. Seven may or may not have symbolic meaning in this case, but the advice for self preservation does. Given that this superstition most likely has its origins amongst slaves, the superstition could possibly be a symbolic/ ritualistic means of eliminating negative energy and misfortune that empowered slaves in these situations who may have had little other power otherwise to prevent tragedy or “bad luck”.

Mythical Creature

Nationality: Hispanic
Age: 16
Occupation: Student
Residence: Koreatown, Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: April 29, 2008
Primary Language: English
Language: Spanish, Russian

Leprechauns

My grandma used to tell me a story about a leprechaun. If someone likes sinning or doing something bad, a leprechaun would appear and especially to girls. It would tie their hair behind the bed. And for boys it would tie their feet. It would go on until they would repent.

Carlos said that his grandmother would tell him stories often and this was one of the many she would share with him, especially when he was younger. Carlos thought this story was less about scaring him with evil leprechauns, and more about redemption and redeeming yourself.

It is interesting that Carlos used such a strong word as redemption in his reflection of his grandmother’s tale. This story about leprechauns may not overtly address religious themes or moral beliefs, but the story he shared did notably focus on the image of sinning children receiving their just rewards until they stopped doing so. Perhaps Carlos’s grandmother originally first heard this tale about leprechauns in a religious context or it may have emerged from a similar environment. I agree with Carlos that this tale is less about mischievous leprechauns and more about the transformation of the children whom the leprechaun binds. The leprechaun binds both girls and boys with their own bodies, which may reflect the moral bondage of sin or simply misbehaving that they must break free from. The leprechaun lets them go after they have repented, further highlighting the shift in the children’s moral character that takes place once they stop sinning and commence being good little boys and girls.