Tag Archives: good luck

Folk Ritual/Superstition – Los Angeles

Nationality: American
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: San Diego, CA
Performance Date: April 30, 2008
Primary Language: English

Softball Clothes Ritual

While on the softball team, it was customary that, after the team had won a few games, for each individual player to dress in the same clothes and in the same way each game.  We had to wear the same uniform, socks, shoes, underwear, and sports bras (of course all these things could be washed for each game).  For example, I (the informant), would put on underwear and bra first, then yellow compression or sliding shorts, and then put red mesh shorts on over those shorts.  Then I would put on my jersey, right sock first, then left sock.  The right sock was red, “red for right,” and the left sock was yellow, “lellow for left.”  Then I would put my sliders on, right then left.  Then shoes, right then left.  Then she had to braid her hair in pigtails and put one red ribbon and one yellow ribbon on each pigtail.

The informant did this age ten to twelve before softball games.  She believes it to be superstition and thought that dressing the same way each time would bring good luck.  Since they had won dressed in a certain way once, they thought dressing in that same way would help win more games.  According to the informant, her team won the nationals when she was ten, and got second place when she was twelve, so, something must have been working.  The informant went on to explain how she thought the ritual was more of a mental preparation: “As long as you feel like you’re prepared for the game, and you think you’re lucky, then you will make your own luck and play well because you think you’re going to play well.  It might have been a mental thing, but it seemed to work for us.”

I agree with a lot of what my informant thought about the superstition.  Often superstitions act as self-fulfilling prophecies, and this softball ritual for winning is a good example.  Having the ritual probably helped give the team confidence which would help the team play at their best and give it their all.  After winning in the same clothes, with the same ritual several times, it’s clear that the players think the clothes had some kind of power and doing the ritual right would help win games.  However, alternately, the ritual also gives the players something to blame if they do badly.  They could qualify a lose and think, “oh, it’s not my fault, maybe I just accidentally put my left sock on before my right sock, which ruined my luck for the whole game.”  So, the ritual acts both as a confidence booster and a scapegoat, displaying one of many ways in which a person may try to rationalize good and bad things that happen to them.

See Also:

Burger, Jerry M and Lynn, Amy L.  “Superstitious Behavior Among American and Japanese Professional Baseball Players.”  Basic and Applied Social Psychology.  Vol 27.  Issue 1. Page 71.

Festival – Romania

Nationality: Caucasian
Age: 25
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, CA
Performance Date: April 19, 2008
Primary Language: Rumanian
Language: French, English, Spanish, Swedish

Festivalul Danitinlor de Iarna

One of the grandest winter spectacle, taking place in Romania’s northwestern corner, is the “Festivalul Datinilor de Iarna” (Winter Customs Festival), organized in the town of Sighetu Marmatiei on December 27.

Masks hang from lamp posts and people pack the streets. More masks — part demon, part animal, part indescribable — hide the faces of young men who run through the streets as oversize cowbells hanging from their waists clang loudly. Far from idle Halloween fun, masks, here, are an old tradition, symbolizing fertility, the passing and renewal of time and the good and bad aspects of human nature. By the time the procession gets underway, everyone has caught the excitement and the anticipation matches that of teens at a rock concert. Accompanied by music and “colinde” (carols), some 40 to 50 groups representing virtually every village in Maramures region (Northwestern Romania) pass along the main street. All are in traditional dress, meaning, for girls and women, stiff white blouses with fancy work and puffy sleeves; white or flowered skirts partially covered by striped woven front and back panels; head scarves; embroidered black woolen vests; thick knee-high socks; a stiff ballet-type shoe called “opinci,” which laces criss-cross fashion over the socks; and white or black wool jackets. Large homemade bags, usually of a black and white checked design, hang by long twisted wool from shoulders. Some walkers reach into these bags to toss rice or grain toward the viewers which represents both prosperity and ridding oneself of bad fortune. Boys and men don similar jackets or a white, long-haired cloak, wide white pants, loose shirts, tooled leather belts, boots and tall hats of curly black or gray wool.

When a group reaches the reviewing stand, they earn a few minutes in the spotlight for a carol, a folk dance or a tune on old instruments such as the “trambita,” an extremely long horn, or the “buhai,” a small barrel through which horsehairs are pulled. Some young men ride beautiful horses with evergreen and ribbons braided into the mane and tails and red tassels hanging from the bridle. Gorgeous handmade saddle cloths are ablaze with patterns of colorful flowers. Signaling the end, a horse-drawn sleigh filled with white-jacketed youths, musicians and of course, Santa Claus passes by the crowd. Throughout the afternoon, folk musicians, singers and dancers perform from a stage set up by city hall.

The purpose of this festival seems to be to attract good luck for the new year and prevent bad luck. I also believe it is a way of welcoming the new year which is approaching soon.

Reference:

Oxford Business Group. The Report Romania 2008. p. 189

Superstition – Italy

Nationality: Italian
Age: 38
Occupation: Professor
Residence: Venice, CA
Performance Date: April 07, 2008
Primary Language: Italian
Language: French, English, Latin, German

In bocca lupo

In the mouth of the wolf

—Crepo!

–Might the wolf die

This is a way of wishing someone good luck without actually saying it. According to Francesca, it is similar to the English “Break a leg”. This is said right before an exam, a performance, or any other kind of activity wish one needs to be wished good luck for. She first heard this when she was a college student in Italy. She believes it became popular because agguri, the former way of wishing luck, was too formal, and students are always looking to be different. It is now believed that saying agguri brings the person it was said to misfortune.

Francesca says this phrase to her students before every quiz or exam she gives. My previous Italian professor said this to me when I mentioned I was getting married during the break. The phrase seems to be applied to almost every situation.

As opposed to Francesca, I do not believe that this phrase is similar to “break a leg”. “In bocca lupo” can be applied to many different situations unlike “break a leg” which is usually used in theatrical performances. It also differs because a person must answer “Crepo!” while with the other nothing has to be said. I do believe that they both serve a similar purpose, not conforming to the norm which society has previously decided. I heard this phrase before from another Italian professor at the University of Southern California. It seems that this phrase is part of college folklore or more specifically Italian speaking college students.

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.”

Good Luck Charm – Italy

Nationality: Italian-American
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: North Jersey, NJ
Performance Date: March 19, 2008
Primary Language: English
Language: Italian

The Mano Cornuto.

The Mano Cornuto is an Italian good luck charm that Michael owns in the form of a necklace.  He received the necklace at the age of 14 from his grandfather who is from Southern Italy.  Michael wears the necklace around his neck everyday as a form of good luck.  Specifically, Michael says that, “The Mano, which is the hand, and the cornuto, which is the horn, are good luck charms acting as protection against the evil eye.”  In general, Michael wears the necklace for good luck and in respect of his grandfather.  He found out the meaning of the Mano Cornuto from his Grandfather, who learned it from his father.  Michael, an Italian American from New Jersey, stays very in touch with his Italian heritage and this charm is a way to stay connected on a daily basis.

I believe that the horn has more meaning than just the protection of the evil eye.  The horn can be representative of an animal, and this might be a good luck charm in keeping Italian farmers’ herds of animals healthy and even a good luck charm for a good crop.  The Mano or the hand gesture is very similar to the hang ten sign of Hawaiians.  Hang ten is another way of saying “hang loose” or “keep it real”, as a form of a comment when leaving a conversation.  It’s possible that hang ten and the Mano are somehow related as a form of having good luck.