Tag Archives: itch

Itch Saying Folklore

Age: 39
Hometown: Enid, Oklahoma
Location: Oklahoma

Context:
My dad was born and raised in Oklahoma and often heard these phrases from older family members and friends.

Content:
“If nose is itching someone’s thinking about you”

and

“If palms are itching you’re about to get some money”

Analysis:
These sayings show how people try to turn random body sensations into signs of something bigger, especially things they care about like money or relationships. The idea that an itchy nose means someone is thinking about you or that itchy palms are a signal that money is incoming, reflects a relationship between the body and external outcomes.

The short and memorable nature of these phrases allows for them to be passed down through generations. The fact that they also seem to be regionally specific to Oklahoma highlight that certain beliefs are more common in specific areas due to demographics such as race, class, and gender.

When your ear itches, someone is talking about you.

Nationality: Korean
Age: 49
Occupation: Travel Agent
Residence: Fullerton, CA
Performance Date: April, 2012
Primary Language: Korean
Language: English

Whenever your ear itches, it mean’s someone is either saying good things about your or bad things about you, depending on which side of your ear itches. Specifically when your left ear itches, bad things are being said; when your right ear itches, good things are being said.

 

My informant’s mother told her this proverb when she was 10 years old. She stated that one day while my informant and her mother were walking home from school, her mother said “My ear itches, someone must be talking about me.” My informant then asked what that meant and she explained this superstition to her. She then always answered with that statement when someone she knew said that their ear itched.

She said that this proverb was passed down from her grandmother to her mother. She believes it was a simple superstition due to the fact that Korean women are known to gossip frequently. Thus every time someone’s ear itches either good things or bad things are being said about them. She believed as a child if her ear itched a lot a certain day either people liked her a lot or despised her. My informants analysis makes a lot of sense as it provides quite the answer for a simple body reaction.