Tag Archives: Superstition

No Hats On The Bed

“My dad believed it was bad luck to leave a hat on the bed. He thought it would bring death to the family.”

Background: The informant’s father, who comes from Western Pennsylvania, told her this superstition when she was a child and would always remind her, when she did leave a hat on the bed, to put the hat elsewhere. She believes it has something to do with hat pins that people used to use to keep hats on their heads. So if they were to put a hat on a bed with the hat pins still on and then accidentally laid on it, it would cause harm. The informant says that she still practices this in her own household. 

Analysis: This superstition could have many different origin points for many different reasons. Hat pins are likely because laying down on one may lead to harm. Though there are a multitude of reasons for this superstition. There are beliefs that evil spirits spill from the hat when placed on a bed leading to your misfortune. A more common and far less superstitious reason for not placing a hat on the bed is the possibility of transferring lice to or from your bed. That being said, there are many superstitions that are passed down from previous generations that many don’t have a reason to believe in, but still choose to practice and pass down to their children. Many superstitions these days don’t have long explanations and we still follow them out of tradition and out of habit, whether we believe in the negative or positive result of the superstitions.

Health Superstitions and Practices

“We’re not allowed to walk around barefoot in the house because you’ll supposedly get sick, there’s another thing we do where when you’re on your period your not supposed to drink cold water, after you have something that scares you, you’re not supposed to drink water, your supposed to eat a piece of bread or something, or when a kid gets hurt they’ll like sing “sana, sana, sana, colita de rana” which I think translates to “heal, heal, heal, frogs tail” but I’m not too sure.”

Background: The informant is from a latina household and says that she heard all these things from her mother when she was younger. She says that many of the practices were to prevent her from getting sick and her parents never explained the background of the superstitions, so she doesn’t know why her parents believed in such superstitions. 

Analysis: While the informant comes from a Latina household, some of the superstitions also align with superstitions from other cultures. Walking barefoot in the house is a very common superstition in households, most of the time believing it will result in the person catching a cold or getting sick. Drinking cold water is also believed to not be good for a person’s health by many people. So pinpointing the origins of these superstitions is highly unlikely.

However, the “sana, sana, sana, colita de rana” saying does come from Spanish speaking cultures. Its English translation doesn’t make much sense, but it is used by many Hispanic and Latino families. The purpose of this saying does not have any magical elements to it and is solely used to console children who have been hurt.

El Cucuy

“There’s like a monster called El Cucuy, kinda like the boogeyman, it’s meant to scare children. Basically if you misbehaved El Cucuy would like to come and get you.”

Background: The informant’s parents never used it to scare her as a child, she would sometimes hear it from family members at parties or at dinners. She says it was used more in a joking manner in her family, rather than as a tactic to keep the kids in line.

Analysis: The El Cucuy is mainly viewed as a Spanish myth or legend but it can also be viewed as a superstition as it is able to mysteriously hide under the beds of misbehaving children. El Cucuy is often equated with the Western idea of the boogeyman and has many different variations such as Coco, Coca, Cuca, or Cucuí. Many cultures often have a boogeyman in order to prevent children from misbehaving, though most families don’t take it seriously in today’s society, often using it in a joking manner so as to not completely terrify children.

“死鱼正口，收杆就走” —Chinese Angler’s Superstition

Nationality: Chinese
Age: 19

Text:
“死鱼正口，收杆就走”
Translation: Grab the rod and go if you got a dead fish.

Context:
This is a superstition that Chinese anglers believe in. The informant is an angler, and he learned this saying on the Chinese online forum of fishers. The dead fish is believed to be attached to the fishing rod by the water monsters(水鬼). If the angler keeps fishing, he will be the next water monster. To protect oneself, the angler must burn the paper money and prepare meat for the water monster, a ritual to appease the water monster. Although the informant does not believe in monsters, he still respects and shares this term with others. The informant is also sure that all anglers in China know this term as it’s a general term.

Analysis:
As a well-known term, the saying has some practical meaning, while the ritual is a common way Chinese people deal with creatures that are not human beings. The saying itself, which warns anglers about dead fish, might be a cautionary saying. When one catches a dead fish, it might mean the water is contaminated, which causes the death of the fish. Thus one should stop fishing at that location and avoid eating the fish. The ritual of appeasing the water monster involves the Chinese superstition of offering food and money to things in another world. Burning paper money is a way to provide money to the dead, and it is believed that supernatural creatures can consume the food humans provide them. By “worshiping” the water monster, anglers can avoid being harmed by the water monsters.

“Knock On Wood” — Bad Luck Protection

Nationality: American (Jewish)
Age: 22
Occupation: Student
Residence: USC
Performance Date: April 24th, 2023
Language: English

Context :

JF is a 22 year old college student at USC from Rhode Island. Growing up, his family would knock on wood to prevent bad luck.

Text :

“If I want something good to happen, and I speak it into existence, I always get a little nervous it might not come true because I vocalized it so I always knock on wood to counter it.”

Analysis :

It’s interesting that JF grew up hearing “knock on wood” from his family because he is Jewish, and some say that the phrase originates from Christians linking it to Christ’s crucifixion. However, it has spread throughout much of the United States and is now a common saying, despite the origins. For JF, he continues to perform the action because usually there is no bad luck associated with what he is speaking into existence. In a way, he is experiencing the placebo effect because he associates bad luck blocks with knocking on wood, and when he doesn’t knock on wood and something bad happens, that’s why.