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Harry Oliver. Black Cats & April Fools - Origins of Old Wives Tales and Superstitions in Our Daily Lives
CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER ONE: ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT. Break a leg!
Eating and drinking food made with lemon or milk before a performance
Macbeth is the unluckiest of plays
Whistling during a performance brings bad luck
To see the ghost of Drury Lane
Never speak a play’s last line during rehearsals
Wearing green, yellow or blue at the theatre
CHAPTER 2: OUTDOOR DANGERS
OUTDOOR DANGERS. Walking under a ladder
Finding money
Stepping on a crack in the pavement
Parting at bridges, crossing bridges and walking under them
Crossroads
Precautions for travellers, or advice for a happy holiday
Having a woman on board a ship
CHAPTER THREE: ACTIONS AND GESTURES
ACTIONS AND GESTURES. Never light three cigarettes with the same match
Crossing fingers
Touching wood
Throwing a shoe for luck
Pointing a finger brings bad luck
Throwing coins into a fountain for luck
Making the sign of the cross
CHAPTER FOUR: AROUND THE HOME
AROUND THE HOME. Breaking a mirror
Hanging a horseshoe over a threshold
Placing objects on the table
Opening an umbrella indoors
Getting up ‘on the wrong side of the bed’
Turning a calendar page before the new month has started
Dropping silverware
Hanging seaweed on the mantelpiece
Making sure there is always something in the oven
CHAPTER FIVE: CLOTHES AND APPAREL
CLOTHES AND APPAREL. Buttons
Shoes
New clothes at Easter
Aprons
Gloves
Hats
Underwear
CHAPTER SIX: ANIMALS
ANIMALS. Black cats are lucky
Cats have nine lives
A cat should not be left alone with a corpse
Transferring disease to a cat or dog
One for sorrow, two for joy …
The first cuckoo of spring
Telling the bees
Bats seen in daylight
Killing a robin brings bad luck
Beware of large black dogs
Owls are a bad omen
Stepping on a beetle brings rain
Sacrificing a calf cures the herd
Seeing a white horse is bad luck
Hedgehogs steal cows’ milk
Moles’ feet are lucky
Adders are deaf
Cocks crowing out of season
Never bring a peacock feather indoors
Hairs from a donkey cure disease
Handling a caterpillar
Killing a spider is unlucky
A bird flying into the house brings bad luck
Finding a ladybird brings luck
Ravens in the Tower of London
Handling a toad causes warts
Babies are delivered by storks
Howling dogs are a death omen
A rabbit’s foot brings good luck
Animals kneel on Christmas Eve
CHAPTER SEVEN: THE BODY
THE BODY. Birthmarks
Ears
Eyebrows
Excrement
The evil eye
Red hair
Sneezing and ‘God bless you!’
Right vs left hand
Menstruating women are dangerous
Nails and hair
Teeth
CHAPTER EIGHT: LOVE AND MARRIAGE
LOVE AND MARRIAGE. Love divination
A kiss from a dark man means a wedding
Women may only propose on 29 February
Engagement
Choosing a day
The morning of the wedding
On the way to the church
Weather on the wedding day
The wedding dress
The bridal veil
Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue
Tying the knot
Names
Giving away the bride
Wedding rings
Wedding curses
Crying at the wedding
Leaving the church
Throwing confetti
Catching the bride’s bouquet
Wedding presents
Wedding cake
Tying shoes to the wedding car
The honeymoon
Carrying over the threshold
The wedding night
CHAPTER NINE: FOOD AND DRINK
FOOD AND DRINK. Hollow bread signifies death
Don’t throw crumbs on the fire
Never prick a loaf with a fork or knife
Twelve for the baker and one for the Devil
The last slice of bread and butter
Butter-side down
Hot cross bun kept for luck
Empty eggshells should be broken
Eggs should not be carried after sunset
An even number of eggs is unlucky
Two nuts in a kernel brings luck
Yeast in a dream means pregnancy
Spilling salt is unlucky
Peas are lucky
Breaking the wishbone
Pepper is an aphrodisiac
Dropping a spoon
An eel prevents drunkenness
Garlic wards off vampires
Kicking over a chair betrays a lie
Blackberries should not be picked after 10 October
A joint of meat indicates fortunes
Potatoes cure rheumatism
Bacon heals ailments
A stalk in tea denotes a stranger
Two people should not pour from the same pot
‘Cheers!’
Black pudding can foretell a marriage
Witches can prevent butter from churning
Spilled milk means seven days’ bad luck
Every mince pie means a happy month
Oysters are an aphrodisiac
CHAPTER TEN: SPORT AND PASTIMES
SPORT AND PASTIMES. Don’t swap fishing rods
A redhead at a baseball match brings luck
The challenger must enter a boxing ring first
Don’t restart a bowling run-up in cricket
Blowing on dice for luck
The left football boot should be put on first
Hunchbacks are lucky for a gambler
Nine of diamonds is an unlucky card
Never bet on a horse whose name has been changed
No sex before a match
CHAPTER ELEVEN: THE WEATHER AND NATURAL OCCURRENCES
THE WEATHER AND NATURAL OCCURRENCES. Red sky at night …’
Rain on St Swithin’s Day
Pot of gold at the end of the rainbow
Whistling up a gale
Lightning never strikes twice
Sun on Easter Day
If the sun comes out on Candlemas Day there will be two winters
Low-flying swallows
A cat’s behaviour foretells the weather
When cows lie down it means rain
‘Rain, rain, go away’
New Year wind
Comets
Shooting stars
The full moon
The new moon
CHAPTER TWELVE: BIRTH
BIRTH. Easing the pain of childbirth
Good and bad times to be born
Babies born with the caul on their heads
Washing, grooming and dressing a baby
Cross-dressing confuses the Devil
Protecting unbaptised babies from danger
The changeling
Baptism and naming rituals
Birthstones
January: Garnet
February: Amethyst
March: Aquamarine
April: Diamond
May: Emerald
June: Pearl
July: Ruby
August: Peridot
September: Sapphire
October: Opal
November: Topaz
December: Turquoise
CHAPTER THIRTEEN: DEATH
DEATH. A good death
Good days of the year to die
Speaking ill of the dead
Touching a corpse brings luck
Death omens
Suicides
Funerals
Sin eaters
CHAPTER FOURTEEN: NUMBERS, LUCKY AND UNLUCKY
NUMBERS
One
Three
Four
Five
Seven
Eight
Nine
Thirteen
CHAPTER FIFTEEN: GIFTS
GIFTS. Giving sharp objects, especially knives or scissors
Giving bouquets of red and white flowers
Amber beads
Gifts for a new bride and a new home
Gifts for friends
Gifts at the theatre
Gifts for a newborn baby at his or her baptism
CHAPTER SIXTEEN: CELEBRATIONS AND FESTIVALS
CELEBRATIONS AND FESTIVALS. The first person seen on New Year’s Day should be male
Fires must be kept burning on New Year’s Eve
The first water of the year is lucky
The rising sun dances on Easter Sunday
No washing on Good Friday
A future husband may be seen in the mirror at Halloween
Christmas decorations should be taken down by Twelfth Night
Father Christmas
Christmas cake
Knocking on the hen house at Christmas
A girl may dream of her husband on St Agnes Day
The first bird seen on Valentine’s Day indicates a husband-to-be
New clothes should be worn at Easter
Washing in the dew on May Day is good for the skin
A piece of Yule log prevents lightning from striking
Christmas shadows indicate death
Shrove Tuesday pancakes are lucky
Jumping over fire at Easter
Corn dollies at harvest time
Wassailing on Twelfth Night
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: DAYS OF THE WEEK
DAYS OF THE WEEK. Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
April Fool’s Day
Ascension Day
Childermas
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN: PREDICTING THE FUTURE
PREDICTING THE FUTURE. Palmistry
Reading tea leaves
Reading tarot cards
Horoscope
Bibliomancy
Crystallomancy
The Ouija board
CHAPTER NINTEEN: OLD WIVES’ TALES AND PSEUDO-SCIENCE
OLD WIVES’ TALES AND PSEUDO-SCIENCE. Chocolate causes acne
Masturbating will make your hands hairy, make you mentally ill or infertile – you might even go blind!
If you go outside without a coat or with wet hair, you will catch a cold or even get pneumonia
Hair myths
Carrots make you see in the dark
CHAPTER TWENTY: FLOWERS AND TREES
FLOWERS AND TREES. Lilies
Elder
Roses
Mistletoe
Four-leaf clover
Daisies
Myrtle
Dandelions
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE: INTERNATIONAL TALISMANS
INTERNATIONAL TALISMANS
Middle Eastern talismans protecting against the evil eye
Native American Hopi and Zuni Fetishes
Italian amulet against malocchio
Japanese Maneki Neko, the lucky beckoning cat
The Khamsa (Fatima’s Hand), or the Hamesh (Miriam’s Hand)
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO: AROUND THE WORLD
AROUND THE WORLD. Praising a baby in China
Meeting a nun on the street in Italy
Meeting a man whose beard, moustache and hair are different colours in the US
Dreaming of being snatched by a snake in Thailand
Chewing gum at night in Turkey
Starting a business on a Tuesday in Greece
Listening to good wishes and praise in Russia
Jumping over a child in Turkey
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