Superstitions from

Around the World

EXAMPLES OF SUPERSTITIONS AROUND
THE WORLD

India
Superstition is defined as ‘any belief or
Thinking that trimming your nails at night
practice that is irrational’ and every culture is
will bring bad luck is a common belief in India
bound to have at least a few. Most people are
and has some practical reasons behind it.
at least a little superstitious. We’re of the
Before the invention of electricity, the nights
belief that most superstitions were created as
were a lot darker than they are now. Cutting
a way to encourage children to behave or
nails at night made it a lot more difficult to
keep them safe by scaring them with
clean up the nail trimmings, and this could
cautionary tales. Others, however…well,
cause hygiene issues and could even cause
maybe they were pranks that just never
some allergic reactions when unknowingly
ended.
mixed with
foods.
SO, WHERE DO SUPERSTITIONS COME
Another
FROM?
reason why
Many of the weird and wacky
cutting your
superstitions have equally weird and wacky
nails at night
origins. And because most of the superstitions
is considered
deal with the supernatural – witches and
bad luck was because there were no nail
spirits – their origin can usually be found in
clippers, people would use knives to trim their
religion. Many people all over the world knock
nails! Obviously, this meant that the
on wood to ward off bad omen. One theory
risk of injuring yourself was a lot higher if you
suggests that pagan worshippers used to
decided to trim your nails at night.
believe sprits lived in trees and would knock
on the wood to summon the spirits to protect
Japan
them. In complete contrast from religious
In Japan, people are often advised to tuck
superstitions, some come with a very rational
their thumbs into their fists when walking
explanation. One example is that lighting
through cemeteries. The reasoning is simple;
three cigarettes with one match can bring bad
In Japanese, the word for "thumb" directly
luck. This was the case if you happen to be a
translates to "parent finger." The legend warns
soldier in a fox hole in the darkness. Lighting a
that tucking in your "parent finger" will protect
match and keeping it lit for long enough to
your parents from death.
light three cigarettes could cause the enemy
to find your position and open fire.
China
Do you believe in lucky numbers? What
about unlucky numbers? Some people in
China will avoid anything having to do with the
number four. In China the number four is
considered unlucky because it sounds a lot
like the word for “death,” and because of this,
Chinese buildings often lack a fourth floor. The
number 4 is also avoided in most public
places in China. For example, elevator
buttons, addresses, ID numbers, phone
numbers, and license plates will usually omit
or remove it because it might bring bad luck.
Usually, houses and apartments that have the
number 4 in the address will sell for less. Also,
be careful if you ever mention the number four
to an ill family member because it is highly
offensive and giving anything with 4 on it to
someone can be seen as a death threat!
Spain
Instead of counting down to the new year and
clinking Champagne flutes, Spaniards
traditionally stuff 12 grapes with each clock
bell strike at midnight of December 31 to
welcome the New Year. The 12 grapes
represent the 12 months of the year, and the
Spanish tradition is meant to bring good luck
in the new year. In some areas, it is believed
that it wards away witches and general evil.
If you fail to
conscientiously
finish your
grapes by the
time the clock
stops chiming,
you’ll face
misfortune in
the new year.
South Korea
Ever felt like sleeping with the fan on during a
hot summer’s night? There is a common belief
among many South Koreans that leaving a fan
on in a closed room at night can cause death.
This is called “Fan death”. But there might be
some reasoning behind this superstition.
According to the Korean Consumer Protection
Board (2006) “If bodies are exposed to
electric fans or air conditioners for too long, it
causes bodies
to lose water
and
hypothermia…
a total of 20
deaths were
reported.” Most
fans in South
Korea are sold with timers and a remote, you
set a time for it to shut off, so you don’t have
to worry about the Fan Death!
Kenya
Have you ever walked past a group of geese
and they quacked at you? At an apartment
complex in the Kenyan village of Kakamega,
locals believe the neighbourhood geese only
quack at witches! As a result, they are the only
security required at the building, and every
time the geese quack, people are quite sure
that there are some witches about! Kenyans
also believe that if your right palm is itchy you
will soon receive a windfall of money, but you
can’t scratch your right hand, cause if you do
you will “scratch the money away.” Instead,
you should scratch your left hand so that you
don’t lose the money!
As we can see, there are many
superstitions from all over the world. Some
might be the same or very similar to ones that
you have in your home countries. Whether
you believe in these superstitions or not, you
must admit that they are very interesting!
Activity 1: Vocabulary Enhancement. Find the meaning of these words taken from the text and
identify its part of speech (noun, verb, adjective, adverb)

1. superstitions _________________________________________________________ ( )

2. superstitious _________________________________________________________ ( )

3. omen _________________________________________________________ ( )

4. rational _________________________________________________________ ( )

5. belief _________________________________________________________ ( )

6. legend _________________________________________________________ ( )

7. lucky _________________________________________________________ ( )

8. offensive _________________________________________________________ ( )

9. tradition _________________________________________________________ ( )

10. misfortune _________________________________________________________ ( )

11. common _________________________________________________________ ( )

12. witches _________________________________________________________ ( )

Activity 2: Comprehension. Answer the questions below using the information from the text above.

1. What are the two main origins of superstition?

__________________________________________________________________________________

2. Who is protected in the Japanese superstition?

__________________________________________________________________________________

3. Why do people in China avoid the number four?

__________________________________________________________________________________

4. How do the people of Spain usually celebrate the welcoming of a new year?
__________________________________________________________________________________

5. Which country’s superstitious belief is/are related to health concerns?

__________________________________________________________________________________

6. In Kenya, why shouldn’t a person scratch their itchy hand?

__________________________________________________________________________________