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List of Southern Superstitions

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Southern people aren't only known for their language. They are also known for their superstitions that they brought with them from Europe and Africa.

Rated 0 points - posted 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan in category United States.

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1.

Eating cabbage and/or black eye peas on New Year's Day will bring good luck/health.

Don't forget the cornbread for the peas. I don't know any Southerners who do not do this.

17 points - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan -

2.

Don’t cut a baby’s hair before his/her first birthday.

This is a superstition among African Americans. The fear is that if you cut the hair, the child will grow harder to manage hair or have bad luck.

14 points - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan -

3.

Girls are carried high; boys are carried low.

10 points - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan -

4.

It’s bad luck to cross a black cat’s path.

Southerners aren't the only ones who believe this. Black cats are a symbol of bad luck for many.

6 points - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan - 1 comment

Comments:

Interestingly,black cats were Once Upon A Time considered GOOD luck in England a mere century ago! Dozens of vintage postcards from the early 1900s show charming pictures of "lucky"black cats,including New Year's Even postcards featuring black cats,four leaf clovers,gold coins and amusingly, pigs,along with wishes for good luck in the coming year!

Added 5 years ago by guest, 0 points

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5.

If your palm is itching, that means that you are going to receive money.

6 points - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan -

6.

If you invite 13 people to dinner, one of them will suffer bad luck.

This could be because the number 13 is considered bad luck.

5 points - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan -

7.

Don't split a pole.

Splitting a pole brings bad luck.

5 points - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan -

8.

Animals know when you are pregnant.

2 points - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan - 1 comment

Comments:

Tracy,this "superstition " may actually be true. Many superstitions form around a kernel of fact,like a pearl around a grain of sand. Dogs can smell changes in a person's physiology. This is why dogs are trained to detect oncoming seizures,migraines,blood sugar changes,& even cancers! They don't just sniff out drugs & track lost people.Dogs can sniff out minute bodily changes. The reason for the sniff-fest when dogs meet each other is that it's the canine equivalent of "How are you doing?"! Its also why dogs sniff the ground-they're reading it the way you or I would read a newspaper or website! Dolphins use sonar & can detect a human swimmer's pregnancy. Animals can hear frequencies we cannot hear(think dog whistles!) Animals,including birds & insects, can see into ultraviolet light ranges most human adults are blind to(though children can sometimes hear frequencies & see into the ultraviolet range,and can hear & see beyond the norm. .These abilities decline with age. Animals hear ultrasound & have been documented as fleeing an area before an earthquake. It's not such a stretch to think that our scent & body temperature changes in ways that animals can detect when we are carrying a child!

Added 5 years ago by guest, 0 points

9.

Step on a crack, break your mother’s back.

2 points - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan -

10.

A man who gives you shoes as a gift will walk out of your life.

1 point - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan -

11.

If you put your purse on the floor, you will go broke.

1 point - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan -

12.

If your ear itches, someone is talking about you.

1 point - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan -

13.

It is bad luck to walk under a ladder.

1 point - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan -

14.

Sleep with a mirror under your pillow, and you will see your future husband.

1 point - added 8 years ago by TracyMcClellan -

15.

Animals are psychic;they can sense a person's character,are aware of impending death,and can see ghosts.

I'd like to see it listed after Tracey McClellan's #13,since it's an extension of the same sort of reasoning and relates to the perceptual abilities of animals. These are old beliefs, some of which may have merit. As I explained in my comments on superstition #13("Animals can detect pregnancies "). A landmark study showed that dogs,the most accommodating of creatures, still avoided playing with psychotic children. It's possible that the dogs sensed that such children were more likely to tease them or be violent.. Since animals can see invisible light and hear frequencies we are deaf to,who is to say that your cat Isn't watching invisible sprites when she stares at a blank wall,tail lashing as if she spotted a tasty bird? So when a big burly Tom catches sight of a bombastic presidential candidate on national TV,& zooms away as if the Devil were in pursuit,and when that same candidate spooks a Bald eagle on a talk show,I am inclined to wonder if both cat & eagle saw something about this man that scared 'em silly! ! When we further read that this fellows wives & children couldn't keep dogs & that a dog given as a diplomatic gift was promptly returned...well, I begin to wonder if this "superstition " doesn't have some merit after all! Particularly in light of the revelations of the Mueller investigation,which does NOT rely on superstition ! I'm inclined to believe that "dumb"animals show better judgement than many poor befuddled humans do!

0 points - added 5 years ago by guest -