Questions tagged [folklore]
Questions about folk beliefs, superstitions, or rituals that are shared by a certain group but not part of an organized belief system.
18 questions
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Is there any historical evidence of Picts originating from Scythia? [closed]
I am reading the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles which states early on, this passage:
The island Britain (1) is 800 miles long, and 200 miles broad. And there are in the island five nations; English, Welsh (...
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Why would this Romanian ritual have been done specifically before Lent?
From the Wikipedia article on belladonna:
Among the ancient folk traditions of the Romanian (Moldavian) / Ukrainian region of Bukovina in the Carpathians is the ritual for a Bukovinian girl to ...
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How common was it for archaeologists in past eras to believe in giants?
The past has involved many myths about the existence of giants. Various colonizers and travelers, for example, reported giants among the indigenous peoples of the Americas (eg "Giant Amerindians: ...
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Who is 'Ebinichibel' mentioned in the Borgia Map?
Wikipedia:BorgiaMap page gives this detail,
The Borgia map includes a legend referring to Ebinichibel, who is described as "the Saracen Ethiopian king with his dog-headed people".
Is this ...
- 2,164
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How did the tomato become the iconic pin cushion design?
When I was growing up, my mother had a pin cushion shaped and colored like a tomato. I recently discovered that my wife's grandmother has one too, which led me to discover that tomato pin cushions are ...
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Should the aluminados be considered to be the roots of the illuminati mythos?
It was always my understanding that the illuminati mythos had its roots in Adam Weishaupt's Bavarian Illuminati of 1 May 1776, and this is what I have always argued with conspiracy theorists on ...
- 3,142
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How did the Church of England view the local legend and festivities surrounding Gog and Magog?
From multiple sources I've read of legends regarding one or two giants, Gogmagog or Gog and Magog. It appears in Irish and English folklore, as well as other regional tales.
Gogmagog was a legendary ...
- 2,164
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Were hag stones ever engraved?
I found a hag stone the other day and am planning on stringing it as an amulet. My research indicates such amulets were in use over much of Europe, particularly Western Europe, as well as Egypt and ...
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What went into an Edo-era Hyakkumonogatari Kaidankai?
I was looking for information on the Edo-era parlour game hyakkumonogatari kaidankai. I found a lot of academic sources about kaidan themselves (the history, spread, adaption, influence, etc.) But at ...
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When and how did Seethekami, the tribal version of Ramayan, come into existence amongst the Haalaki in Karnataka?
Ramayan, an ancient Sanskrit text, though true or not forms an integral part of numerous cultures not only in India but in several Asian countries.
But across cultures and this text is not consistent ...
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Where are the Native American primary source documents?
I am currently looking into Crow Mythology and every website I've seen says essentially "The Native Americans thought of the crow as X". But "NATIVE AMERICANS" is too broad a category! Where are they ...
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Is there folk knowledge associating late breastfeeding with low intelligence and/or gullibility?
In the song "Rich Folks Hoax", written by Sixto Rodriguez (of Searching for Sugar Man) in Detroit in 1970, the hoax is characterized in the following terms:
only late-breast-fed fools believe it
...
- 1,264
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Has Matéo Maximoff's book Die Ursitory been translated to English?
I've been unsuccessfully searching for a book called Ursitory by Matéo Maximoff. From what I have gathered so far, it seems to only be available in German (Die Ursitory) and in French (Les Ursitory). ...
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Are there any references to entombed animals in ancient India?
The 13th century Hindu philosopher Arulnandi Shivacharya wrote a work called the Shiva Jnana Siddhiyar, which among other things contains a refutation of Buddhist philosophy. In this excerpt, various ...
- 2,546
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Is Krampus real? [closed]
By which I mean, is the whole krampus thing a real tradition or is it a fake tradition that someone just made up.
I have a degree in history, my wife studied folklore extensively in college. I read ...
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Are the traditions of Ground Hog Day connected to those of Candlemas Day in Europe? [closed]
Today, the 2nd February was Ground Hog Day. In Europe it was also Candlemas Day (the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple).
Now there is a tradition in America that if the humble ground ...
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How did the French word 'familier' become associated with the concept of Magical Familiars, historically?
How did the word 'familier' (French) become associated with the concept of Magical Familiars, historically?
Or do we not know?
Proof for the concept being from French, first.
- 1,359
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Which culture first referenced bigfoot?
Bigfoot and Sasquatch have a lot of tales and history in different regions. What was the first point of reference for these stories/sightings.
Also to make this a little clearer. Can we just throw ...
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