Folk and village custom: magic in this belief world

Rural and household beliefs that belong to no single organised religion.

Folk and village custom is the large body of belief and practice that belongs to no organised religion: the charm against the evil eye, the cure for warts, the fairy hawthorn, the household spirit, the lucky day. It is passed within families and communities and exists in every society. This page looks at how it is kept, who keeps it, and why it is both valued and dismissed. It is also called popular religion, vernacular religion or lived religion by scholars.

Keepers and settings

Keepers are often older women, farmers, midwives, shepherds and craftsmen. Settings are the house, field, well, crossroads and church porch. European cunning folk offered help for fees and kept charms and books. In many Asian and African villages the specialist is a healer, a diviner or a spirit medium working beside religion. The same grandmother may light a candle at church, tie a thread on a child and say a charm for a burn, and see no conflict between them.

Names and labels

The same thing carries many names: the evil eye is the nazar, mal de ojo and ayin hara. Folklorists collected such customs from the nineteenth century, sometimes as relics of a vanished past and sometimes as living culture. The label folk also marks class, since the term often implies rural, poor or uneducated, a bias that modern scholars try to avoid. Where the village has a wise woman or a bone-setter, the community knows what to ask of her and what she will refuse to do.

Religion, state and reform

Churches, mosques and temples have absorbed, tolerated and condemned folk practice in turn. States have banned it as backward: Chinese campaigns against superstition in the twentieth century closed local temples and shrines, and Soviet policy targeted village healers. At times governments have turned to it as national heritage, as in revived festivals across Europe and Asia. Historians and folklorists note that it often keeps old customs alive within newer religions, such as lighting fires at midsummer within Christian saints' days.

Change and commerce

Urban life and migration thin out folk knowledge, while heritage projects and the internet gather it. Customs reappear as products, such as protective charms in shops and festival tourism. Some folk practice carries harm: village accusation of witchcraft, treatments that delay medical care, and fees charged to relieve fear. Illness needs real medical care. In places with active heritage movements, folk custom has become a source of pride, and young people record songs and cures from grandparents before they are lost.

Folk and village custom on EveryJaadu

The entries written up so far, best known first.

RegionSouth Asia Southeast Asia East Asia Central Asia and the Caucasus Middle East North Africa Sub-Saharan Africa Europe North America Latin America and the Caribbean Oceania

KindTradition Rite Charm Oracle Substance Being Figure Text Illusion Belief

PurposeProtection Healing Seeing and foretelling Luck and prosperity Love and attraction Cursing and harm Cleansing and purification Speaking with spirits and the dead Change and initiation Binding and oaths Power and authority Wonder and entertainment

WhoShamans Folk healers Priests and ritual specialists Witches, sorcerers and cunning folk Diviners and readers Mediums and the possessed Ceremonial magicians and alchemists Households and ordinary people Stage magicians Scholars and sceptics

OccasionWeddings and betrothal Festivals Birth and childhood Death and remembrance Harvest, farming and weather New year Initiation and coming of age Illness and misfortune Journeys and voyages Everyday use

StandingLiving Revived Fading Historical Legendary Performed

OrderBest known A to Z Newest Living first

🇯🇵 Japan and 2 moreTanabataたなばた (七夕) A Japanese celebration of star-crossed lovers and written wishesTradition · Luck and prosperity · Wonder and entertainment Living

🇩🇪 Germany and 1 moreWill-o'-the-wisp A ghostly light in folklore that guides or misleads travellers over marshes and bogs.Belief · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇮🇹 ItalyBefana An Italian witch-like figure who delivers gifts on Epiphany EveFigure · Luck and prosperity · Wonder and entertainment Living

🇺🇸 United States and 4 moreFortune-telling A practice of predicting future events or personal details through various methods and tools.Rite · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Living

🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 7 moreSaint Andrew's Day A Christian feast day marked by national holidays in Scotland and Romania, and folk divination across Europe.Rite · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living

🇮🇪 Ireland and 4 moreFour-leaf clover A rare plant mutation believed to bring good luck and used as a symbol of fortune.Charm · Luck and prosperity Living

🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreBrigid's crossCros Bhríde A woven straw charm hung for protection, named after Ireland's patron saintCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇬🇷 Greece and 2 moreNumerology The belief that numbers hold hidden meanings and influence human events.Belief · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇨🇳 China and 5 moreQingming Festival清明节 A spring day for sweeping graves, feeding the dead and honouring ancestorsTradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Protection Living

🇷🇺 Russia and 4 moreFolk Orthodoxyнародное православие A blend of Eastern Orthodox doctrine and pre-Christian pagan beliefs in Slavic communitiesTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreGroundhog DayGrund'sau dåk A North American custom using a burrowing rodent to forecast the end of winterTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living 🇨🇳 China and 4 moreKitchen God灶君 The Chinese hearth deity who reports domestic conduct to the Jade EmperorBeing · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇲🇳 Mongolia and 2 moreWind Horseརླུང་རྟ་ An East and Central Asian symbol of the soul, luck, and vital energyBeing · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living

🇪🇪 Estonia and 5 moreFern flower A mythical bloom said to bring fortune and unlock secrets, found only on midsummer night.Belief · Luck and prosperity · Love and attraction Living

🇲🇽 Mexico and 5 moreSanta MuerteNuestra Señora de la Santa Muerte A female skeletal folk saint in Mexico and the Americas, worshipped for protection, healing, and safe passage.Tradition · Protection · Healing Living

🇺🇸 United States and 5 moreFriday the 13th A Western superstition marking a specific calendar date as unlucky.Belief · Luck and prosperity Living

🇨🇳 China and 2 moreEight Immortals八仙 Eight legendary Taoist figures of China, each with a power and a vesselFigure · Protection · Healing Living

🇨🇳 China and 5 moreSky lantern天燈 A paper hot air balloon lifted by flame to carry wishes and blessingsRite · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living

🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreConcealed shoes Shoes hidden in building structures as folk charms for protection and fertilityCharm · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical

🇮🇪 Ireland and 3 moreChangeling A substitute left by supernatural beings in place of a stolen human child or adultBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Legendary 🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 3 moreFirst-footciad-chuairt The first visitor on New Year's Day, believed to set the household's fortune for the year aheadTradition · Luck and prosperity Living

🇷🇺 Russia and 2 moreCaul A birth membrane kept as a talisman for luck and protection from drowningCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇮🇷 Iran and 5 moreKnocking on wood A gesture of tapping wood to ward off bad luck or prevent tempting fateBelief · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇬🇷 Greece and 5 moreBay Laurelδάφνη An aromatic Mediterranean plant used in cooking and as a symbol of victory and purification.Substance · Protection · Cleansing and purification Living 🇬🇧 United KingdomBlack Shuck A ghostly black dog from East Anglia folklore, often seen as a death omen or a terrifying apparition.Belief · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇨🇳 China and 5 moreTetraphobia The avoidance of the number four due to its similarity to the word for death in East Asian languagesBelief · Luck and prosperity Living 🇨🇳 ChinaGu蛊 A venom-based poison and black magic practice from south ChinaSubstance · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇨🇳 China and 2 moreMenshen門神 Guardian figures pasted to doors in Chinese folk religion to protect homes from evil.Belief · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreCairn A human-made stack of stones used as a marker, memorial, or religious symbol across many cultures.Tradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living

🇮🇪 Ireland and 4 moreWinter solstice The shortest day and longest night of the year, marked by rites of solar returnTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Protection Living

🇨🇳 China and 2 moreOnomancy Divination based on the letters, numbers, or written strokes of a person's nameOracle · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living

🇯🇵 JapanKitsunebi狐火 Atmospheric ghost lights in Japanese folklore, often linked to foxes and natural phenomena.Belief · Wonder and entertainment · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇮🇹 ItalyWitches of Benevento A medieval Italian legend of witches gathering under a walnut treeBelief · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇮🇳 India and 2 morePlanets in astrology Seven celestial bodies used to map human character and destinyBelief · Power and authority · Luck and prosperity Living

🇯🇵 JapanHatsuyume初夢 The first dream of the new year and its traditional omensBelief · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Living

🇯🇵 JapanCurse of the Colonelカーネルサンダースの呪い A Japanese sports superstition blaming a baseball team's losses on an offended fast-food mascot.Belief · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇺🇸 United StatesCurse of the Bambino A sports superstition linking a long championship drought to a player saleBelief · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇱🇦 Laos and 3 moreTai folk religionສາສະໜາຜີ Spirits, ancestor rites, and soul-calling ceremonies of the Tai peoplesTradition · Protection · Healing Living

🇮🇪 IrelandStatue rubbing A tourist custom of touching statues to attract luck, love, or a return visit.Belief · Luck and prosperity · Love and attraction Living

🇮🇳 India and 3 moreAstrology A divinatory practice that links celestial positions to human affairs and earthly eventsTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Luck and prosperity Historical 🇯🇵 JapanJapanese superstitions Common beliefs in Japan about luck, numbers, and omens rooted in language and customBelief · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living 🇦🇺 Australia and 2 moreTheatrical superstitions Beliefs and rituals among actors to avoid bad luck and ward off spiritsBelief · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living

🇺🇸 United States and 4 moreTooth fairy A childhood figure who exchanges lost baby teeth for gifts or coins.Figure · Luck and prosperity Living

🇫🇷 France and 2 moreMelusineMélusine A water spirit of French and Luxembourgish lore, known for her serpent form and the castles she built.Figure · Luck and prosperity · Power and authority Legendary

🇸🇮 Slovenia and 5 moreVesnaВесна A Slavic personification of spring and youth, known in myth and languageFigure · Luck and prosperity Historical

🇷🇴 Romania and 2 moreStrixστρίξ A classical bird of ill omen that evolved into a term for witches and vampires across Europe.Being · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical 🇷🇺 Russia and 4 moreFiery serpentsогненный змей A pan-Slavic spirit of fire and wind, seen as a demon or a household helperBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical 🇯🇲 Jamaica and 3 moreDuppy A Caribbean term for a ghost or malevolent spirit, rooted in West African folklore.Being · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Living

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

Hatsuyume: Takeuchi Seihō, Public domain, source
Numerology: Pietro Bongo, Public domain, source
Eight Immortals: Fanghong, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Curse of the Colonel: Ogiyoshisan, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Tai folk religion: ( เทวประภาส มากคล้าย ), Tevaprapas, Public domain, source
Astrology: Wilfredor, CC0, source
Amniomancy: JC Brand, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Changeling: Henry Fuseli, Public domain, source
Curse of the Bambino: National Photo Company, Public domain, source
Knocking on wood: The White House, Public domain, source
Bay Laurel: Forest and Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0 us, source
Tetraphobia: Halowand, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Friday the 13th: Leonardo da Vinci, Public domain, source
Menshen: Taiwankengo, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Tanabata: Laika ac, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Imbolc: Culnacreann, CC BY 3.0, source
Statue rubbing: Matthias Rosenkranz, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Winter solstice: Image by Przemyslaw " Blueshade " Idzkiewicz, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Kitsunebi: Abasaa, Public domain, source
Planets in astrology: Jan van Loon, Public domain, source
Fern flower: Antoni Piotrowski, Public domain, source
Santa Muerte: Not home, Public domain, source
Melusine: GilPe, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Tooth fairy: Eden, CC BY 2.0, source
Vesna: Viktor Vasnetsov, Public domain, source
Strix: Prosthetic Head, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Sky lantern: Richy, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Concealed shoes: Edmund Patrick, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Will-o'-the-wisp: Hermann Hendrich, Public domain, source
Befana: El Ágora, Public domain, source
Fortune-telling: Taras Shevchenko, Public domain, source
Saint Andrew's Day: Henryk Siemiradzki, Public domain, source
Four-leaf clover: Phyzome under the GFDL., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Qingming Festival: Jacklee ., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Folk Orthodoxy: Лобачев Владимир, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Groundhog Day: Anthony Quintano, CC BY 2.0, source
Cairn: Andrew Bossi, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
Onomancy: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Witches of Benevento: Guglielmo della Porta, CC0, source
Wind Horse: Clemensmarabu, CC BY-SA 3.0, source