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.
🇯🇵 JapanKin no unko金のうんこ
A Japanese charm shaped like faeces that is believed to bring good fortuneCharm · Luck and prosperity Living
🇹🇭 Thailand and 1 morePalad khikปลัดขิก
A Thai phallic amulet believed to bring luck and protectionCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇯🇵 JapanFukusuke福助
A kneeling Japanese doll believed to bring wealth and honorCharm · Luck and prosperity · Power and authority Living
🇨🇳 China and 2 moreCoin-sword辟邪劍 (bì xié jiàn)
A Chinese numismatic talisman made of cash coins strung on a rod to ward off evil spiritsCharm · Protection Living
🇩🇪 Germany and 1 moreHercules' ClubHerkuleskeule
A club-shaped amulet worn in the Roman Empire and by Germanic peoples as a protective charm.Charm · Protection Historical
🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreAmulet
A portable object worn or carried to ward off harm and invite protection.Charm · Protection · Healing Living
🇹🇭 Thailand and 1 morePra Jiadประเจียด
A Muay Thai armband worn for luck and confidenceCharm · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living
🇮🇩 IndonesiaIndonesian numismatic charmUang Gobog
Coin-like amulets from Indonesia used for protection and ritual offerings.Charm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇻🇳 Vietnam and 2 moreVietnamese numismatic charmsBùa Việt Nam
Coin-shaped charms used for protection, luck, and ritual in Vietnamese cultureCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreLock charms家锁 / 锁片 (jiā suǒ / suǒ piàn)
A Chinese metal pendant shaped like a lock to protect children from harm and death.Charm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇰🇷 South Korea and 3 moreKorean numismatic charm열쇠패
Coin-shaped objects used as protective and decorative charms in Korean cultureCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇨🇳 China and 2 moreChinese burial money瘞錢 (yì qián)
Imitations of currency placed in Chinese graves to serve the deceased in the afterlife.Charm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreZhengde Tongbao正德通寶
A fantasy cash coin used as a Chinese and Vietnamese amulet for luck and protection.Charm · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living
🇺🇸 United StatesLemon pig
A carved fruit figure made for amusement and later linked to New Year luckCharm · Luck and prosperity Living
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreConfucian coin charms
Amulets bearing Confucian moral teachings and historical storiesCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇨🇳 China and 3 moreMarriage coin charm夫婦和合花錢
Coin-shaped amulets from East Asia that celebrate marriage, fertility, and conjugal harmonyCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreVault protector coin鎮庫錢 (zhèn kù qián)
Large Chinese numismatic charms cast to guard mint treasuries and attract wealth.Charm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomFumsup
A small figurine charm believed to bring good luck, popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.Charm · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇮🇷 Iran and 1 moreDerafsh Kavianiدرفش کاویانی
A legendary royal standard of pre-Islamic Iran, later adopted as a symbol of national identity.Charm · Power and authority · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇳🇿 New Zealand and 4 moreFeather cloak
A garment of feathers worn by royalty and gods across cultures to signal rank or enable flightCharm · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇻🇪 VenezuelaDjucu
A warm sea nut used as a lucky charm in the CaribbeanCharm · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreDried cat
A dried feline body hidden in walls to protect a home from harmCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaDrishti bommai
A fearsome doll hung at homes and vehicles to ward off the evil eye in South India.Charm · Protection Living
🇫🇮 Finland and 1 moreFrog coffin
A Finnish folk magic burial of a frog in a tiny coffin to steal luck or reflect harmRite · Protection · Cursing and harm Historical
🇸🇪 Sweden and 1 moreTroll crosstrollkors
A carved or bent iron sigil used in Sweden and Norway to ward off harmful magic and creatures.Charm · Protection Revived
🇷🇴 Romania and 5 moreMărțișor
A red and white string charm worn in early spring to welcome the seasonTradition · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇳🇴 NorwayBergen rune charm
A four-sided wooden stick with runic verses for love and protection from medieval Norway.Charm · Love and attraction · Protection Historical
🇨🇳 ChinaEight Treasures八寶 (Bābǎo)
A set of eight symbols in Chinese art and amulets representing good fortune.Charm · Luck and prosperity · Protection Living
🇯🇵 JapanHōko這子
A Japanese soft doll used as a protective talisman for mothers and childrenCharm · Protection Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomFairy FlagA' Bhratach Shìth
A tattered silk heirloom of Clan MacLeod, said to hold fairy magic and ancient power.Charm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇮🇶 IraqBurney Relief
A Mesopotamian terracotta plaque depicting a winged goddess with owl companions and lion mounts.Charm · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇷🇺 Russia and 2 moreBesomвеник
A twig broom used for sweeping, folk magic, and fire responseCharm · Protection · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇪🇸 SpainIndalo
A Bronze Age pictograph used as a protective house charm and lucky symbol in Almería, SpainCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇸🇪 SwedenSigtuna rib
A runic bone amulet from medieval Sweden bearing a spell against diseaseCharm · Healing Historical
🇹🇭 ThailandPla taphianปลาตะเพียนสาน
A woven palm leaf fish mobile hung as a blessing for health and plentyCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇯🇵 JapanOkiagari-koboshi起き上がり小法師
A Japanese roly-poly doll that rights itself when knocked overCharm · Luck and prosperity · Power and authority Living
🇨🇳 China and 3 moreCash方孔錢
A round copper coin with a square hole used in China and East Asia for two millennia.Charm · Luck and prosperity · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇨🇳 ChinaDragon turtle龍龜 (Lóngguī)
A Chinese mythic creature with a dragon body and turtle shell, used as a Feng Shui charm.Figure · Luck and prosperity · Power and authority Living
🇲🇽 Mexico and 1 moreGod's eyeOjo de Dios
A woven yarn cross believed to grant spiritual sight and protectionCharm · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Vault protector coin: 风之清扬, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Amulet: Anonymous ( Egypt ) Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Chinese burial money: Gary Todd, CC0, source
- Kin no unko: enmoto, CC BY 2.0, source
- Fukusuke: Nesnad, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Palad khik: deror_avi, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Hercules' Club: Wolfgang Sauber, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Pra Jiad: Samy Sana, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Lemon pig: GenesisNZ, CC0, source
- Confucian coin charms: Jean-Michel Moullec, CC BY 2.0, source
- Marriage coin charm: Scott Semans, CC BY 3.0, source
- Vietnamese numismatic charms: Jean-Michel Moullec, CC BY 2.0, source
- Derafsh Kaviani: CNG Coins, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Dragon turtle: Jonathan O'Donnell, CC BY 2.0, source
- Kilili: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Feather cloak: Lusanaherandraton, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Coin-sword: Etnografiska museet, CC BY 2.5, source
- Okiagari-koboshi: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Cash: User 冷玉 on zh.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- God's eye: Douglas P. Perkins, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Korean numismatic charm: Unknown author(s)., Public domain, source
- Troll cross: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Lock charms: Scott Semans World Coins (CoinCoin.com)., CC BY 3.0, source
- Dried cat: The Voice of Hassocks, CC0, source
- Drishti bommai: Chrissy starsi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Bergen rune charm: Bengt A. Lundberg, CC BY 2.5, source
- Eight Treasures: Etnografiska Museet, CC BY 2.5, source
- Fairy Flag: Otter, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Besom: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Cox_(artist), Public domain, source
- Indalo: Ismael Olea, Public domain, source
- Sigtuna rib: Swedish National Heritage Board, CC BY 4.0, source
- Pla taphian: Mr.Peerapong Prasutr, CC BY-SA 4.0, source