folklore

Hello everyone:I am very interested in sharing part of the folklore of my country with the intention of carrying out comparative analyses with that of other places. I have taken as a beginning the information referring to strange creatures such as shapeshifters, skinwalkers, wolfmen, hairy...

Hi all, This is my first ever post to the forums, and I'm assuming that this would be the right place for this technology story that arrived in my inbox not too long ago. Someone's created a portable 'black cat detector' that generates black cats 'in order to protect one's luck'. Here's a...

hmm came across this channel recently. https://www.youtube.com/@NavajoTraditionalTeachings It's interesting because apparently, they made it to document what the Navaho traditions say about various things. It's interesting since this differs quite substantially from the pop-culture and...

It's supposed to be almost impossible to be buried at sea off the UK these days, due to worries about health risks & contamination. But I remember a case nearly forty years ago when a widow had her husband buried at sea as per his wishes, off the Scottish islands & in a bronze coffin. A...

This may be of interest to someone here. A book of sundial mottoes by Hyatt, Alfred H., (Alfred Henry) (Published London : Philip Wellby, 1903) For example: Full Text: https://archive.org/details/bookofsundialmot00hyat/mode/1up

Hi, I was wondering if anyone knew of any folk tales which contain references to wolves and are likely to have been in circulation in Britain and Ireland during the 19th century. Thanks for reading.

The Tame Head refers to a form of black magic that has been reported in some Southeast Asian countries, and the Yunnan province of China. While there is no clear definition of what the Tame Head is, many people believe it has the power to control its victim's behavior and even cause their death...

A pouca, or in Irish púca, usually refers to a magical being--a "water sprite,” or "mischievous fairy”--a word adapted by Shakespeare for his character Puck in Midsummer Night’s Dream. [It is said that this] air is about the death of one such spirit. There is a story that this tune was heard by...

The first meeting if the Edinburgh Fortean Society of 2023 Scott Lyall will be speaking on: Do The Hills Really Have Eyes: The Emergent Folklore Of Cannibals In US National Parks Tales of strange disappearances and sightings of wild, primitive looking people within national parks in the US...

https://arcticalien.net/qivittoq/

I've heard a few interesting tales and encountered some quite odd beliefs/superstitions built up around various plants and trees. The ones I can remember off the top of my head: Lilac - it's very bad luck to cut the flowers and also to bring lilac blooms inside Ivy - I lived in a ground floor...

I was listening to Gardener's Question Time on my way to work on Sunday, and I heard a nine year old girl ask about planting rowan trees by the garden gate to keep witches away. The team laughed and only one said he'd ever heard of this... I thought it was common knowledge that rowan wood kept...

Long time no sees, friends. Today, I would like to share a few strange folklore in China. 1. If someone has been drowned to be dead, and his or her relatives or best friends come there and call his or her name, the dead would bleed from his/her nose, mouth, ears and eyes. Therefore, in the...

The Chonchon is a Chilean/Argentinian folkloric creature. It takes the form of a human(typically masculine) head, typically with feathers in place of hair, and immense ears that serve as wings. It has a cry, sometimes given as "too-ay too-ay too-ay" and is vampiric by diet. It is the...

'Fairy curse' behind dips in Irish road - Danny Healy-Rae 8 August 2017 Bad luck caused by disturbed fairy forts is causing dips in a major road between County Kerry and County Cork, an Irish member of parliament has said. Danny Healy-Rae told the Irish Times that issues with the N22 were...

While researching Sierra Leone during the Second World War, I stumbled over this striking image: It is captioned 'A Dancing Devil - The Gbangbama Devil - native type of Jester' and was produced c.1924 for sale at the British Empire Exhibition. 'Gbangbama', it seems, is a town in Sierra...

I have just read Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter's autobiography. At one point when he discusses his time with The Nation of Islam, he says that his branch of Muslims know about 'seven inhabitable planets in the outer universe, but the white man knows of only one.' I also recall someone telling me...

I wouldn't say I'm superstitious. Just eccentric;) It's not that I believe certain things cause bad luck; I just have certain things I don't like. I salute magpies. ...

'Mythical' creatures in Iceland. Last month, the mayor of the 2,200-person town of Egilsstaðir in eastern Iceland matter-of-factly announced that his government had verified video proving the existence of the Lagarfljótsormur, the Iceland Worm Monster. A fixture of Icelandic myth since 1345...

I am 60 this year, and I have been amazed just how many rational people have admitted they have either seen or felt a ghost. I got to talk intimately with men and women when I was a nurse and carer, so perhaps they felt they could confide in someone who would give them a sympathetic ear. I...

Morris men dance to success Morris men have danced their way to success as a 'micro-budget' film focusing on the traditional English pastime has finally gained a nationwide release. By Rebecca Lefort Published: 9:00AM BST 27 Sep 2009 The makers of Morris: A Life with Bells On, were...

Chile's black widow spider may yield spermicide By Antonio de la Jara SANTIAGO (Reuters) - Scientists have discovered a potentially marketable contraceptive in the venom of Chile's black widow spider, whose bite is fatal to many but can also cause prolonged, painful and involuntary erections...

Anyone know the significance of the older ones? I know there are some more recent ones displaying regimental badges and ones which were cut to commemorate events such as the Queen's silver jubilee, but what about the older ones, like the White Horse of Uffington (the oldest, estimated age...

I have been searching the interweb for the end of the rainbow stories. Many folk appear to have found a rainbows end going into the ground, even though it is supoosedly impossible. Here is one pic that shows a rainbow going into a field. What do others think, and do you know of any more photo's...

I know we've all heard of the lore surround changelings, but has anyone had any real (or even realistic) experiences regarding changelings?

Hi, yesterday at the library I've been browsing symbol-encyclopedias to check if every bird I can see from my window has some symbolic meaning or legend. I found, as expected: magpie, crow/raven (we don't have these but we have rookies), duck, heron, pigeon. But I didn't find anything on...

Source

The subject of Elves must have been covered in the Fortean Times or this very forum in the past. What I want to know is what is the true depiction of an Elf? The reason I ask is Hawk the Slayer was on last night and their depiction differs greatly from Lord of the Rings. Hawk the Slayers Elf is...

my girlfriend's always complaining about her right ear burning. she gets paranoid that someone's talking about her in spite, left for love, right for spite. Where does this old wives tale come from? is my girlfiend telepathic? Is this indication to a collective consciousness?

I had never heard of this story before: The Nain Rouge, French for red dwarf or red gnome, is a mythical creature that haunts Detroit, Michigan. Its appearance is said to presage terrible events for the city. The Nain Rouge appears as a small child-like creature with red or black fur. It is...

I am increasingly aware of what appears to me to be a "new" folklore in the making. A phenomena that is coming into being, but not yet commented on. My own account has been told by me several times and I won't take up space in my first posting by giving the full story. But the bones of it...

Just got through watching a Japanese film called Yokai Monsters or Spook Warfare (the Japanese title is Yokai daisenso). The general plot involved a Babylonian monster who escapes from a statue and invades 18th century Japan. He takes over a lord's house and starts draining people's blood. His...

Hi there. I'm reading Martin Martin's account of the Hebrides of scotland in the 1690s just now. Very Fortean in places. He talks about the "King of the Otters" and mentions it as having a white spot on its breast, with a pelt much prized by soldiers. Sounds very much like other reports of...

Not sure if it's been discussed before, but what stories can members relate about Will o the wisp? is it a British phenomenon or is it world wide?

There has been a bit discussion in the last two weeks on the World Wide Words newsletter about the phrase "The Queen of Spain's legs". Apparently a noblewoman was once travelling to Spain to marry the king, and passed through a French town famous for making stockings, and the good burghers...

guardian.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4311928,00.html Link is dead. Webpage is not archived at the Wayback Machine. I do hope the link works.... Elves are so important to Icelanders that roads are built with bends to avoid disturbing their homes! I'm amazed. Why don't we have such a powerful...

El Chupacabra Article at HowStuffWorks Hello all. I found an accidental link to a new article with new pictures on the Chupacabara this morning at HowStuffWorks. You can't get to it from a regular link but the article still exists at http://www.howstuffworks.com/chupacabra.htm. Weird. :rolleyes:

I remember reading in the book "Strange Stories and Amazing Facts" (the last authority on fortean phenomena) about a worm that wrapped itself around a hill in England, now appropriately called Worm Hill. I think a well and a prince were involved. Can anyone back me up on this?

Sweepers I recall a letter or short piece in FT a couple of years back about the Sweepers, a secret society in the ?Pennines who hum outside houses on ?New Year's Eve and then rush in and sweep the house out. Apparently they dress up to disguise their identity and membership is inherited, going...

Does anyone know the origin of the green man, is it a british, phenonomen or a worldwide thing?

Hello, was just wondering if any of you know of any urban legends, folklore or myth's for your local area? To start things off I will tell you mine (footy fans may of heard about this one). The monkey hanging - It's known by all the locals in my town that we once hung a monkey. A french...

ASK THE FAIRIES Has any one heard of the expresion " ASK THE FAIRIES" apparently if you have lost something you say out loud, please fairies where is it, the next time you look you will find whatever it was you had lost. I know it sounds stupid but I have tried it and it worked. Has anyone...

Fairys Hi I have two questions 1 what do you persive a fairy to be? 2 do you acknolage their posible existance? Wm