Lucky and Luckless Christmases
“Don’t walk over him because he won’t grow taller!” If you’re a Filipino, chances are this isn’t the only superstition you’ve heard of. Every culture has their fair share of superstitions, and Irish culture is no exception to this. Ireland is known for Christmas traditions that range from heartwarming to odd and unbelievable, but the Irish also have lots of cool superstitions about Christmas! Let’s go through some of them.
Here are 12 Irish Christmas superstitions.
ONE: ANIMALS CAN TALK?
Christmas doesn’t only bring presents to humans. Animals are also said to have the ability to speak human languages. However, be warned! Trying to listen to the animals talk is bad luck. Sounds like there won’t be any Irish kids pretending to be Sofia the First!
TWO: MISTLETOE
Mistletoe means “All Heal” in Celtic. The Irish believed that mistletoe had the power to fix anything from horrible diseases to misfortune. So influential was this belief that if two enemies met by chance underneath the charming plant, they would greet each other warmly and maintain a truce until the next day. From this, the idea of sharing a kiss under a mistletoe soon developed.
THREE: HOLLY
Centuries ago, it was tradition to send kids outside during the Christmas season to gather holiday-themed decorations. To this day, a child is considered lucky if he or she finds a berry-filled holly bush.
FOUR: HONEY BEES
To the Irish, bees aren’t just honey-makers. On Christmas eve, these yellow creatures wake up from their winter slumber and hum songs from the Bible. However, only those who lead a supposedly blameless life can hear these melodies.
FIVE: LUCKY BREAKFAST
In Ireland, people don’t only use their candles during a blackout. A Christmas-morning breakfast among candlelight is considered lucky.
SIX: WHAT SHOULD I EAT?
Eating plum pudding on Christmas is encouraged because doing so secures all your friendships for the following year. However, rejecting mince pie means bad luck for the next day.
SEVEN: AROUND THE FIRE
The past six superstitions have been fairly lighthearted. It seems to be time for a darker one. This particularly superstitious superstition takes place when everyone in the family sits together, usually by a fire. If a shadow on the wall appears headless, the shadow caster will die before the year ends.
EIGHT: CANDLES
A round cake is placed on a table with each candle on top corresponding to a certain family member. The order in which the candlelight would go out is the order in which the family members would die.
Seven and eight are creepy, aren’t they? Let’s move on to fun ones!
NINE: CHILD
Rubbing the tail of a herring, a silvery fish, on a child’s eyes guarantees immunity from disease for the rest of the year.
TEN: APPLE
Eating an apple when the clock strikes twelve will be accompanied by good health for the upcoming year. One thing’s for sure: Snow White will definitely enjoy spending Christmas here!
ELEVEN: WIND
If wind blows on Christmas day, that signifies good luck. However, wearing new shoes on that day will bring the opposite.
TWELVE: STARS
Witnessing a clear, star-sprinkled sky on Christmas Eve means good news: crops will bloom bountifully in the summertime.
These are our 12 Irish Christmas superstitions. Aren’t they all interesting? It’s cool what people can do with time, ideas, and a good dose of paranoia. Even though they’re untrue, superstitions have wormed themselves into culture and most everyday lives. They become fun little stories that intrigue people. Thus, I leave you with these twelve superstitions. Who knows what stories we can make of them as the world continues to evolve? Have a good day, and an early Merry Christmas… or, as they say in Ireland, Nollaig Shona Daoibh!
