The Dark, Eerie Origins of Old Wives’ Tales
In the dim glow of a hearth, long before the advent of modern science, tales were spun.
Stories that wove wisdom and eerie superstition into the fabric of daily life.
These weren’t simply bedtime stories. They were survival guides. Ghostly warnings. Whispers of death, betrayal, and dark omens.
Centuries later… some of us are still throwing salt over our shoulders because grandma swore it worked.
Today, we call them old wives’ tales.
The name itself hints at the women who kept these traditions alive. These were the “wives” of older generations. The word wif in Old English simply meant woman, not necessarily married.
These were the storytellers, the midwives, the herbalists, and the keepers of community knowledge.
And while the world has changed dramatically, their words still echo in our lives.
Because even if we don’t believe… we still follow.
🧵 Why We Still Believe in Old Wives’ Tales
You might believe in old wives’ tales or you might not. Chances are you’ve heard them. You may have even passed them along without realizing it.
Is there a little voice in your head? It says “don’t open an umbrella indoors” or “cracking your knuckles will give you arthritis.”
That’s not science. That’s grandma.
And behind every eerie rhyme is a story rooted in fear, survival… or control.
📚 The Hidden History of Old Wives’ Tales
Old wives’ tales began long before books, schools, or formal medicine.
They came from women who observed, adapted, and warned.
These women were not scientists—they were survivors.
They endured centuries of war, famine, childbirth, disease, and death. They shared knowledge not in textbooks, but in whispers and riddles.
Early fairy tales, like those by Basile, Perrault, and the Brothers Grimm, were originally taken from the oral stories of women.
Plucky heroines and clever midwives became damsels in distress. The stories changed. But the fear? That stayed.
The King James Bible even throws shade in 1611: “But refuse profane and old wives’ fables…” (1 Timothy 4:7).
These stories were often dismissed, yet they endured.
Because fear—and tradition—is sticky.
💀 Forgotten but Not Gone: Weird Old Wives’ Tales You Probably Still Believe
These are the everyday sayings you might still repeat—most debunked, many bizarre, but all with fascinating backstories.
- Cracking your knuckles causes arthritis
➔ This dates back to the 1940s when people thought joint popping sounded like damage. It’s actually just gas bubbles! - Sitting too close to the TV ruins your eyes
➔ Popularized in the 1960s after one TV model was recalled for high radiation. The fear stuck—despite updated tech. - Shaving makes your hair grow back thicker
➔ It feels coarser, yes, but that’s just the blunt tip. This tale began as a way to scare girls off razors. - We eat 8 spiders a year in our sleep
➔ Completely fabricated in the 1990s by a columnist proving how easily myths spread online. And it worked! - If your ears are burning, someone’s talking about you
➔ This dates back to Roman times—right ear for praise, left for gossip. - Itchy palms mean money
➔ This superstition was big in Celtic and African traditions, often tied to good luck or financial blessings. - Coffee stunts your growth
➔ A mid-20th century myth, possibly pushed by parents who wanted to keep their kids off caffeine. - Swimming after eating = drowning risk
➔ Myth! The worry was about blood flow redirecting to digestion—but the science doesn’t back it up. - If you pull a gray hair, two more grow
➔ False—but pulling too many can scar your scalp. Likely born from visual overreaction. - Don’t whistle at night—it invites spirits
➔ Found in Korea, Turkey, and the Southern U.S. It was believed spirits followed sound. - Cover mirrors during storms
➔ Old European belief that lightning could bounce off mirrors and attract spirits during storms. - Hair of the dog cures a hangover
➔ The term comes from ancient medical practices—using a bit of what harmed you to heal. It doesn’t work. - Bird in the house = death
➔ This dates back to Victorian times when birds were seen as omens or soul messengers. - Ring test for gender prediction
➔ Thought to originate from Romani or Celtic cultures—one of the oldest pregnancy rituals. - Heartburn during pregnancy = hairy baby
➔ Backed by a small Johns Hopkins study, but most likely just coincidence. - Don’t go outside with wet hair—you’ll get sick
➔ Being cold lowers immunity slightly, but wet hair alone doesn’t cause illness. - Cross your eyes too long and they’ll stay that way
➔ Not true, but sustained eye strain does feel weird—hence the myth. - Don’t swallow gum—it stays for 7 years
➔ Gum passes through like anything else. This was used to stop kids from swallowing it. - Warts come from touching frogs
➔ Warts are caused by HPV, not frogs. But frogs looked “warty,” so they got blamed.
🤰 Baby Bumps & Belly Myths: Pregnancy Superstitions
Even pregnancy wasn’t safe from old wives’ tales.
From cravings to clumsiness to heartburn, everything a mother-to-be experienced was turned into a clue about the baby’s future.
Some of these myths were comforting. Others were downright creepy.
But either way, they gave anxious families something to hold onto when nature kept its secrets close.
Carry high, it’s a girl. Carry low, it’s a boy.
➔ A belief dating back to ancient Greece, with no basis in anatomy.
Crave sweets? It’s a girl. Crave salty or sour? It’s a boy.
➔ Likely rooted in hormonal changes, but purely anecdotal.
Acne during pregnancy means you’re having a girl—she’s “stealing your beauty.”
➔ This one stems from medieval beauty myths.
The wedding ring test: Back and forth = girl. Circles = boy.
➔ A ritual used in many pre-modern cultures to predict gender.
Heart rate over 140? Girl. Lower? Boy.
➔ Debunked by OB studies, but still widely believed.
Clumsy pregnant woman? You’re having a boy.
➔ Possibly linked to old assumptions about boys being more disruptive.
Avoid scissors, ropes, or stepping over anything—they might cause cord entanglement.
➔ Likely a protective superstition from folk midwifery.
🌍 Eerie Omens & Travel Superstitions
(Tap the pin to see the region!)
🌍 Japan: Sleep with your head facing north, and you may invite death—it’s how the dead are laid to rest during funerals.
🌍 Ireland: If you hear the Banshee’s wail, someone nearby is going to die. She’s considered a death messenger in Irish mythology.
🌍 Latin America: Beware La Llorona, the ghostly woman who cries by rivers for her drowned children. Parents still invoke her name to keep kids safe.
🌍 Turkey: Chewing gum after dark? Folklore says it turns into the flesh of the dead in your mouth—often told to kids to keep them from chewing all night.
🌍 Russia: Sitting at the corner of a table ensures you’ll never marry. A superstition with roots in 18th-century Eastern Orthodox traditions.
🌍 Appalachia (U.S.): Deaths come in threes. And never sleep with your feet facing the door—it’s known as the “coffin position.”
🧒 Childhood Fears & Playground Superstitions
Old Wives’ Tales didn’t stop with adulthood, they haunted our childhoods too. They crept into playground games, nursery rhymes, and eerie little chants that dared us to tempt fate.
- Step on a crack, break your mother’s back.
➔ Warned kids to be careful, or else! - Don’t swallow gum, it stays in your stomach for 7 years.
➔ False, but it sure scared kids into chewing carefully. - Cross your eyes too long, and they’ll stay that way.
➔ No truth to it, but it sure made kids think twice. - If you tell a lie, your nose will grow like Pinocchio.
➔ A fairy-tale warning to keep kids honest. - Don’t open an umbrella indoors, it’s bad luck.
➔ A superstition that still lingers today.
We laughed… but deep down, we believed, just enough to watch our step.
🔮 Friday the 13th: The Unluckiest of All Superstitions
Of all the superstitions, none grabs hold of us like Friday the 13th. This fear – triskaidekaphobia – combines two dark omens: the number 13 and Friday, long considered unlucky.
But wait, Friday? That’s pizza night, date night, or the start of the weekend for most of us now. So why did it get such a bad rep?
Well, back in the day, Fridays were associated with bad things happening. Jesus was crucified on a Friday. Hangings happened on Fridays. People were advised not to start journeys or sign contracts on a Friday. It was believed nothing good ever came of it.
As for 13—let’s just say it’s the party crasher of numbers. It breaks the neatness of 12 (12 months, 12 zodiac signs, 12 apostles). In Norse mythology, the 13th guest was Loki, who caused chaos. And in the Bible, Judas—the betrayer—was the 13th at the Last Supper.
Put them together, and boom: Friday the 13th was born, wrapped in bad juju and drama.
Friday the 13th superstitions that still linger:
- Hotels avoid floor 13, replacing it with 12A.
- Airlines often skip row 13 on the seating chart.
- Hospitals avoid Room 13—especially for surgeries.
- Racetracks skip Gate 13. Formula One skips Car 13.
- Entire neighborhoods skip address #13.
- Some people won’t schedule events, travel, or even leave home on this date.
It’s the most famous superstition of them all—and it’s not going anywhere.
🧠 The Psychological Power Behind Superstitions
Why do we cling to tales we know aren’t true? Because at their core, superstitions speak to something deeply human: our need to understand and survive a chaotic world. They give us rituals when we have no power, explanations when logic fails, and comfort when fear takes hold.
Knocking on wood might not actually change your luck—but it gives your anxiety somewhere to land. Tossing salt over your shoulder won’t stop bad luck, but it feels like protection. Our brains are wired to seek patterns and stories—especially ones that offer safety. That’s why tales passed from grandmother to grandchild still carry weight. Because sometimes, it’s not about truth. It’s about tradition, memory… and the illusion of control.
Superstitions didn’t survive this long by accident. They stuck because they served a purpose—whether emotional, cultural, or psychological. And for many of us? That’s enough.
Science says these are myths. But fear says… just in case.
🧠 Why These Tales Still Linger
Because they work like spells. Say them enough times and they feel real. Pass them down through enough mouths, and they become real.
Because what if your grandma was right? What if breaking that mirror really did curse your luck?
In a world full of data and logic… superstition still feels like safety. Like home. Like someone watching out for you—even from beyond.
🎭 Final Thoughts: The Echoes of Women Who Knew
They weren’t just silly stories. The warnings were passed down by the women who came before us. They had no power but plenty of wisdom.
So, the next time someone tells you not to open an umbrella indoors… maybe don’t. Because the tales? They weren’t meant to scare you.
They were meant to keep you safe.
And some lessons were made to outlive us all.
🔎 Heard a weirder old wives’ tale?
🖤 Share this story—and tag the person who’s still knocking on wood.
👵🏼 Grandma would be proud.
