German Superstitions

Superstitions make up part of the folk culture in history. Each country, ethnic group, and region had their own. Here are a few from the early German settlers of Pennsylvania, North Carolina, the Appalachians, and other regions:

• It's bad luck to leave a house by a different door than you entered.
• It's bad luck to hand a needle to someone point first
• If a girl accidentally puts on her stockings wrong side out, she'll be getting a present.
• It's bad luck to pop a button while dressing.
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• If a woman crosses a man's path who's going fishing, he'll have bad luck.
• Break a chicken wishbone with a friend and a secret wish will come true for the one with the longer piece.
• If the groundhog sees its shadow on February 2, there will 6 more weeks of bad weather.
• A cat lying on its side with its face up means stormy weather.
• Wash your face in the dew on May 1 before  the sun rises to get rid of freckles.
• Moving on a Saturday means you won't stay there long.
• A black cat crossing your path brings bad luck.
• It's bad luck to break a mirror.
• If New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, it will be a mild winter and early spring.
• Anyone born on the first three days of the new year was doomed to an unhappy life.
• A newly bought pig must be backed into the pen to stay healthy.
  
• If a person stumbled over a grave, he must jump over it backwards or a relative would die.

I'm sure you have probably heard some of these before, but there's likely a few that are new to you, and these are only a fraction of the superstitions. There are many more from the Germans, as well as the Irish, Swedes, Dutch, and other groups.