Sayings & Superstitions: Serbia
I don’t know about y’all, but I’m the type of person who likes lists of random trivia on a given subjects, such as animals, the human body, outer space, etc., and so I’ve chosen to compile a list of sayings and superstitions from Serbia (AAAARGH, MOTHERLAND!!!).
Some of them are quite fun, other a bit silly, but there are still people who honestly believe them to be true (I got most of these from listening to my neighbours or family in Serbia). One thing to note is that not all sayings or superstitions are unique to Serbia, and in many cases was the common belief in many countries.
These are the ones I can recall at the moment. If anyone else know any Serbian sayings and superstitions, feel free to add them as comments.
Here are a few courtesy of Vesna Bojanic (thank you!):
Some of them are quite fun, other a bit silly, but there are still people who honestly believe them to be true (I got most of these from listening to my neighbours or family in Serbia). One thing to note is that not all sayings or superstitions are unique to Serbia, and in many cases was the common belief in many countries.
- Hiccups are caused by people talking about you.
- If you whistle while in someone’s house (or your own), you will attract mice and rats.
- If you put on a t-shirt inside-out by mistake, it means that someone is missing you dearly.
- If you put on underwear inside-out by mistake, it means you will be followed by good luck.
- A loaf of bread must never be bottom-side up, it brings misfortune to you and those around you.
- Leaving a bag or purse on the floor will cause you to lose all your money.
- Sitting at a corner-seat at a table means you’ll never get married.
- Having long fingers means you’ll have a good chance of becoming a thief or that you’ll steal something.
- Having a unibrow means you’ll marry someone in your neighbourhood (may apply to men only).
- If you bite your tongue or cheek by accident, your grandmother or aunt is planning to bake you a cake.
- Having your right palm itch means you’re gonna spend money soon, while having your left palm itch means you’ll be getting money soon (or the other way around, people never seem to agree…).
- If an owl hoots while on someone’s immediate property (e.g. while on a branch in a tree in your yard, but not while on a branch on someone’s field) it means that someone in that household will die soon after.
These are the ones I can recall at the moment. If anyone else know any Serbian sayings and superstitions, feel free to add them as comments.
Here are a few courtesy of Vesna Bojanic (thank you!):
- When driving past a cat at night, you need to spit.
- If you have a slice of bread, you must finish it or you will be poor in life
- To ward off “witches” keep a knife next to your window.
- To ward of the evil eye, sprinkle salt around the house at night.
Aug 17th, 2008 at 6:13 pm
I had a Yugoslav boyfriend for a while. If we drove or walked past a dead animal he would pull his hair and say something like: Mi kosa da posa, three times. He said it means: my hair reaches my waist and is a Serbian superstition guarding against any of one’s own animals dying. Please enlighten me. Thanks.
Aug 17th, 2008 at 7:18 pm
Neither I, my mother, my Serbian friends, nor their parents have heard of it. This doesn’t mean that it isn’t true, I just haven’t been able to find out anything about it.
While it is true that “kosa do pojasa” means “hair reaching the waist” (lit. “hair to the waist”), it is generally used as a discription for longhaired people, and I’ve never heard it being used as a superstitios “chant”. Though, I can try asking my aunts and my grandmother’s sister next time I talk with them, since they know more about this stuff than I do.
Dec 17th, 2009 at 11:20 pm
the whole hair thing, its just a superstition that your hair will fall out if you dont. my family and i have been doing it for years. its also to keep away bad spirits.
Dec 17th, 2009 at 11:39 pm
@julija: I see. Thanks for sharing ^^
Jul 17th, 2010 at 12:29 am
I’m currently in Kraljevo, Serbia right now and some of their stuff is goofy. I play basketball every night and none of the older guys drink out of my bottle because there is ice in it. They also splash themselves before they jump into the water because of they jump straight in they might have a heart attack. My friend Luka got pushed in the pool today and he grabbed his heart. Lastly, they don’t leave windows open if there’s a breeze and they don’t leave fans on while they sleep because it will cause their backs to hurt.
Serbs are crazy.
Jul 19th, 2010 at 3:27 am
@Hunter Garnett: Lulz, I didn’t know about the ice in water thing XD
About the heart attacks, that’s actually not superstition, it’s a medical fact. As you probably have already noticed, summers in Serbia can get insanely hot. The warmer it is, the higher the risk becomes of a heart attack, especially in middle-aged and old people, if jumping straight in the water. It’s due to the sudden temperature change. That’s why they splash themselves first; to cool off so the change isn’t as large or sudden. Some might not know that this is why it happens, but just do it because they’ve been told it’s dangerous otherwise.
Oct 19th, 2011 at 12:41 am
* Driving past a cat at night- you need to spit, never grasped why my mother does this;
* If you have a slice of bread you must finish it or you will be poor in life;
* To ward of “witches” keep a knife next to your window. I think this is more of a “villager” ritual;and
* To ward of the evil eye- sprinkle salt around the house at night.
Mar 30th, 2012 at 2:41 am
My baba used to call me buba mara and now that she has passed away I want to get a ladybug tattoo. However, I remeber there being some superstition about the number of dots on their wings that I cannpt remember! Has anyone heard of this?
Mar 30th, 2012 at 3:11 am
@Bubamara: I think that’s a really sweet tribute! ;3;
The only superstitions about ladybugs I’ve heard from the Balkan area (not even sure it was Serbia), is that if one lands on you, you catch it, and then release it, the direction it flies in is the direction of your true love. The dots on their ‘shell’ represents the number of days, weeks, months, or years that it takes for you to meet that person.