Ukrainian Traditions and Superstitions

In this picture we can see Ukrainian ancient peasant family in the back yard of their household. Traditionally dressed in embroidered shirts, a wife and a husband are having dinner at the table covered with embroidered cloth. The husband wears a straw hat, which peasants used to protect their heads working long sunny days in the field. The wife’s head is covered with a red scarf, which was a symbol of a married woman.  The wind-mill and a thatched roof house of their neighbours are in the background of the picture.

Each item you see in the picture was believed to have a special meaning and power, such as

Mill and pumpkin – fertility,

Sunflower – gratitude, loyalty and will power,

Horseshoe – happiness and luck,

Bread – prosperity, hospitality, well-being, life,

Jar – life in abundance,

Rooster – a house protector from evil spirits, triumph of good spirits,

Wheel – eternal renewal of life,

Sack – wealth and prosperity,

Broom – brings money to the house if it’s bottom up,

Corn – future generations, family unity,

Bird – honesty, unity of heaven and earth, memory of ancestors,

Pepper – men’s health,

House – family unity and strong family bonds,

Butterfly – eternity of soul.

From generation to generation, Ukrainians have transfered knowledge about how to use these items to make them work as house protectors and bring good luck to the family. People believed that a horseshoe nailed to the door in an upward position would gather good luck and positive energy to the house. A housewife would never sweep the floor after sunset – she could sweep prosperity out of the house. A broom was always kept upward in a room’s corner to ward off an evil eye and bring money to the family.

Ukrainians attributed protective power not only to household items, but also to animals they had in the household. They believed that evil spirits would get out of their hiding places after sunset, but when rooster crows three times at the break of dawn, all spirits run away.

Many Ukrainians of older generation, especially those who live in villages, still believe in superstitions. They will:

-        –   never lend you anything after sunset, especially money or salt;

-        –   spit three times over the left shoulder if a black cat crosses their way.

Ukrainians believe that:

-        –  meeting a woman with buckets full of water brings good luck, but meeting a person with empty buckets brings a bad luck;

-        –  two safety pins stuck crosswise in the linen of their coats will cast away an evil eye.

I’ve just barely touched this vast subject in my short article about Ukrainian superstitions. The purpose of my article was to show that traditional superstitions came from ancient times when people couldn’t explain natural phenomena and powers and were looking for protection in that primitive way.

Let’s be more civilized and stop wasting our time for these ancient precautions. Remember: if a black cat crosses your way, a cat is just minding its own business. 

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