Deer legends are found all over the world, and they have a lot to say about how we interact with wildlife.
Deer Folklore: Faerie Cattle, Sacred Sika, and Our Wild Sides
Tsukumogami: Japan’s Household Spirits
Imagine going to boil some water, and suddenly your kettle sprouts legs and runs away. Or turning a light on, to find your paper lampshade grinning at you and waggling a long tongue. You might have a spirit problem, but these are no ordinary poltergeists. Meet the tsukumogami! Tsukumogami is the collective name given to a type of yokai... Continue Reading →
Pagan Sabbats: 5 Small Ways to Celebrate Imbolc
Celebrating Pagan sabbats is a fun, meaningful way to mark the turning of the seasons. Following the Gregorian calendar, Imbolc is the first sabbat of the year (by the Celtic calendar in is Samhain which is in October). Imbolc (pronounced 'EE-muk' or 'IM-bulk') falls on the 2nd February. It is the Pagan equivalent of the Christian Candlemas,... Continue Reading →
Halloween: Frights, Lights, and Ancient Rites by Kimberley Ford
This final Halloween guest post was written by Kimberley Ford, and it's all about the history of Halloween and Jack o' Lanterns. Perfect to get you in the mood for the big day! _____________________________________________________________________ Today, Halloween is seen as a time to munch on candy corn and scare the neighbours with the freakiest trick you can... Continue Reading →
British Folklore: Black Dog Stories From the UK
Last week, Kristin's fabulous guest post discussed how folklore is used to motivate children's behaviour, particularly through fear. Most of us can probably remember being told as a child 'don't do that or the [insert monster here] will get you!' That got me thinking about my childhood. I grew up on the East coast of England, in the... Continue Reading →
Scary Folklore: Motivating Children’s Behaviour by Kristin
Following on from the folk horror post by Bethany Scott, I have another Halloween guest post for you! This one was written by Kristin from Tales of Faerie. Kristin is a folklore and fairy tale blogger from Chicago, and she's written this post to discuss how folklore is used to manipulate children. _____________________________________________________________________ When... Continue Reading →
Harvest Time: Folk Horror & Our Fear of the Countryside by Bethany Scott
IT'S OCTOBER! With Halloween in sight, now is the time us folklore bloggers to go into hyperdrive mode. This is our time, to share, post, research, and tweet about all things weird and spooky. And trust me, we know a lot of weird and spooky things... With this in mind, I thought I would... Continue Reading →
Travel: Dragon Hunting in Norwich
In the East of England, there is a Medieval city composed of cobbled streets, secret gardens, and flint churches. Its castle stands on a hill, one of the only ones in the region, for we are deep in big-sky country. If you go left, you will find yourself in Chapelfield, a gleaming, glass shopping centre... Continue Reading →
Halloween: How Wicked are Wicked Witches?
So, of course you know that Halloween is upon us. It's time to celebrate all things spooky! Eat candy, carve pumpkins, dress up. Watch horror films, then regret it when you wake up at 3am and convince yourself that there's a ghost/monster/demon/axe murderer hiding in your room. To join in with the festivities my post... Continue Reading →