Dutch folklore as reported in a British anthology from 1858:
I found this entry in Choice Notes from āNotes and Queriesā: Folk Lore and I need to be sassy about it:
āA stork settling on a house is a harbinger of happiness. To kill such a bird would be sacrilege.ā
Pretty sure this is German rather than Dutch, Iāve heard they were associated with protection against house fires, because they like to build nests on top of a chimney
āA person born with a caul is considered fortunate.ā
Yes, it was also thought to give them special powers like clairvoyance
āAn overturned salt-cellar is a ship wrecked. If a person take salt and spill it on the table, it betokens a strife between him and the person next to whom it fell. To avert the omen, he must lift up the shed grains with a knife, and throw them behind his back.ā
Yes, it either brings bad luck or causes disagreements. Iāve never heard about the shipwrecking though and the knife is not necessary for throwing
āAfter eating eggs in Holland, you must break the shells, or the witches would sail over in them to England. The English donāt know under what obligations they are to the Dutch for this custom. Please to tell them.ā
I have heard folklore anecdotes about witches using eggshells as boats, but Iāve never heard of them specifically sailing to England. Considering how often we were at odds with England I also doubt we would stop them
āIf you make a present of a knife or scissors, the person receiving must pay something for it; otherwise the friendship between you would be cut off.ā
Yes! Some people actually still include a penny in the package when they gift a knife, so you can immediately pay for it
āA tingling ear denotes there is somebody speaking of you behind your back. If you hear the noise in the right one, he praises you; if on the left side he is calling you a scoundrel or something like that. But, never mind! For if, in the latter case, you bite your little finger, the evil speakerās tongue will be in the same predicament. By all means donāt spare your little finger!ā
I have heard of this one, but never the biting your finger part
āIf, at a dinner, a person yet unmarried be placed inadvertently between a married couple, be sure he or she will get a partner within the year. Itās a pity it must be inadvertently.ā
Never heard of it. But I appreciate the implication that weāre sloppy with our table settings. We are
āA potato begged or stolen is a preservative against rheumatism. Chestnuts have the same efficacy.ā
Those are both old folk remedies, but it doesnāt always say begged or stolen
āIf you feel on a sudden a shivering sensation in your back, there is somebody walking over your future grave.ā
Yes. Or alternatively a dog, or a frog is jumping over your grave
āDonāt go under a ladder, for if you do you will be hanged.ā
Hanged?? It brings bad luck, yes, but itās not that deadly
The source that is given for all this is simply: Amsterdam. Which, on the one hand perpetuates the annoying idea that Amsterdam is all there is in the Netherlands, but on the other hand is extremely impressive as a singular oral source















