Halloween Folklore and Superstitions
We all know that Halloween, as a festival, is not an invention of the trick-or-treating Americans but it is far older than many people realise.
Bat Myths and Folktales from Around the World
Bats feature in many myths, legends and folklore from many diverse cultures around the world, and are often associated with darkness, death and the supernatural.
What Is a Witch? Defining Witchcraft in the ‘Malleus Maleficarum’
The concept of a witch, that is a practitioner of magic, has been part of western folklore for centuries, yet throughout that time it has been subject to continuous reinterpretations.
The Werewolf Panic of the 1970s
In the autumn of 1972, numerous Swedish newspapers described how werewolves were causing people to panic in a town in a town in southern Sweden. According to the articles, fearsome werewolf attacks caused a “werewolf panic”, children were “paralysed with fear”, and one article even said that the following concerning the werewolves, “three school children killed!
Death Takes Wing: Birds and the Folklore of Death
One could write an encyclopaedia on the appearances of birds in folklore and their association with death and mortality, travelling from Japan to Scandinavia, France and beyond.