Bread and butter (superstition)
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This article is about a superstitious charm. For other uses, see
Bread and butter
.
" Bread and butter " is a superstitious blessing or charm, typically said by young couples or friends walking together when they are forced to separate by an obstacle, such as a pole or another person. By saying the phrase, the bad luck of letting something come between them is thought to be averted. [1] Both walkers must say the phrase, [2] and if they do not do this, then a bitter quarrel is expected to occur. [3] The concept derives from the difficulty of separating butter from bread once it has been spread – buttered bread cannot be "unbuttered". [2] [4] Another phrase used in this way is " salt and pepper ". [5]
References
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- ↑ Martha Warren Beckwith (Jan–Mar 1923), "Signs and Superstitions Collected from American College Girls", The Journal of American Folklore , 36 (139): 1–15, doi : 10.2307/535105 , JSTOR 535105
- 1 2 Richard Webster, The Encyclopedia of Superstitions
- ↑ Louisiana folklore miscellany , vol. 5
- ↑ Harry Collis, 101 American superstitions
- ↑ Phillip W. Steele, Ozark tales and superstitions