Folklore of Suffolk

The year ahead

Tuesday 29 September 2026

Friday 25 December 2026

Monday 29 March 2027

Saturday 1 May 2027

Sunday 1 August 2027

Tuesday 10 August 2027

Not tied to a day

Told of Suffolk, but not tied to a day of the year.

Folklore from the old calendars

Barton Mere and the Price of Corn Lore and belief SuffolkBarton Mere, about four miles from Bury St Edmunds, swells to twelve or fourteen acres in some years and shrinks to a pond or dries out in others.
Coffins from the Fire Lore and belief SuffolkChambers's Suffolk correspondent listed the household omens of death.
Giving Away the Cradle Lore and belief SuffolkA mother who gave away all her baby's clothes, or the cradle, was sure to have another baby.
Killing the Pig by the Moon Lore and belief SuffolkA Suffolk correspondent told Chambers it was thought unlucky there to kill a pig in the wane of the moon, for the pork would then waste in the boiling.
Mushrooms Once Seen Lore and belief SuffolkIt was said in Suffolk that mushrooms will not grow any more once they have been seen.
Pond mermaids and horsehair eels Lore and belief SuffolkThe Suffolk clergyman who sent Chambers the local beliefs about animals also reported that horsehairs put into a spring would turn into eels, and one labourer swore he had proved it.
Robins, martins and magpies Lore and belief SuffolkA Suffolk clergyman sent Chambers the local beliefs about animals.
Sleeping on Bones Lore and belief SuffolkThe Suffolk correspondent who sent Chambers his list of nursery beliefs added two more.
Slunk calves and moonwort Lore and belief Devon, SuffolkGrose recorded the belief, commonly acted on in Suffolk, that a slunk or stillborn calf buried in a highway used by cattle would stop cows casting their calves.
Suffolk cures Lore and belief SuffolkA Suffolk clergyman listed for Chambers the cures still trusted in his parish.
Swimming a Wizard at Wickham Skeith Lore and belief SuffolkIn July 1825 Isaac Stebbings, a small, spare huckster of about sixty-seven, was accused of bewitching two neighbours whose minds were disturbed, and the village shoemaker blamed him when his wax would neither melt nor mix.
Telling the bees Lore and belief SuffolkIn Suffolk a stray swarm settling on your premises and never claimed by its owner meant a death in the family within the year.
The Black Dog of Bungay Lore and belief SuffolkOn Sunday 4 August 1577, during morning service in the parish church of Bungay, a violent storm of rain, lightning and thunder made the church seem to quake, and a black dog, or the devil in its likeness, appeared among the congregation.
The Clothes of the Dead Lore and belief SuffolkWhen a dead person's clothes were given away to the poor, people would say that however good they looked they would not last.
The Elder and the Lightning Lore and belief SuffolkA Suffolk child told Chambers's correspondent that it was quite safe to shelter from a thunderstorm under an elder tree.
The New Moon Through Glass Lore and belief SuffolkA Suffolk correspondent of Chambers kept a night school for rough country lads, and one winter evening they caught sight of the new moon through the schoolroom window.
The Poker Across the Grate Lore and belief SuffolkA Suffolk correspondent of Chambers listed the beliefs of the household.

The year ahead

Tuesday 29 September 2026

Friday 25 December 2026

Monday 29 March 2027

Saturday 1 May 2027

Sunday 1 August 2027

Tuesday 10 August 2027

Not tied to a day

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