Dr. James T. Callow publications
Browse by
Questions or comments on this site? Please email davidsor@udmercy.edu.
The James T. Callow Folklore Archive
Your search for ROCHESTER returned 118 results.
WHEN COWS ARE LYING DOWN, IT MEANS RAIN.
Submitter comment: SHE LEARNED THIS FROM HER GRANDMOTHER.
Where learned: MICHIGAN ; ROCHESTER HILLS
Date learned: CA00001969
WHEN A CLASP ON A NECKLACE SHOWS IN FRONT OF YOUR NECK, MAKE A WISH.
Where learned: MICHIGAN ; ROCHESTER HILLS
| Subject headings: | BELIEF -- Prayer |
Date learned: 00-00-1974
ON LITTLE CHRISTMAS (JANUARY 7) WE HAVE A NICE DINNER WITH THE WHOLE
FAMILY AND RECOGNIZE THAT IT IS THE DAY THE THREE KINGS WENT TO THE
MANGER.
Where learned: MICHIGAN ; ROCHESTER HILLS
| Subject headings: | CUSTOM FESTIVAL -- January 6 Twelfth Day Epiphany CUSTOM FESTIVAL -- January 7 |
Date learned: CA00001963
PUTTING AN ONION SLICE ON A BEE STING WILL TAKE THE PAIN AWAY.
Where learned: MICHIGAN ; ROCHESTER HILLS
| Subject headings: | BELIEF -- Insect BELIEF -- Plant |
Date learned: 00-00-1970
CHILDREN,S RHYME
I LIKE COFFEE, I LIKE TEA, I LIKE THE GIRLS, AND THEY LIKE ME.
Where learned: MICHIGAN ; ROCHESTER HILLS
| Subject headings: | Ballad Song Dance Game Music Verse -- Autograph Verse |
Date learned: CA00001980
SUPERSTITION
WHEN YOU SEE A DARK HORSEBACK RIDER FLOAT BY, IT MEANS THAT THERE
WILL BE A DEATH IN THE FAMILY.
Submitter comment:
THIS HAPPENED TO INFORMANT'S GREAT_GRANDMOTHER. SHE WAS SITTING ON
THE PORCH AND BOTH HER DATE WHO WAS WITH HER AND HER SAW THIS DARK
RIDER. THE NEXT MORNING, THEY GOT WORD THAT HER FATHER, WHO WAS ON
A TRIP, WAS KILLED BY A TRAIN HITTING HIS CAR.
Where learned: MICHIGAN ; ROCHESTER HILLS
| Subject headings: | Observation |
Date learned: 12-00-1970
SUPERSTITION
IF YOU WERE BORN AT NIGHT, YOU CAN SEE FAIRIES AND GOBLINS.
Submitter comment: THIS IS AN IRISH BELIEF.
Where learned: MICHIGAN ; ROCHESTER HILLS
| Subject headings: | Observation |
IN AUSTRIA, PEOPLE WEAR SCARY MASKS AT FASCHING OR CARNIVAL
TIME. THEY DANCE IN THE STREETS, LAUGH AND SING, RING BELLS
AND MAKE AS MUCH NOISE AS THEY CAN. PEOPLE SAY THAT ALL THE NOISE
WILL SCARY ( SCARE ) WINTER SO THAT SPRING CAN COME.
FASCHING IS LENT.
Data entry tech comment:
FASCHING IS BEFORE LENT, I.E., ON THE TUESDAY BEFORE ASH
WEDNESDAY.
IN PRE-CHRISTIAN TIMES, SPRING RITES WERE HELD MAINLY TO SYMBOLIZE A
FIGHT BETWEEN WINTER AND SPRING. THE PEOPLE FOUGHT AGAINST OR
SCARED WINTER BY WEARING MASKS AND COSTUMES AND MAKING LOUD NOISES.
Where learned: MICHIGAN ; ROCHESTER HILLS
| Subject headings: | CUSTOM FESTIVAL -- Spring Planting Pre Lent |
UKRAINIAN FOLK DANCE
THE TRADITIONAL FOLK DANCE FOR UKRAINIANS VARIES WITH
THE AREA FROM WHICH YOUR ANCESTORS CAME. MOST FOLK DANCES
ARE DONE IN CIRCULAR PATTERNS AND LINES. THE MUSIC IS 2/4
TIME AND GIVES INSIGHT TO THE LIFE STYLE. SOME DANCES ARE
PERFORMED BY GIRLS ONLY WHILE OTHERS ARE FOR BOYS. ONE OF
THE MOST POPULAR DANCES, THE HOPAK, IS PERFORMED BY HIGH
JUMPS AND LOW BENDS AND SOMETIMES WITH SWORDS. MOST THEMES
ARE ROMANTIC OR MILITARISTIC AND PERFORMED IN FULL COLOR
COSTUMES.
Submitter comment:
MANY PARISHES THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA
CONTINUE TO MAKE UKRAINIAN DANCE CLASSES AVAILABLE TO THEIR
PARISHONERS.
Where learned: NEW YORK ; ROCHESTER
| Subject headings: | Ballad Song Dance Game Music Verse -- Form Grouping Movement CUSTOM FESTIVAL -- Marriage Dancing |
Date learned: 00001950S
CHILDREN,S RHYME
I LIKE COFFEE, I LIKE TEA, I LIKE THE GIRLS, AND THEY LIKE ME.
Where learned: MICHIGAN ; ROCHESTER HILLS
| Subject headings: | Ballad Song Dance Game Music Verse -- Autograph Verse |
TRADITIONAL UKRAINIAN WISH
FOR VARIOUS HAPPY OCCASIONS UKRAINIANS SING A TRADITIONAL
GREETING CALLED "MNOHAYA LEETA" OR "GOD GRANT YOU MANY
YEARS." IN THE GREETING, WISHES ARE EXTENDED FOR MANY
HAPPY YEARS, FREE OF ALL ILLS AND FOR ETERNAL SALVATION.
THEY BEG GOD TO GRANT THESE PETITIONS TO THE HONORED
INDIVIDUAL. THIS GREETING IS SUNG FOR BIRTHDAYS, FEAST
DAYS, ANNIVERSARIES, MARRIAGES, VOYAGES, PROMOTIONS,
AND ANY OTHER JOYOUS OCCASION.
Where learned: NEW YORK ; ROCHESTER
| Subject headings: | Ballad Song Dance Game Music Verse -- Social reunion CUSTOM FESTIVAL -- Typical Elements of a Festive Pattern BELIEF -- Prayer SPEECH -- Formula |
Date learned: 00001950S
DAYS OF THE WEEK
VARIOUS BELIEFS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THE DAYS OF THE WEEK.
MONDAY IS CONSIDERED A WORK DAY. THEREFORE, IF NEW YEAR'S
DAY FALLS ON A MONDAY, THE ENTIRE YEAR WILL BE HARD.
TUESDAY IS CONSIDERED A HAPPY DAY. WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY
ARE FAST DAYS COMMEMORATING GOOD FRIDAY AND THE WEDNESDAYS
OF LENT. THURSDAY IS ASSOCIATED WITH GOOD LUCK AND IS THE
DAY ASSOCIATED WITH MATCHMAKING. IF YOU ARE BORN ON THIS
DAY YOU WILL BE RICH. SATURDAY IS A DAY OF REMEMBRANCE OF
THE DEAD.
Where learned: NEW YORK ; ROCHESTER
Keyword(s): SUPERSTITION
Date learned: 00001950S
My aunt heard this story from a friend whose
friend had it happen to her. She had gone to
a large nursery and bought a cactus that was
about two or three feet tall. She had just had
a baby and was home alone all day caring for it.
When she sat down to rest she thought she saw the
the cactus moving a little. When she told her
husband he just figured that she was fatigued from
taking care of the baby all day. One day it really
started to bother her so she called the store.
The manager got on the phone and told her not to
panic but to put the cactus in a dark closet and
to leave the house until he arrived. A few minutes
later, they arrived, went into the house, covered
it up and carried it to a truck. The manager was
also sending an exterminator to the house.
Apparently a whole shipment of cactuses from the
southwest had eggs laid in them by tarantulas.
When the sun warmed up the cactus, the eggs would
begin to hatch and that's what gave the cactus the
appearance of moving. If they don't eat their way
out, the cactus will literally explode from the
pressure created by all the baby tarantulas inside.
Submitter comment:
I thought that this story was true, but in the
last couple years I've heard other people tell
similar stories. I think my aunt also thought it
was true.
Where learned: MICHIGAN ; ROCHESTER HILLS
| Subject headings: | Favorites PROSE NARRATIVE -- Animal PROSE NARRATIVE -- Plant BELIEF -- Animal BELIEF -- Plant |
Date learned: 00001980S
DAYS OF THE WEEK
THE BYZANTINE UKRAINIAN CHURCH COMMEMORATES A DIFFERENT
GROUP OR PERSON EACH DAY OF THE WEEK. MONDAY IS DEDICATED
TO THE HOLY ANGELS. TUESDAY IS ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST DAY.
WEDNESDAY AND FRIDAY ARE DEDICATED TO THE LORD'S CROSS.
ST. NICHOLAS AND THE APOSTLES ARE HONORED ON THURSDAY.
SATURDAY IS IN HONOR OF ALL THE SAINTS. SUNDAY IS IN HONOR
OF THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST. THE VARIOUS MASS PARTS
CHANGE TO HONOR THE VARYING GROUPS EACH DAY.
Where learned: NEW YORK ; ROCHESTER
| Subject headings: | Favorites CUSTOM FESTIVAL -- Measure of time Week Day Hour BELIEF -- Religious hero |
Date learned: 00001950S
EPIPHANY-JANUARY 6
FOR UKRAINIANS VARIOUS EVENTS ARE COMMEMORATED ON THIS
DAY WHICH IS ALSO CALLED "THEOPHANY" OR MANIFESTATION. IT
CELEBRATES THE BAPTISM OF CHRIST AND THEREFORE WATER IS
BLESSED IN THE CHURCHES. THE BLESSING FOLLOWS THE MASS
WHEN THE PRIEST SUBMERGES THREE SETS OF THREE LIGHTED
CANDLES. A CRUCIFIX IS ALSO MOVED THROUGH THE WATER IN
THE FORM OF A CROSS. THE PEOPLE FILL THEIR JARS WITH HOLY
WATER TO BRING HOME. EACH PERSON DRINKS SOME HOLY WATER
AND SOME IS POURED INTO THE HOLY WATER FONTS. IN THE WEEKS
FOLLOWING EPIPHANY, THE PASTOR VISITS THE HOMES OF HIS
PARISHONERS TO BLESS THEM. THE HOLY WATER IS ALSO USED FOR
BLESSING FARMS, CATTLE, AND CROPS. ON SPECIAL FEAST DAYS,
THE CHURCH ALSO BLESSES FRUIT, FLOWERS, AND FOOD. IT IS ALSO
USED IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE SACRAMENTS.
Submitter comment:
TO UKRAINIANS ALL BODIES OF WATER SUCH AS LAKES, RIVERS,AND
PONDS WERE CONSIDERED HOLY. THE BLESSING OF WATER IN THE
UKRAINE TOOK PLACE AT THE EDGE OF THE RIVER NOT IN THE
PARISH CHURCH.
Where learned: NEW YORK ; ROCHESTER
Keyword(s): THREE
Date learned: 00001950S
FEAST OF ST. GEORGE-APRIL 23 BYZANTINE RITE
THE USUAL PICTURE OF ST. GEORGE HAS HIM PICTURED ON A
HORSE, WITH A SPEAR IN HIS HAND. HE IS KILLING A DRAGON
WHICH IS SYMBOLIC OF PAGANISM. THE DEW OF THE FEAST DAY
IS CONSIDERED MIRACULOUS AND IF GATHERED BEFORE SUNRISE,
IT SHOULD HEAL ANY DISEASE OF THE EYES. ANOTHER COMMON
EVENT FOR THE DAY IS A PROCESSION AROUND THE FIELD WITH
RELIGIOUS SERVICES. THE PRAYERS ARE PETITIONS FOR A GOOD
HARVEST. ALSO ON THIS DAY, YOUNG GIRLS TRY TO PREDICT THEIR
MARRIAGE DATE. THEY ASK THE CUCKOO HOW LONG BEFORE THEY WILL
MARRY. IF THE CUCKOO STOPS COOING AT THE END OF THE QUESTION
SHE WILL MARRY BEFORE THE END OF THE YEAR. IF IT BEGINS
COOING, THE NUMBER OF TIMES IT SINGS WILL BE THE NUMBER OF
YEARS BEFORE HER MARRIAGE.
Submitter comment:
SOME OF THESE CUSTOMS ARE BEGINNING TO DIMINISH IN THE
UNITED STATES.
Where learned: NEW YORK ; ROCHESTER
Keyword(s): ANIMALS
| Subject headings: | Observation Favorites CUSTOM FESTIVAL -- April 23 CUSTOM FESTIVAL -- Typical Elements of a Festive Pattern BELIEF -- Bird BELIEF -- Marriage BELIEF -- Measure of time Year BELIEF -- Measure of time WeekDayHour BELIEF -- Prayer BELIEF -- Number Counting beliefs BELIEF -- Remedy BELIEF -- Use of Object |
Date learned: 00001950S
PALM SUNDAY GREETING
FOR UKRAINIANS, THE PUSSY WILLOWS REPLACE THE PALM AND THE
DAY IS CALLED FLOWERY SUNDAY. AFTER THE BLESSING AND THE
DISTRIBUTION OF THE PUSSY WILLOWS, THE PEOPLE GENTLY TAP
ONE ANOTHER WITH THE PUSSY WILLOW. THEY SAY THIS VERY
TRADITIONAL PHRASE. I AM NOT HITTING YOU, THE PUSSY WILLOW
IS HITTING YOU, A WEEK FROM TODAY IS EASTER.
THE PUSSY WILLOWS ARE THEN TAKEN HOME. THEY ARE USED AS A
SACRAMENTAL AND PLACED BEHIND HOLY PICTURES ON A WALL OR
ARRANGED IN A VASE ON A TABLE OR DRESSER.
Where learned: NEW YORK ; ROCHESTER
Keyword(s): SWITCHING
| Subject headings: | CUSTOM FESTIVAL -- Spring Planting Ash Wednesday SPEECH -- Gesture |
Date learned: 00001950S
FEAST OF THE EXALTATION OF THE HOLY CROSS-SEPTEMBER 14
UKRAINIANS OF THE BYZANTINE RITE VENERATE THE CROSS IN A
SPECIAL MANNER ON THIS DAY. FLOWERS, USUALLY RED ROSES OR
CARNATIONS ARE ARRANGED ON A WIRE BACKING. THE CROSS IS THEN
PLACED ON TOP OF THE FLORAL ARRANGEMENT WITH A CHALICE PATEN
UNDER IT. A RED MATERIAL, SOMETIMES A PART OF THE PRIEST'S
VESTMENT, IS TIED AROUND THE BOTTOM OF THE CROSS AND THE STEMS
OF THE FLOWERS. IT IS CARRIED AROUND THE ALTAR BY THE PRIEST
BEFORE THE FIRST MASS OF THE DAY. THEN IT IS PLACED ON A
PILLOW ON THE TETRAPOD, A SMALL TABLE IN THE FRONT CENTER OF
THE CHURCH. THE CROSS AND THE FLORAL ARRANGEMENT UNDER IT
REMAIN THERE FOR A WEEK FOR VENERATION BY THE FAITHFUL. THE
CROSS IS KISSED UPON ENTERING AND EXITING THE CHURCH. AFTER
EACH SERVICE THE CONGREGATION SINGS THREE TIMES THE PHRASE
O LORD, WE ADORE THY CROSS AND GLORIFY THY HOLY RESURRECTION.
AFTER EACH SINGING, A PROFOUND BOW IS MADE BY THE PEOPLE.
MANY OF OUR OLDER WOMEN CONSIDER THE DEAD FLOWERS TO BE A
SACRAMENTAL AND ASK TO TAKE THEM HOME WHEN THE ARRANGEMENT
IS TAKEN APART. SOME KEEP THEM ON DRESSERS, IN PRAYER BOOKS,
AND IN THEIR BIBLES.
Submitter comment:
THE UKRAINIANS ALSO VENERATE THE CROSS IN A SIMILAR MANNER
ON THE THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT.
Where learned: NEW YORK ; ROCHESTER
Keyword(s): FLOWERS
| Subject headings: | 663 Lent 686 Thirds / Thrice / Three / Triple Favorites CUSTOM FESTIVAL -- September 14 CUSTOM FESTIVAL -- Church CUSTOM FESTIVAL -- Measure of time Week Day Hour BELIEF -- Plant SPEECH -- Religious |
Date learned: 00001950S
UKRAINIAN WHEAT DISH-KUTIA
A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF THE CHRISTMAS EVE SUPPER IS THE
KUTIA. THE WHEAT FOR THE KUTIA IS SOAKED OVERNIGHT AND THE
NEXT DAY IT IS BOILED UNTIL SOFT. THE COOK ADDS OTHER
INGREDIENTS WHICH VARY ACCORDING TO THE REGIONS. SOME ADD
ONLY HONEY WHICH HAS BEEN DILUTED INTO A WATERY SYRUP. OTHERS
ADD DILUTED HONEY, POPPY SEED, AND CHOPPED NUTS. BESIDES THE
VARYING INGREDIENTS, THE PLACE IT OCCUPIES IN THE MEAL ALSO
VARIES. IN SOME UKRAINIAN HOMES, THE KUTIA IS THE FIRST FOOD
EATEN BEGINNING IN ORDER FROM THE OLDEST MEMBER OF THE FAMILY
TO THE YOUNGEST. USUALLY ONLY A SPOONFUL IS TAKEN FROM THE
BOWL IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TABLE. OTHER UKRAINIANS USE THE
KUTIA AT THE END OF THE MEAL AS A DESSERT. IT WOULD HAVE
POPPY SEED AND NUTS WHEN USED AS A DESSERT. OFTEN IT WOULD
BE EATEN WITH HOMEMADE BAKED GOODS SUCH AS HONEY CAKE CALLED
MEDEVNUK OR POPPY SEED ROLL CALLED MAKEVNUK.
Where learned: NEW YORK ; ROCHESTER
Date learned: 00001950S
UKRAINIAN BLESSING OF FRUIT
THE FEAST OF THE TRANSFIGURATION ON AUGUST 6 IS CELEBRATED
IN THE BYZANTINE CHURCH WITH THE BLESSING OF FRUIT WHICH IS
AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING FOR THE PLENTIFUL HARVEST. FOLLOWING
THE MASS, THE PRIEST READS SPECIAL PRAYERS ASKING FOR A
BLESSING ON THOSE WHO PARTAKE OF THE FRUIT. HE THEN SPRINKLES
THE FRUIT WITH HOLY WATER. THE CUSTOM OF BRINGING THE FRUIT
VARIES WITH THE PARISHES. IN SOME PARISHES, THE PARISH BUYS
BUSHELS OF FRUIT AND FOLLOWING THE BLESSING IT IS DISTRIBUTED
TO THE PARISHONERS. IN OTHER PARISHES, EACH FAMILY BRINGS
A BASKET OR DISH OF FRUIT WHICH IS TAKEN HOME FOLLOWING THE
BLESSING.
Submitter comment:
THE BLESSED FRUIT IS THE FIRST FOOD EATEN WHEN THE FAMILY
RETURNS HOME.
Where learned: NEW YORK ; ROCHESTER
Date learned: 00001950S