Informant #31:

Title: Lucky Number 7

General Information about Item:

• Customary Folklore: Lucky Number Superstition
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: United States
• Informant: F.S., Female
• Date Collected: October 19, 2020

Informant Data:

F.S is a sophomore at Dartmouth College. She is from Connecticut but is currently living in Tannersville, Pennsylvania. She is American and has 7 people in her immediate family. She used to run track and field. 

Contextual Data:

• Social Context: This folklore was collected from an in person interview because F.S  was my roommate. She told me that her lucky number was 7 because she has 7 people in her immediate family: her parents, 3 brothers, and 1 sister. She also chose the number 7 for this facebook lottery game in her town and ended up winning a gift card to her favorite clothing store. Since then, she became superstitious that 7 might be her lucky number. She also won tickets to Disney on July 7, which is the seventh day of the seventh month.   
• Cultural Context: F.S lucky number is a personal preference. Her culture did not influence 7 being her lucky number at all. 

Item: Her lucky number has been 7 since the age of 11. It was originally 13 but then she decided that was too basic. She decided that 7 would be her lucky number because she has 7 people in her immediate family. 

Transcript: “ I would say 7 has always been kind of lucky for me… I actually have 7 people in my immediate family” 

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Collector’s Comments:

I found that it was quite common for people to associate their lucky number with their family so it made sense to me why 7 became her lucky number. It was very cool that 7 was involved with F.S winning a lot of lotteries.

Collector’s Name: Megan Tao

 

Informant #32:

Title: Lucky Number 18

General Information about Item:

• Customary Folklore: Lucky Number Superstition
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: United States
• Informant: S.Y., Female
• Date Collected: October 20, 2020

Informant Data:

S.Y is a sophomore at Dartmouth College and a member of the golf team.  She is from Pennsylvania and is currently home due to the pandemic. Both of her parents are Chinese. 

Contextual Data:

• Social Context: This interview was recorded over the phone due to the pandemic. S.Y was 7 when 18 became her lucky number. She got assigned the number 18 in first grade and has thought of it as her favorite/lucky number ever since. During gym class she would always ask for the jersey with 18 on it. S.Y plays golf and in golf, you are not assigned a number. However, on June 18th, 2010, she won a really big golf tournament and did not think that this was a coincidence. 
• Cultural Context: S.Y lucky number is mainly a personal preference. However, in China 8 is regarded as a lucky number. The more 8’s, the better. Thus, culture plays a partial role in 18 being S.Y’s lucky number. 

Item: Her lucky number has been 18 since the age of 7, where she was assigned this number in her first grade class. Since then, she’s had good luck with it in her sport, often playing well on the 18th hole of the golf course. 

Transcript: “ It is 18…when I was in first grade we got assigned these numbers 1-20, and I got assigned number 18. Ever since then, it’s just kind of been my favorite/lucky number” 

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Collector’s Comments:

I found it very interesting that her lucky number was on the larger end. I usually find people’s lucky number to be between 1-10. It was also interesting how this randomly assigned number corresponded with her big tournament win years later. 

Collector’s Name: Megan Tao

 

Informant #33:

Title: Lucky Number 5

General Information about Item:

• Customary Folklore: Lucky Number Superstition
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: United States
• Informant: K.R., Female
• Date Collected: October 21, 2020

Informant Data:

K.R is a sophomore at Dartmouth College and a member of the swim team.  She is from Colorado and is currently living in Vermont. Her mom is Chinese and her Dad is Czech.

Contextual Data:

• Social Context: This interview was recorded over the phone due to the pandemic. Her lucky number became 5 when she was 13 years old. It is because her birthday is March 5. Although she does not wear numbers in swimming, she noticed that the number 5 frequently occurred in her swim times. Additionally, K.R danced and would often hope to get the number 5 as her audition number. 
• Cultural Context: K.R lucky number is a personal preference. Her culture does not play a role in 5 being her luck number. 

Item: Her lucky number has been 5 since the age of 13. Her birthday is March 5 and when she was 13, she started playing sports. Sports made her think that certain numbers may be more “lucky” than others.

Transcript: “My lucky number is 5 because I was born on March 5th, 2001 … I was around 13 and it was when I started playing sports” 

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Collector’s Comments:

As a swimmer, I find that a lot of people have lucky  numbers that stem from their swim times. Moreover, similar to K.R, I started having a lucky number around the time I started playing sports. 

Collector’s Name: Megan Tao

 

Informant #34:

Title: Lucky Number 7

General Information about Item:

• Customary Folklore: Lucky Number Superstition
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: United States
• Informant: E.K., Female
• Date Collected: October 19, 2020

Informant Data:

E.K is a sophomore at Dartmouth College. She is from Boston but is currently living in Tannersville, Pennsylvania. She is Catholic and an Irish American. 

Contextual Data:

• Social Context: This folklore was collected from an in person interview because E.K was my roommate. She told me that her lucky number was 7. E.K  has synesthesia which is a perceptual phenomenon that causes her to associate numbers and letters with certain colors and for her 7 is associated with green. Green happens to be her  favorite color and is often also a lucky color in the Irish culture. She also noticed that a lot of lottery tickets have the number 7 on them somewhere as a symbol of luck and she has family members that will only buy lottery tickets with that number.
• Cultural Context: E.K. said culture plays a major role in 7 being her lucky number. 7 has a lot of cultural significance for people from Ireland and of Catholic faith because of its significance in many biblical stories as well as cultural structures, such as the 7 places to visit in Ireland.

Item: Her lucky number has been 7 since the age of 5. It has become a superstition for her because of its cultural significance. 

Transcript:  “7… 7 has a lot of cultural significance for people from Ireland, which would be my family and it’s also very related to my Catholic faith” 

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Collector’s Comments:

I found it very interesting that synesthesia is why her lucky number is 7. Everything aligned as 7 was associated with green, her favorite color, and a lucky color in Irish culture.  I also never noticed how things tended to be grouped into 7 categories, like the 7 wonders of the world. 

Collector’s Name: Megan Tao

 

Informant #35:

Title: Lucky Number 7

General Information about Item:

• Customary Folklore: Lucky Number Superstition
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: United States
• Informant: S.D., Female
• Date Collected: October 19, 2020

Informant Data:

S.D is a sophomore at Dartmouth College. She is from New Jersey but is currently living in Tannersville, Pennsylvania. Her dad is Vietnamese and her mom is American. 

Contextual Data:

• Social Context: This folklore was collected from an in person interview because S.D was my roommate. She told me that 7 became her lucky number in sixth grade because that is when she started playing field hockey. She often wore the number 7 during games and would play well. Although she did have to wear other numbers sometimes, it did not throw her off. She doesn’t think the number has a lot to do with her success since she is not that superstitious. 
• Cultural Context: S.D lucky number from personal preference. It does not play a role in her culture.

Item: Her lucky number has been 7 since the age of 12. It has become a superstition for her because of it was her field hockey number. 

Transcript:  “7… so i played field hockey since sixth grade and I lot of the times I was the number 7”

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Collector’s Comments:

Like S.D, I think lucky numbers in sports usually are just rooted from coincidence. However, I think it is fun to have a slight superstition and believe that your jersey number contributes to how well you play.  

Collector’s Name: Megan Tao

 

Informant #36:

Title: Lucky Number 11

General Information about Item:

• Customary Folklore: Lucky Number Superstition
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: United States
• Informant: N.P., Female
• Date Collected: October 19, 2020

Informant Data:

N.Pis a sophomore at Dartmouth College. She is from Georgia but is currently living in Tannersville, Pennsylvania. Her parents are from India and she is on the squash team. 

Contextual Data:

• Social Context: This folklore was collected from an in person interview because N.P was my roommate. She was born on August 11 so 11 became her lucky number. When she was 5, she started making wishes at 11:11. N.P plays squash but in squash you don’t play in uniforms with specific numbers. However, she does have a playlist with 11 songs on it. She will always listen to this playlist before squash tournaments. She doesn’t think 11 has much to do with her success but thinks its just fun to have a lucky number.  
• Cultural Context: N.P lucky number does not play a role in her culture. It is her lucky number by personal preference.

Item: Her lucky number has been 11 since the age of 5. It has become a superstition for her because of its relation to her birthday and making wishes at 11:11. 

Transcript:  “so my lucky number is 11 and 11 was the first time I ever toured the campus of Dartmouth… and i was born on August 11 so it started with that”

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Collector’s Comments:

I found that 11 is a very common lucky number to have. Part of it stems from the belief that if you make a wish at 11:11, your wish will come true. Also similar to N.P, I think lucky numbers are just fun to have. 

Collector’s Name: Megan Tao

 

Informant #37:

Title: Lucky Number 51

General Information about Item:

• Customary Folklore: Lucky Number Superstition
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: United States
• Informant: M.F., Female
• Date Collected: October 19, 2020

Informant Data:

M.F is a sophomore at Dartmouth College. She is from New Jersey  but is currently living in Tannersville, Pennsylvania. Her parents are from China and she is on the equestrian team. 

Contextual Data:

• Social Context: This folklore was collected from an in person interview because M.F was my roommate. Her lucky number is 51 because that was her old equestrian captain’s number. She met the old captain when she visited Dartmouth in the spring before she committed. She was then assigned that same number when she started competing in the fall. She doesn’t think the number affects her success but likes the connection 51 has to her old captain. She also found herself performing well in competition while wearing the number.
• Cultural Context: M.F lucky number does not play a role in her culture. It is her lucky number by personal preference.

Item: Her lucky number has been 51 for only a short time. It started when she got to Dartmouth so she was 18 years old. It was her old captains number and M.F has been successful in her competitions wearing the number. 

Transcript:  “My luck number is 51 which was my old captains number”  

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Collector’s Comments:

I liked how 51 was her lucky number because of its connection to a role model. 51 is also a niche lucky number to have because it is so large and does not commonly show up. 

Collector’s Name: Megan Tao

 

Informant #38:

Title: Lucky Number 47

General Information about Item:

• Customary Folklore: Lucky Number Superstition
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: United States
• Informant: A.H, Male
• Date Collected: October 19, 2020

Informant Data:

A.H is a freshman at Columbia University. He is from the Bay Area and is currently living there right now. His parents are from China and he does not play any sports.

Contextual Data:

• Social Context: This interview was recorded over the phone due to the pandemic. A.H lucky number is 47. It became his lucky number when he was 12 because that was the age he found 10 dollars in hotel room 47. He also won a raffle with the ticket number 47 which solidified the fact that this was his lucky number.
• Cultural Context: A.H lucky number does not play a role in his culture. It is his lucky number by personal preference.

Item: His lucky number has been 47 since the age of 12. It became his lucky number because that was the hotel room number where he found 10 dollars in.

Transcript:  “My lucky number is 47. It’s 47 because that just happened to be the hotel room number that I found ten dollars in… this happened when I was 12.”

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Collector’s Comments:

I think many people can relate to having a lucky number because it is associated with getting money/ winning something from a raffle. I found it super interesting that 47 was related to him finding 10 dollars AND winning something in the raffle years later. 

Collector’s Name: Megan Tao

 

Informant #39:

Title: Lucky Number 4

General Information about Item:

• Customary Folklore: Lucky Number Superstition
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: United States
• Informant: C.Z., Female
• Date Collected: October 19, 2020

Informant Data:

C.z is a junior at Dartmouth College and a member of the swim team.  She is from Illinois and is currently living there right now. Her parents are both Chinese. 

Contextual Data:

• Social Context: This interview was recorded over the phone due to the pandemic. Her lucky number became 4 when she was 12 years old. She liked how it was the number of leaves on a four-leaf clover. Also, she is a leap year baby so she thought it correlated nicely with a leap year happening every four years. Lastly, in swimming, the fastest seeded person is in lane four. 
• Cultural Context: C.Z lucky number is a personal preference. In Chinese culture, 4 is actually considered to be unlucky because it sounds similar to death. 

Item: Her lucky number has been 4 since the age of 12. It became her lucky number because there are 4 leaves on a 4-leaf clover, she is a leap year baby, and lane 4 in swimming is where the fastest seed swims.

Transcript: “My lucky number is 4… I just like how number 4 corresponds with a lot of things … there’s four leaves on a lucky 4 leaf clover … I’m born on a leap year which happens every four years … and I’m a swimmer and usually the fastest seeded person is in lane number 4” 

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Collector’s Comments:

I found that it was really interesting that her lucky number was actually an unlucky number in Chinese culture. Being Chinese-American myself, I did not know 4 was considered unlucky until this interview. Contrastingly, I think 4 is a rather common lucky number in American culture because of its association with the luck 4-leaf clover. 

Collector’s Name: Megan Tao

 

Informant #40:

Title: Lucky Number 11

General Information about Item:

• Customary Folklore: Lucky Number Superstition
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: United States
• Informant: M.T., Female
• Date Collected: October 19, 2020

Informant Data:

M.T is a sophomore at Dartmouth College and a member of the swim team.  She is from the Bay Area but is currently living there in Pennsylvania. Both her parents are both Chinese. 

Contextual Data:

• Social Context: This interview was recorded in person. Her lucky number is 11 because of the belief that if you make a wish at 11:11, your wish will come true. She started having a lucky number at age 13. When she was 13, she wished at 11:11 for a month straight to do well on a test and she ended up doing really well on that test. From them on, 11 became her lucky number. M.T swims but in swimming, you don’t have numbers. However, sometimes after wishing to do well at swim meets at 11:11, she ends up swimming well. 
• Cultural Context: M.T lucky number is a personal preference. Her culture plays no role in 11 being her lucky number. 

Item: Her lucky number has been 11 since the age of 13. It became her lucky number when she made a wish at 11:11 and it came true. 

Transcript: “My lucky number is 11 and it became my number because I started making wishes at 11:11”

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Collector’s Comments:

I think lucky numbers are just fun and making a wish at 11:11 has almost become a habit even though I am not that superstitious. 

Collector’s Name: Megan Tao