Title: Salt

General Information about Item:

• Customary Folklore: Greek Superstition (Good luck)
• Language: English
• Country of Origin: Greece
• Informant: Arthur Costas
• Date Collected: November 2, 2018

Informant Data: 

• Arthur Costas is a 56 year old orthopedic surgeon at the Penn State Hospital from Hershey, Pennsylvania. He is married and has three children that him and his wife raise with strong Greek traditions instilled in them. Every summer Arthur takes his family to the town in Greece, Parga, where is ancestral roots are from. Arthur and his family celebrate all the Greek holidays and practice greek traditions on a daily basis.  

Contextual Data:

• Cultural Context: Salt has long held an important place in religion and culture. Greek worshippers consecrated salt in their rituals.Greek slave traders often bartered salt for slaves, giving rise to the expression that someone was “not worth his salt.” Roman legionnaires were paid in salt—salarium, the Latin origin of the word “salary.” 
• Social Context: The informant explained that salt is seen as a powerful and respected commodity. If there is someone in your home who has overstayed their welcome, if you throw salt behind their back it will make them leave. People also sprinkle salt in a new home to ward off unwanted spirits or bad omens. The informant doesn’t use this tradition regularly, but sprinkled salt when he bought his first home with his wife. 

Item:

• Salt is said to be able to ward off unwanted visitors and bad omens in a home. Greeks sprinkle salt as a way off good measure.

Informant Comments:

• “I sprinkled a little bit of salt at the front entrance of our home when we first moved here and so far all has been going well!”

Collector: 

• Madeline Donahue

Tags/Keywords:

• Salt. Greek. Superstitions.