Examples of Oral Tradition
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tradition is information passed down through the generations by word
of mouth that is not written down. This includes historical and cultural
traditions, literature and law.
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Traditions in Customs
- Blowing out candles at birthday celebrations
- Not wearing white to a wedding, unless you are the bride
- Celebrating the bounty of the harvest at a festival
- Babies wearing white at christenings
- Rituals for new members of a fraternity or sorority
- Taking a gift when invited to someone’s house for dinner
- Throwing a baby shower for a mother-to-be
- Having bachelor or bachelorette parties before a wedding
- Having a bridal shower for a new bride
- Tip a waiter or waitress for good service
- Greetings like a nod, bow, smile, handshake or verbal greeting
- Removing shoes before entering a home
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Traditions in Beliefs That Are Superstitions
- Find a penny, pick it up and all day long, you'll have good luck
- A black cat crossing your path will bring bad luck
- Friday the 13th
- Cross your fingers for luck
- Break a wishbone and the person with the bigger portion will have good luck
- Knock on wood for good luck
- Step on a crack, break your mother’s back
- Finding a horseshoe brings good luck
- Blow out all of the candles on your birthday cake with one breath and your wish will come true
- Make a wish upon a falling star and it will come true
- Animals can talk at midnight on Christmas Eve
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Traditions in Beliefs About Weddings
- It’s bad luck for the groom to see the bride before the wedding
- The bride wears white to symbolize chastity
- The bride needs something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue
- Sweden - gold and sliver coins are placed inside a bride’s wedding shoe
- Norway - the bride wears a silver crown with charms to ward off evil spirits
- Czech newlyweds are showered with peas instead of rice
- The groom carries the bride across the threshold
- Hindu tradition states that rain on your wedding day is good luck
- The fourth finger was chosen for engagement and wedding rings because it was once believed that it contained a vein that led to the heart
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Traditions in Prose and Literature
- Jokes
- Riddles
- Stories
- Rhymes
- Tall tales
- Ghost stories
- Stories of tragic events
- Stories of local heroes
- Creation stories
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Traditions in Proverbs and Adages
- A watched pot never boils
- If anything can go wrong, it will go wrong
- Actions speak louder than words
- Don't bite the hand that feeds you
- Necessity is the mother of invention
- Don’t judge a book by its cover
- Beauty is in the eye of the beholder
- The grass is always greener on the other side of the hill
- A penny saved is a penny earnem
- If it ain't broke, don't fix it
- Good things come to those who wait
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Traditions in Legends
- Atlantis
- Big Foot
- Camelot
- Chupacabra
- El Dorado
- Fountain of Youth
- Griffins
- Hercules
- Johnny Appleseed
- The Loch Ness monster
- Medusa
- Pegasus
- Robin Hood
- Shangri-La
- The Bermuda Triangle
- William Tell
- Yeti, or the Abominable Snowman
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Traditions in Songs
- Alphabet Song
- Auld Lang Syne
- For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow
- Found a Peanut Happy Birthday
- Frere Jacques
- Jack and Jill
- London Bridge
- Mary Had A Little Lamb
- Mulberry Bush
- Ninety Nine Bottles of Beer on the Wall
- On Top of Spaghetti
- Ring Around A Rosy
- Ten Little Indians
- Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star
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Traditions in Dances
- Hawaiian hula
- Polkas
- Square dancing
- Waltz
- Two step
- Western line dancing
- Round dances of Native Americans
- Break dancing
- Flamenco
- Greek circle dances
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