Polish people are probably no more superstitious than other nations and many of the superstitions are similar to those in the UK, but sometimes they have completely the opposite outcome, like horseshoes and black cats.
General
Babies
Red slip-knots are also a popular superstition in Poland. As red is said to undo spells, it is very common for Polish people to attach red slip-knots to a baby’s stroller or clothes to protect the baby if someone looks at it with an evil eye.
When a woman is pregnant she should not become a godmother to another child.
Black Cats
It is considered unlucky to see a black cat crossing the road, probably because the black cat was supposed to be a witch in disguise, or some kind of spy or helper for her. It may therefore have been imagined to possess the same magical abilty to cause harm.
Chimney Sweep
It is widely believed that if you see a chimney-sweeper, you have to grab a button until you see a man in glasses, then make a wish, and you will be guaranteed to have good luck.
The belief may date back to a time when houses all had thatched roofs and the chimney sweep would remove the soot and stop the risk of fire. So he was considered lucky.
Coins
If you are in interesting place, the legend says that if you throw a coin over your left shoulder, you will return to this place.
Coins are thrown into fountains in many different places and people then make a wish.
Handbags
Don’t put your bag on the floor as the money inside may disappear.
Hats
Some people think that if you put a hat on a bed you will have bad luck.
Herbs
Wikipedia has a list of herbs which were used in Polish customs. Click here
Ancientsites also gives another list of herbs. Click here
At Home
Many Polish superstitions are rooted in ancient times such as not greeting your guest at the door or over the threshold. This dates back to ancient Rome when people did not do it because they never knew if the person wanted to kill the master of the house. So before greeting each other, two people had to stand face to face and shake hands to show that they didn’t have any weapons in their hands. So don’t be surprised if you hear a Pole say “Nie przez próg!” (not over the threshold) if you offer him your hand over the threshold.
If you enter a building you should exit through another door.
The bathroom toilet seat cover should always be placed down after use.
An old religious statue should never be thrown away, but be placed in the forest if there is any around.
Do not hand scissors to the person receiving them, place them on a table or the floor first.
Always brings a gift to a person’s home if it is the first time you visits the house, as a good luck gesture.
Horseshoes
The Polish good luck horseshoe is always nailed over a doorway open side down, so good fortune may flow down upon those who pass through whereas Brits see things differently and attach the horseshoe open end up so their luck “doesn’t run out.”
Ladders
Polish people think that walking under a ladder leads to misery, probably because people used to use ladders to help a person who wanted to die. They hung themselves. People avoid walking under a ladder because it is a prediction of death.
If an unmarried woman walks under a ladder it means that she will never find a husband.
Mirrors
A long time ago people believed that the human soul lives in mirror. When the mirror was destroyed, the soul could not return to the body.
Now people believe in seven years of bad luck.
When you see yourself in the pieces of a broken mirror, it symbolizes the coming of sickness or death – this is why one should clean the glass with closed eyes.
Numbers
7: Superstition of number 7 is very popular in Poland, but not unreasonably. In numerology number 7 is the number of power and perfection.
10: If you happen to forget something when leaving home and you have to go back to get it, you have to sit down for a moment and count to ten.
13: Polish people are very superstitious about the number 13, especially Friday the 13th, which is believed to bring bad luck. This originates from the fact that Judas was the thirteenth apostle in the Last Supper.
Owls
Polish folklore links Owls with death. Girls who die unmarried turn into doves; girls who are married when they die turn into Owls.
An owl cry heard in or near a home usually meant impending death, sickness, or other misfortune.
An old story tells how the Owl does not come out at during the day because it is too beautiful and would be mobbed by other jealous birds.
Pregnancy
When a woman is pregnant she should not accept being a godmother for another child.
Salt
If someone throws salt in your eye that person wants to protect you from misfortune, which are caused of spilt salt and that means the end of God’s care and the end of meeting your family and friends.
If you spill salt you have to throw it over your left shoulder, three times.
Another belief says that if you throw a pinch of salt over your right shoulder, you won’t have any trouble.
This may date back to the Middle Ages when salt was very expensive and only the richest could afford to buy this rare spice. You can imagine a huge quarrel when a servant spilt it. This is why people remembered salt spilling as a bringer of a bad luck.
Sneeze
A popular belief persists that sneezes may be an inauspicious sign that one’s mother-in-law speaks ill of their son-in-law at that moment. The same belief is thought to correspond to daughters-in-law and their mothers-in-law.
Storks
There is of course the superstition about storks bringing babies.
If a stork constructs a nest in a household it is believed to bring its owner good luck and prosperity.
Storks are also believed to protect a house from thunder strikes.
Knock on Wood
A widespread superstition in Poland is “knocking on wood”. If you want to succeed in something, or are afraid of a sudden change of fortune, you could do worse than knock on wood to scare bad luck away.
Knocking on unpainted wood is done not to tempt fate, but to prevent something bad from happening, to make sure something good continues. The full phrase is “Odpukaæ w niemalowane drewno” (knock on unpainted wood).
If we don’t want to put a jinx on something, we must three times knocks to stop something bad happening.
Hold your thumbs
This is the Polish equivalent of keeping one’s fingers crossed as a way of helping something longed-for come true. “Trzymaj za mnie kciuki” (“Hold your thumbs for me”) can be translated as “Wish me luck!”
When you promise something you are not going to do, you must cross your fingers and don’t have to keep the promise.
We should not start our day with the left leg, because it puts us in a bad mood.
Underwear
Secondary school leavers wear red underwear on the traditional ball which is organized a hundred days before final Matura exams, then they must wear it on the exam.
Christmas
From the small hours on December 24, women were found cleaning and sweeping the entire house. An ancient belief had it that forces of evil would dwell in all things left dirty on that day.
It is believed that, if the first person to enter a house on a Christmas Eve is a woman, it is a bad omen, thus is it more preferable when a man is the first to cross the threshold of the house to bring good luck.
In eastern Poland it is still believed that girls who grind poppy seed on Christmas Eve can hope for a quick marriage. After dinner, they leave the house, and the direction of the first dog bark points to where their future husband will come from.
The number of people sitting at the table on Christmas Eve is influenced by superstitions that an odd number of guests is considered to bring bad luck. The unluckiest number of all is thirteen, which originates from the fact that Judas was the thirteenth apostle in the Last Supper.
An extra place is set for any unexpected visitor, as a reminder that the Holy family was turned away from inns in Bethlehem and that those seeking shelter are welcome on this special night.
The number of dishes on Christmas Eve ought to be odd in order to ensure a good harvest and prosperity for the coming year, but a traditional meal consists of twelve dishes, one for each of the 12 apostles. These dishes are usually meatless, though this restriction does not exclude the preparation of fish.
The more you eat, the more pleasure will await you in the upcoming year. During supper on Christmas Eve, each dish has to be sampled.
A scale from the Christmas Eve carp (the typical Wigilia fish), kept in one’s coin purse all year, is said to attract money.
People watch for the first star to appear in the night sky before sitting down to eat. The breaking of symbolic wafers precedes the meal and everyone shares pieces of the broken wafers.
Some families may arrange for a seat to be left empty for a wanderer in need, or in remembrance of a deceased relative.
Easter
The pisanki derive from an ancient tradition when eggs, the symbol of life, were endowed with magical properties and were thought to ensure both a plentiful harvest and good health. The name Pisanki comes from the Polish word “pisac”, which means to write.
Wikipedia has a section on the origins of pysanky and how to decorate them. Click here.
Decorated eggs were taken out into the fields when the seeds were sown, along with a candle blessed at Gromniczne in order to bring life back into the warming soil.
Eggs were also buried at the base of fruit trees to make them bear fruit in abundance.
Even the water in which boiled eggs were prepared was sacred and it was used to wash in, bless with, poured along the property lines to protect against thunder and lightening and to protect against the ravages of weather. It is also used in annointing bee hives to bring plenty of sweet tasting honey.
A bowl of decorated eggs was kept in the homes at all times to ensure good health and prosperity.
Once decorated, eggs were never thrown out if they were broken. Instead they were buried in the garden to bring good fortune, or given to the Rusalje (water nymphs/spirits) in the nearest river or stream.
St Andrew’s Day
Saint Andrew’s Day is 30th November and friends meet in the evening and play games to foretell the future.
The most popular one with shoes and everyone takes off the right shoe and puts it against another – heel to toe across the room. The person whose shoe first reaches the door will be the first to get married.
Another game is to prepare four plates and under each plate is put: a cross (a symbol of religious life), a coin (a sign of richness), a ring (a symbol of an early marriage). The last plate remains empty. The person who chooses it, will not get married.
Hot wax through the eye of the old key in a bowl of cold water. When wax hardens, it takes various forms and the shapes are lit to make shadows on the wall. The shape of the wax may reveal who will be our partner in the future.
Another game is with apples. Everyone uses a knife to peel the apple to get the longest peel. This is then thrown with the right hand behind them and hopefully the peel falls into the shape of a letter, which will be the name of their future lover.
Marriage
If a man turns up for the hen party it will bring the woman happiness.
For good luck the wedding should be organised for a month that has the letter “R” in its name, while it is considered bad luck to have it in May.
The day before the wedding the bride should put her shoes on the window sill to have nice weather for the next day and there should be money in the bride’s shoes to assure wealth.
The bride should not be given shoes by her husband-to be as she will leave him.
The bride’s mother should place the veil on the bride before the wedding ceremony to symbolize the last task as a mother before her daughter becomes a married woman.
When getting married, the bride should wear: something white, symbolizing the pureness of her feelings; something blue, symbolizing loyalty of the groom; something borrowed, to symbolize acceptance from the groom’s family; something old, to symbolize the help from family and friends; something new, to symbolize fortune.
The bride’s bouquet should not have roses in it since sharp spikes symbolize a cut on the heart.
It is also important for the bride not to be seen by her future husband in a gown and also not to look at your reflection in the mirror when she is completely dressed.
If one of the altar candles goes out during the wedding ceremony, that is said to spell the imminent death of one of the newlyweds.
If the bride wants to rule in the marriage, as she kisses her groom at the altar, she gently throws the skirt of her dress on the groom’s shoe. This symbolizes gaining the power of decisions in the marriage.
The bride is expected to cry at her wedding ceremony. If she does not, then it is believed she will cry throughout her entire marriage.
The bride and groom to be should cross the church threshold with their right foot as this ensures a good journey through life together.
The bride should not wear a string of pearls on her wedding day since they symbolize tears she will shed in her future married life.
The bride needs to keep a small coin in her wedding shoes for prosperity, although now it has been changed to paper money.
As a symbol of fertility, eggs traditionally decorate the breads baked for weddings.
A traditional folk song (Twelve Angels) is sometimes played at the reception, allowing the bride to transfer her veil, and good luck to be married, to her Maid of Honor, Bridesmaids, and Flower Girl.
All the single women walk in a circle around the bride and she will throw her veil. The woman who catches the veil is the next to marry. The groom will also remove his tie and toss it toward the single men at the reception. The man who catches the tie will be the next to be married.
Death
The following is only an extract taken from the Polish Blog on the Transparent Language website. Click here for full text.
Death announced its coming in the dreams of the person whom it sought, or which their family had.
Dreaming about a thief sneaking into the house, losing teeth, being touched by a dead person, being sucked into a swamp or into a hole with lime – was a forewarning that Death was coming into the house. Dreaming about meat, geese, or underwear was also a very bad sign.
Before Death was to take its chosen one, it was said to wander around the house for three days. Phenomena that announced it was there included unexplained knocking on the door or window frames… Its messengers were crows and ravens.
The person who was to die was also said to be able to see Death at the headboard of their bed. Death was a real person, although invisible to the human eye. It did its duty using a scythe or a hammer.
When someone did die, everything in a house was brought to a halt. No domestic duties were carried out anymore. All mirrors were covered, and all clocks stopped. Because the dead person’s belongings were thought to bring bad luck, especially straw from the mattress, they were burned – outside the house, and often outside the village.
The body had to be washed with water, and the water was poured out outside the village as well, as it was a poison that brought Death. The body was then dressed in Sunday-best clothing. The clothing had to be without knots, as had the coffin.
The soul was flying out of the body through the mouth and, via the chimney to be tried before God, but then it came back and witnessed everything that was said about the deceased.
The eyes of the deceased were closed, and coins put on them.
A candle was placed near the deceased so that they could find their way to paradise.
If someone did not arrive to the wake, the spirit might call them to it itself.
It was important to say goodbye to the deceased once and for all. For that, everyone had to lay a kiss on the dead person’s hand or cheek. Childbearing women were excused from this custom, however. If the deceased was not paid this respect, their spirit would come back to haunt.
The coffin had to be walked to the graveyard in a procession because the dead person was emotionally tied to their home, so efforts were made so that they didn’t stay there.
All chests and all doors were open. When the coffin was carried away from the house, it should be used to knock three times on the entrance, and all chairs and seats should be laid on the floor. The coffin couldn’t touch any wall as this brought bad luck and death.
The behavior of the horses carrying the coffin was also closely monitored. Whether they scoop the ground, look back, or look at another house too much.
After leaving the village or town, the driver threw a handful of straw or seeds behind his back.
On the way back from the funeral one was supposed to behave calmly and not look back.
People believed that the dead were with them on major holidays, like Easter or Christmas, and it was a duty to welcome them. Therefore an extra seat and plate was always provided at the table.”
After being closed, the coffin of someone who has been laid out at home is tapped against the door jamb three times to bid farewell to the deceased person’s home.
Keeping a corpse in a house over the weekend means a relative of the deceased will also die.
Other Sites
The BrantfordPolishHall has a considerable amount on their site about Polish traditions throughout the year. Click here
Wikipedia has a section on Polish beliefs regarding circles, crossroads, etc. Click here.
Books
I have only been able to find one book on Polish Superstitions which may be of interest to readers which seems to be available on Kindle. Click here