AboutTed Nesbitt Expertise I have an interest in the meanings of words and phrases, as well as how and when they became part of the English language. I enjoy
researching idioms, colloquialisms, dialects, and obscurities of
all kinds. I prefer short questions on a particular subject, and
I will not accept lengthy research projects or term papers. NOTE: ALLEXPERTS CLAIMS THAT I TRANSLATE FROM ENGLISH TO LATIN AND FROM LATIN TO ENGLISH. I DO NOT. ALLEXPERTS REFUSES TO DELETE THE LATIN-TO-ENGLISH SERVICE -- ONE THAT I DO NOT PROVIDE.
TRUST ME ON THIS: ALLEXPERTS IS WRONG. I DO NOT TRANSLATE FROM ENGLISH TO LANGUAGE. LOOK FOR A LANGUAGE EXPERT INSTEAD. ETYMOLOGY AND TRANSLATING SERVICES ARE ENTIRELY DIFFERENT. ALLEXPERTS SHOULD KNOW THAT. ALLEXPERTS DOES NOT KNOW THAT. I HAVE TRIED FOR MANY YEARS TO GET THEM TO CHANGE. THEY WILL NOT. SORRY, BUT I DO NOT TRANSLATE FROM ENGLISH TO LATIN.
Experience I am the bibliographic instruction and reference librarian at a public
college. My master's thesis concerns William Faulkner's tragic novels. I formerly taught advanced placement English at two schools in the Philadelphia area.
I have been a member of the grammar and writing section of Allexperts
for more than a year.
Education/Credentials Masters degrees in English, philosophy, and library science.
Question Why do people in England say the word 'RABBIT' first thing when they wake up on the first day of each month?
Answer Lynn:
This is not a question of etymology -- the study of word origins. But it is an interesting question, which I have received many times.
The "rabbit, rabbit, rabbit" phrase originated in England, but the exact date is not certain. Incidentally, it was used in Kentucky in the early 1800s!
It is a superstition, much like the black cat. The rabbit or hare, in England, was considered to be a symbol of bad luck. If a rabbit crossed your path -- like a black cat here -- you should turn back!
By saying the word "rabbit" three times on the first day of each month, you were supposedly "protected" from evil.
By the way, the late Gilda Radner from "Saturday Night Live" always used "bunny, bunny." She even wrote a book with that title.
Here's some more information:
"…the following belief is common in many parts of Great Britain, with local variants: To secure good luck of some kind, usually a present, one should say ‘Rabbits' three times just before going to sleep on the last day of the month, and then ‘Hares' three times on waking the next morning"
From 1922 comes this exerpt from a speech "Coming on to midnight, gentlemen, he said: ‘I hope everybody here will remember to say ‘Rabbit, rabbit, rabbit' first thing in the morning."
Hey, I thought rabbit was for night, hare was for morning! Well, we certainly can't leave it that simple - from 1953 comes this published bit of folklore: "On the first day of the month when you wake up in the morning shout ‘White Rabbit' and when you go to bed at night shout ‘Black Rabbit' and you will have good luck." Aha ! - it's the colour that counts!
From 1982: "The first words you say for a lucky month are ‘White Rabbits.' If you can remember to say that twelve times a year, you'll have a very lucky year.."
Notice the plural, rabbits - multiply the good luck?"
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"I was driving out with a man the other day when a hare crossed the road: ‘Had that been my old father driving he'd have turned back and gone straight home,' said the car driver. He didn't. But I noticed that he drove with special care the rest of the way."
The preceding information is from this book:
"A Dictionary of Superstitions" Oxford press, edited by Iona Opie and Moira Tatem
