Sailors are said to be some of the most superstitious people on earth. Possibly because in centuries past, men of the sea relied on experience and hearsay rather than modern science to survive. 

 Food and Table Manners
Sailors may not have been known for their manners, but certain table traditions were considered deadly serious to them. In fact, seamen believed certain behavior was taboo and were convinced the “devil was in the details” of certain actions. 

 Popular beliefs of the time implied bad luck would come to those who stirred a cup of coffee or tea with anything but a spoon. The saying “stir with a knife, stir up strife,” was a common reminder that to do otherwise, would risk bad luck as well as an improperly mixed drink. 

 Another taboo was never to cross knives on the galley table as it was a bad omen that may led to conflicts on board. Passing the salt to a fellow sailor equaled passing ill will, so crewmen always set the salt down on the table before the next person picked it up. 

 An experienced sailor never turned a loaf of bread on its side or top, which would be disrespectful to the symbol of the Body of Christ and was sure to result in death. 

 Even eggshells had to be crushed before discarding to prevent witches from using them as boats that would cause trouble to passing ships. 

 

 Perhaps the oddest-sounding, food-related superstition was the one with the most basis in fact: bananas on board were bad luck. To anyone who knows that fruits were an important way to prevent scurvy, this seems especially odd but easily explained. 

 Bananas were thought to ruin other cargo. If that cargo happened to be fruit, the sailors’ suspicions were true. As bananas ripen, they release ethylene gas which causes other fruits to ripen faster, and often spoil, before reaching their destination. 

 That same fermenting gas might collect in the holds of the ship and prove deadly to human cargo on slave ships, or anyone who ventured below decks to investigate. The tropical fruit also hid venomous spiders and snakes that might mysteriously cause the death of crew members. 

 In addition, when ships carrying bananas sunk, but the fruit remained afloat, superstitious mariners grew suspect. 

 Payment Plans
Sailors and ship builders believed placing a coin under the mast of a ship as it was built would bring good luck and profitable voyages. This belief dates back to the ancient Roman tradition of placing a coin in the mouths of the dead, enabling them to pay a mythological ferryman to transport them to the afterlife. 

 It was thought that if a ship and her sailors were lost at sea, then the coin under the mast ensured that the dead’s fares across the River Styx were paid. 

 Days of Doom
Scheduling a ship’s departure from port was believed to be as important as any other preparation of the sail. The unluckiest day of the week to begin a journey was Friday, a conviction that evolved from several belief systems. 

 In the early days of Christianity, the Norse goddess Frigga was regarded as a witch. The day that was named after her, Friday, was unlucky because it was also the day of the week Jesus was crucified. Setting sail on a Friday the thirteenth would surely seal a ship’s fate.  

Other unlucky days for sailing include the first Monday in April, which was the day that Cain killed his brother Abel, and December 31, the day that Judas Iscariot committed suicide.

 A better option, according to folklore, was to begin a voyage on a Sunday, the luckiest day for sailing. It led to the saying, “Sunday sail, never fail.”

 The 17th and 29th day of any month also bode well for trips that would last several months, as long as it didn’t fall on a Friday. 

 No Ladies Allowed
It was tradition in ancient times to name ships after women such as goddesses, but women themselves were not allowed to remain on board after a ship set sail. This applied mostly to military and merchant vessels, where sailors were convinced that they brought bad luck to a voyage. 

 

 Conditions aboard these ships were harsh, often including poor food, cramped sleeping conditions, and lack of proper medicine. Most men of that era would not put their wives or daughters in such a situation.

 The reality, though, probably had more to with the distraction from duties and fights between men, that occurred due to a woman’s presence. 

 Ironically, although having a woman on board was thought to anger the sea, it was believed that the presence of a naked woman on a ship would calm the waves. This is why many vessels have a figurehead of a bare-breasted woman mounted at the bow of the ship to shame the seas into submission. 

 Redheads were considered unlucky as passengers or crew, no matter their sex. Oftentimes, they were not allowed on board. Even on land, crew members took precaution when speaking to any redhead. 

 Under the Weather
In the days when ships relied on wind in their sails for power, the importance of weather could not be overestimated. 

 Caught in a windless pattern, sailors sometimes whistled across the waves to attract wind to their sails. Many ships forbade the practice though, as tempting weather patterns to change might stir up a storm. Ironically the phrase, “whistling for a wind,” has come to mean a futile action. 

 Scratching a backstay, a thick rope that held up masts, was a more controlled request and was believed to summon favorable winds from the desired direction. 

 Done without thought, the simplest actions were thought to cause extreme ripple effects. Clapping on board was thought to bring thunder and tossing a stone into the ocean was thought to cause storms with large swells. 

 Even in the rainy season, seamen would not bring umbrellas aboard just in case seas would be tempted to revolt at the presence of the precautionary equipment. 

 

 Here Kitty, Kitty
Black cats may be viewed as bad luck on land, but they were considered the luckiest color of feline to have on a ship. Wives of fishermen were even known to care for one at home to keep their husbands safe at sea. 

 The obvious advantage of having a cat on a ship was its talent for hunting disease-carrying rats that often chewed through wood and ropes. 

 Cats were also thought to store magical powers in their tails that could control the weather. Mannerisms of the mystical creatures were carefully watched for signs that might affect the voyage. 

 If a cat sneezed, it meant rain; acted frisky, strong winds would appear; and if it licked its fur against the grain, preparations needed to be made for an oncoming storm. 

 A seed of truth can be found in the origins of these superstitions. Because the sensitive inner ears of cats could sense atmospheric pressure changes long before a storm was visible, the cats would appear restless. 

 Heeding such warnings, crews knew it was best to feed cats well and to stay on their good side. If a cat turned away from a sailor, it was considered bad luck. 

 Thoughts of ridding the ship of an ill-tempered feline were set aside by the belief that if the cat fell or was thrown overboard, the ship would either sink during a storm or those aboard would suffer nine years of bad luck.  

A Boat by Any Other Name
According to sailor lore, renaming a ship should be avoided at all costs. The belief was that the gods of the sea, including Poseidon, knew all the ships by name and kept ledgers of which crews had paid respect to them with offerings. Those offerings might have included animal sacrifices or wine poured onto the deck. 

 Changing the name of a vessel was seen as an attempt to trick the gods, who would then punish the ship and its crew for deceit. 

 The practical aspect of the belief is that ships did business based on their reputation, and a name change would erase a successful record or be viewed as suspicious for an unsuccessful one. 

 A failed christening, or formal naming and launch of a ship, was considered a bad omen as well. 

 Modern-day sailors use a massive iron/ore freighter that launched in the Great Lakes in 1958 as an example. It took three swings for the ceremonial champagne bottle to break across her bow. 

 It then took 36 minutes to release the keel blocks allowing her to slide into the water where it crashed, creating a tidal wave that doused spectators and then hit the pier. One male spectator had a heart attack at the sight and died

. In November 1975, the same ship, the S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald, was lost in a storm on Lake Superior, sinking to the bottom with all hands on deck. 

 A purging ceremony is thought to avoid the issue for those determined to rename a ship. It requires the owner write the original name on a piece of paper that is then folded and placed in a box. That box is then burned, and its ashes thrown into an outgoing tide, preferably during a full moon. 

 All traces of the old name were to be removed from the boat including the logbook, paperwork, and the writing on the hull. A toast would then be made to the captain and first mate and then to the sea. After these steps, a ship could be christened with the new name. 

Elaborate? Perhaps. But, in reality, what harm could come from being extra thoughtful? And that’s what superstitions come down to, isn’t it? 

 Previous generations have taught us that a simple gesture might bring safety from tragedy and it’s better to be safe than sorry.