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How Did It Begin?: The Origin of Our Curious Customs and Superstitions
"How Did It Begin?" is an entertaining look at why we do and say the things we do. — With his trademark curiosity and delight, Dr. Rudi Brasch delves into the forgotten meanings and fascinating origins of our cutsoms, traditions, superstitions, and phrases. — Divided into themes like courtship and marriage, table manners, and drinking customs, right through to the extraordinary rituals connected with the armed services, medicine and the law, "How Did It Begin?" is wide-ranging, idiodyncratic, erudite and engaging.
328 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1993
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews
June 15, 2012
I set the date to 1994 so this wouldn't count towards my 50 books, because I don't think I read this book as much as mentally raged against its existence. I most certainly didn't finish it. My time would be better spent watching the post-midnight fuzz on the public access stations.
I bought this book on a whim and because I thought it would be fun. I should have been more careful and checked the author, who is not a historian at all. Just a "ooh that sounds fun."
His "history" of superstitions is full of just made up facts, complete nonsense, and outright errors. I found this out in the first chapter when he discusses our superstitions about number 13. According to Brasch, ancient man could not count above 12.
Um...what?
Brasch's ever-convincing proof? That after the number 12, we use "compound words" for numbers. Forget that in both Latin and Hebrew (as well as many other languages) the "compound" nature of numbers begins at 10. This really isn't hard to figure out as we have ten fingers.
This mistakes continue on from there, and crazy theories are put forth as fact with no citation, no sources, no further information. The only thing I can think is that Brasch was sitting in a room throwing darts at a wall to come up with this stuff.
What makes the book even worse is the pathetic editing. Take this classic example:
“In the sixteenth century, breakfast was a snack, with no fixed menu. It’s only purpose was to break the fast. Two thousand years later it had become a sumptuous meal, not just for the family, but for plenty of guests as well.”
You'll be happy to know that in the 36th century, we can look forward to sumptuous meals.
Later today, I'm handing the book over to my child to use for art projects--because goodness knows it's not good for much else.
I bought this book on a whim and because I thought it would be fun. I should have been more careful and checked the author, who is not a historian at all. Just a "ooh that sounds fun."
His "history" of superstitions is full of just made up facts, complete nonsense, and outright errors. I found this out in the first chapter when he discusses our superstitions about number 13. According to Brasch, ancient man could not count above 12.
Um...what?
Brasch's ever-convincing proof? That after the number 12, we use "compound words" for numbers. Forget that in both Latin and Hebrew (as well as many other languages) the "compound" nature of numbers begins at 10. This really isn't hard to figure out as we have ten fingers.
This mistakes continue on from there, and crazy theories are put forth as fact with no citation, no sources, no further information. The only thing I can think is that Brasch was sitting in a room throwing darts at a wall to come up with this stuff.
What makes the book even worse is the pathetic editing. Take this classic example:
“In the sixteenth century, breakfast was a snack, with no fixed menu. It’s only purpose was to break the fast. Two thousand years later it had become a sumptuous meal, not just for the family, but for plenty of guests as well.”
You'll be happy to know that in the 36th century, we can look forward to sumptuous meals.
Later today, I'm handing the book over to my child to use for art projects--because goodness knows it's not good for much else.
May 22, 2012
This is one of those Barnes & Noble bargain books where they take a really old publication, slap a shiny new title on it, and sell it for $5 or less. This is a fun idea for a book, but most of the anecdotes are outdated and/or debunked, and there's not a single citation anywhere. I'll give it two stars simply because it's not badly written; it's just not something to trust.
May 2, 2014
There's just no way I could finish this book. The author doesn't even try to pretend to be objective and everything is in sore need of footnotes. How can you cover pink and blue for baby colors without even a hint that they were originally swapped?
This morning was the final straw, no way I can keep reading this book. Kissing as the possible vestige of bacterial conjugation? I think the authors are in serious need of drug testing, or at the very least, not writing the book 20 minutes before deadline.
This morning was the final straw, no way I can keep reading this book. Kissing as the possible vestige of bacterial conjugation? I think the authors are in serious need of drug testing, or at the very least, not writing the book 20 minutes before deadline.
June 10, 2020
Not as interesting as I had hoped, kinda disappointed
January 15, 2025
This book taught me an important lesson: avoid the B&N discount section.
June 4, 2020
Just awful. I don't think I've ever read a non-fiction book quite like this before, its a rambling chaotic mess of half-baked conjecture. Nothing is sourced. No single idea is fully explored. Paragraphs start and end at random. The term "primitive races" is used un-ironically.
The copy that I'm reading was reprinted in 2014! What human being looked at this thing in 2014 and decided it was worth reprinting? What's the story behind that?
The copy that I'm reading was reprinted in 2014! What human being looked at this thing in 2014 and decided it was worth reprinting? What's the story behind that?
November 4, 2018
If you read this as a "bathroom read" or a fun facts/ideas book it isnt too bad. I dont think it was ever intended to be a college textbook with peer reviewed evidence. Some of these reviews are kinda harsh on this book - knocking it because it's not a scientific journal.
It's a relaxed conversation read that basically gives you a rundown on ideas
It's a relaxed conversation read that basically gives you a rundown on ideas
September 12, 2016
Just like other reviews, this book has no citations and nothing to make you think anything that is said is anything but the author's very biased opinion. I would say 90% of his "beginnings," are just 'the bible.' I wound not recommend.
June 26, 2017
Full of information that is blatantly incorrect and repeats historical rumours. At least it was short and easy to read.
May 28, 2018
Before science there was superstition. The unknown was scary, beyond our understanding and full of demons so humans invented customs and superstitions in order to deal with them and to feel less vulnerable and afraid. People believed that: Red lipstick scared away demons trying to enter your body, crocodiles lured you in via tears, and telling an actor to break a leg prevented them from trouble.
Even in 2018 it is amazing that so many people still swear by these customs and superstitions, believing them to be based on facts and logic. Even worse is that most people don't know where the traditions started and what their original meaning were so they just continue to follow them blindly.
The Brachs clearly did extensive research to trace many common beliefs back to their origins, sometimes thousands of years in the past. When in doubt about which was the exact cause, they provide information about two or more possible reasons and the history behind each of them.
In twenty-five chapters the authors cover a wide range of subjects including: birth, courtship, death, manners, dress, magic, medicine, justice, military, sports, and time. This book is easy to read and in it you will find answers to dozens of questions you didn't even know you had. Hopefully readers will find the book not only illuminating but they may decide to give up some of their superstitions once they learn the "truth" behind them.
This book is both fun and educational and I highly recommend it to young and old alike.
Even in 2018 it is amazing that so many people still swear by these customs and superstitions, believing them to be based on facts and logic. Even worse is that most people don't know where the traditions started and what their original meaning were so they just continue to follow them blindly.
The Brachs clearly did extensive research to trace many common beliefs back to their origins, sometimes thousands of years in the past. When in doubt about which was the exact cause, they provide information about two or more possible reasons and the history behind each of them.
In twenty-five chapters the authors cover a wide range of subjects including: birth, courtship, death, manners, dress, magic, medicine, justice, military, sports, and time. This book is easy to read and in it you will find answers to dozens of questions you didn't even know you had. Hopefully readers will find the book not only illuminating but they may decide to give up some of their superstitions once they learn the "truth" behind them.
This book is both fun and educational and I highly recommend it to young and old alike.
September 3, 2021
I'm a fast reader but it took me three years to read it for all the reasons others wrote in their reviews. It's an old book. My copy is a paperback, first published in 1966 and in paperback in 1969. Price .95 cents. Occasionally there are some fun facts, like the origin of "footman" p. 9 "In all ages the left has been linked with evil and therefore, with superstitious fear. . . . . . . .The ancient Romans already had identified the left side with the "evil one." Therefore they considered it unlucky to enter a house with their left foot first. To avoid any such possibility, noble families employed a servant whose sole duty it was to ensure that guests entered his master's home right foot first. . . . .We still retain the title but have forgotten it's original meaning."
December 26, 2023
This is a fun read. Nothing terribly special, though I hate to say that because it appears Brasch put in quite a bit of research. Part of the problem, I suppose, is that if you pick this up to read over the course of a week or something, the explanations begin to sound familiar. Almost always some ridiculous religious superstition is involved. By the end you can predict some of these. Probably better to simply have this on your bookshelf for when you have a question about a custom and then look up that one custom.
Another issue is that Brasch doesn't always get to the origin. Sometimes he traces back to a time in which the custom began without explaining why. I suppose it's not always possible but nonetheless a bit disappointing when that's what the book is about.
Another issue is that Brasch doesn't always get to the origin. Sometimes he traces back to a time in which the custom began without explaining why. I suppose it's not always possible but nonetheless a bit disappointing when that's what the book is about.
March 15, 2025
DNF. While reading this book, I was not impressed with the way it was written. At one point I looked to see when it was published (2006) because it came across as something written much further back (at least the 1950s). The final straw was the was the chapter on Beauty Culture was handled. Decided to not waste my time on it any longer.
September 12, 2017
A fascinating and interesting book of the origins of our customs, superstitions and traditions. Sectioned into various themes such as table manners, naval customs, origin of sporting terms and the history of dress. Find out why we do and say the things we do.....very entertaining!
April 21, 2018
An interesting book about the origins of many of our ways of life. As a "sociologist" and lover of social studies/trivia facts, this is a great book for a collection of interesting facts and history.
May 29, 2019
Dull but well researched
September 12, 2019
This book is ok. The stuff they know is interesting, but a lot of it is guesswork or rumored explainations (which there's no getting around really).
November 2, 2024
everyone should be allowed to write one book that just doesn’t need to be fact checked at all
February 12, 2025
Excellent! You will learn a lot!
August 12, 2014
This is an incredibly fascinating read. I've always wondered how certain customs and habits began. A shocking amount of things we do today--things we don't even think about doing--started because our ancestors were afraid of evil spirits. Everything from covering your mouth when you yawn to ways to bury the dead: all done out of fear of evil spirits. The beginnings of marriage are also pretty interesting, mostly because the groom tended to win his bride by kidnapping her and his best man was there to ensure that no one decided to steal the bride away before the marriage. But more than that, it's cool to imagine a world in which pants didn't exist. Or how about a time when we didn't use vowels because we weren't smart enough to think them up? Or that there was no punctuation. No space between words. And we read from right to left. How confusing that must have been! But it's also shocking to realize how much of what we think we know, we don't actually know. Everyone knows the modern English calendar is a fairly new thing in the big picture, but not many know that everything before its creation isn't certain. Everyone knows the whole thing about the absence of the year zero between 1 BC and AD 1, and that maybe Jesus was born in 4 BC instead. But way back in the day, months were measured differently, and there was no certain way to measure the hours in the days of sundials. We have a general idea of what happened when, but it's definitely not certain. This is a very educational book.
But I highly suspect Brasch has a favorite subject: booze. He finds great delight in writing about everything in this book, but he seems the most pleased when it comes to alcohol and its history and customs. I like to think that if he were around today, he'd be writing for MODERN DRUNKARD MAGAZINE.
But I highly suspect Brasch has a favorite subject: booze. He finds great delight in writing about everything in this book, but he seems the most pleased when it comes to alcohol and its history and customs. I like to think that if he were around today, he'd be writing for MODERN DRUNKARD MAGAZINE.
August 27, 2019
Bad book on an interesting topic.
First, the subtitle is wrong! It should say "The origins of our curious customs ARE superstitions". The authors did not explain any origins of our superstitions (which is actually a very attracting topic). Instead, they attributed most of our customs to superstitions.
Second, no evidences to support the authors' explanations. The whole text is mere speculation. You can imagine the authors sitting at their desk conjecturing all possibilities that can explain something. No references whatsoever! No way to confirm if what the authors claimed are correct.
Third, lack of details. Many times they wrote "One explanation is that ..." but did not specify whose explanation it is. When they discussed how people's beliefs and habits changed, he did not specify the time and relate it to corresponding historical events (thus, no context).
Forth, poor writing. Lengthy, confusing and inconclusive.
Fifth, the authors seemed to be a pious Christian. They quoted a lot from the Bible without explaining its meaning and context, thus made it hard for non-Christian (whom they called heathen or pagan) readers to understand.
P.S: The book was published in 2006 after Rudi Brasch died in 2004. His wife, Li, edited his (incomplete) draft into this book.
First, the subtitle is wrong! It should say "The origins of our curious customs ARE superstitions". The authors did not explain any origins of our superstitions (which is actually a very attracting topic). Instead, they attributed most of our customs to superstitions.
Second, no evidences to support the authors' explanations. The whole text is mere speculation. You can imagine the authors sitting at their desk conjecturing all possibilities that can explain something. No references whatsoever! No way to confirm if what the authors claimed are correct.
Third, lack of details. Many times they wrote "One explanation is that ..." but did not specify whose explanation it is. When they discussed how people's beliefs and habits changed, he did not specify the time and relate it to corresponding historical events (thus, no context).
Forth, poor writing. Lengthy, confusing and inconclusive.
Fifth, the authors seemed to be a pious Christian. They quoted a lot from the Bible without explaining its meaning and context, thus made it hard for non-Christian (whom they called heathen or pagan) readers to understand.
P.S: The book was published in 2006 after Rudi Brasch died in 2004. His wife, Li, edited his (incomplete) draft into this book.
October 19, 2012
A good collection of different beliefs, customs, and superstitions, with good explanations of origin and significance through the ages. I read this partly for bits of information that might make good details in some story, since I am--have been, for some time, if erratically--pursuing the goal of writing a novel, or even a short story, or at the very least accumulating a hefty store of details and ideas that will become useful whenever I actually do write something. To that purpose, I found a number of tidbits which caught my fancy. Like, that apparently people used to kiss the mouth of a dying person to catch and preserve the spirit as it left the body. Which is both creepy and absolutely delightful, since that is just the sort of thing I could fit wonderfully into a story--or even build a story from.
On the other hand, if you've ever wondered about how a certain belief or superstition began, or are just interested in this sort of thing in general, this is a book worth reading.
If I could, I'd probably give this a 3.5; I didn't round up because I don't quite think it deserves a 4, though it's a near thing.
On the other hand, if you've ever wondered about how a certain belief or superstition began, or are just interested in this sort of thing in general, this is a book worth reading.
If I could, I'd probably give this a 3.5; I didn't round up because I don't quite think it deserves a 4, though it's a near thing.
February 6, 2016
I'm rating this one pretty low because:
A) no citations. I mean, anyone can say that so-and-so is the source of a phrase or custom, but can you really believe it if there's no proof of documentation?
B) some stuff was kind of offensive, especially a comment about "angry natives" that I made a comment about below. I know this book is British, but even Brits know what stuff is universally not okay to say.
C) this was soooo lonnnggg. And some of the things were either repetitive or not very interesting. A heavy-handed editor would have been a blessing for this book.
Despite this, I learned several things and I really appreciated the organization of the topics. I accounted for not being British when it comes to certain sections because I'm sure Americans would write about some customs or words that Brits wouldn't care about or understand. And that's ok. In fact, that's part of what makes global information exchange fun and exciting. But there was also a good portion of this that was just dull, regardless of nationality.
A) no citations. I mean, anyone can say that so-and-so is the source of a phrase or custom, but can you really believe it if there's no proof of documentation?
B) some stuff was kind of offensive, especially a comment about "angry natives" that I made a comment about below. I know this book is British, but even Brits know what stuff is universally not okay to say.
C) this was soooo lonnnggg. And some of the things were either repetitive or not very interesting. A heavy-handed editor would have been a blessing for this book.
Despite this, I learned several things and I really appreciated the organization of the topics. I accounted for not being British when it comes to certain sections because I'm sure Americans would write about some customs or words that Brits wouldn't care about or understand. And that's ok. In fact, that's part of what makes global information exchange fun and exciting. But there was also a good portion of this that was just dull, regardless of nationality.
March 31, 2014
I read a lot of the reviews before starting this book and thought "surely it can't be THAT bad!"
The first several chapters I read and, though there were no citations, I enjoyed the book for what it was - a quick, easy, albeit potentially false, book of information to read just before bed.
Then... About eight chapters in, I just lost steam. It wasn't charming anymore. It was wordy, frustrating, and riddled with (I finally started seeing) the typos, outright incorrect information, etc.
All that to say.. If you're like me, see the book on the bargain shelf, and think it can't be THAT bad... Take my advice and get a different book.
The first several chapters I read and, though there were no citations, I enjoyed the book for what it was - a quick, easy, albeit potentially false, book of information to read just before bed.
Then... About eight chapters in, I just lost steam. It wasn't charming anymore. It was wordy, frustrating, and riddled with (I finally started seeing) the typos, outright incorrect information, etc.
All that to say.. If you're like me, see the book on the bargain shelf, and think it can't be THAT bad... Take my advice and get a different book.
April 3, 2015
Rudolph Brasch's "How Did It Begin?: The Origin of Our Curious Customs & Superstitions" takes us on a whirlwind tour of customs & superstitions from the calendar to religion & the entire life cycle. Across 25 chapters & over 300 pages, he covers things that I as reader did know & many things that I'd always wondered about. What's nice about this book is the organization of things by category which stay true to that category as well as his ability for the customs that might have multiple origins to explain those as well. This is a surprisingly good book & one that is also very easy to read especially considering the amount of information it covers.
February 22, 2014
This book is frankly a disgrace. It relies on anthropology that is thankfully on the way out. They use the older idea that women were always subjugated in the past (which is at odds with modern findings that ancient cultures were much more elgalitarian). They repeatedly refer to cultures with terms like "primitive" and "savages", which also tends to have racist overtones. They say they cover cultures of the world and then repeatedly and heavily focus on Western Europe. Did you know that a tour of the world if from England to Germany? This book is not good.
November 6, 2014
It was long and drawn out, boring, and I'm honestly not even sure how much of it was factual. I think this guy might've just made stuff up...he gives no sources and there is no bibliography. No wonder it was on Barnes and Noble's sale rack. I'm not sure if it would be unethical to resell this on ebay, haha. I would never suggest reading this...even if some things are true or interesting...how would you ever know if it was actually legitimate?
October 1, 2015
How did it all begin? It began with my walking into a B&N vestibule, gazing upon the bargain table, thinking, “this one looks like fun. And what a price!” The price to be paid, quite frankly, was a poorly organized and quite confusing read, at times. And not in that charming, Cliff Clavin-y kind of way, either.
“Then why two stars instead of one?” you may be asking. This book still has a divine purpose. To be placed within arm’s reach of your guest bathroom’s toilet.
“Then why two stars instead of one?” you may be asking. This book still has a divine purpose. To be placed within arm’s reach of your guest bathroom’s toilet.
March 2, 2016
If you can take this book for what it is, it's a good read. It's not any kind of historically factual book about traditions and customs. But rather more a speculation on where our different customs and past times have come from. There's a lot of here say and speculation and its low on facts. But I've found it very entertaining and have enjoyed the odd ways things used to be done, and how things like the modern card game came about.
July 5, 2012
I really liked this book. The segments were quick, to the point, and informational. I took off a star because I'm not sure I would have ordered the chapters in the same way and there does seem to be some repetition between segment explanations (as if they were written independent of one another then pulled together).
Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews