folklore

[fohk-lawr, -lohr]

noun

1. the traditional beliefs, legends, customs, etc., of a people; lore of a people.

2. the study of such lore.

3. a body of widely held but false or unsubstantiated beliefs.

folklore

/ ˈfəʊkˌlɔː /

noun

1. the unwritten literature of a people as expressed in folk tales, proverbs, riddles, songs, etc

2. the body of stories and legends attached to a particular place, group, activity, etc

   Hollywood folklore

   rugby folklore

3. the anthropological discipline concerned with the study of folkloric materials

folklore

1. Traditional stories and legends, transmitted orally (rather than in writing) from generation to generation. The stories of Paul Bunyan are examples of American folklore.

Other Word Forms

• folklorist noun
• folkloristic adjective
• folkloric adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of folklore¹

1846; folk + lore ¹; coined by English scholar and antiquary William John Thoms (1803–85)

Example Sentences

Even if things hadn't gone to script on Sunday - or at any stage during his interim tenure - his place in club folklore is fixed.

Read more on BBC

From the celebration of the deceased known as Día de los Muertos, to the foreboding thrills and life lessons underpinning Latin America’s fiendish folklore, spooky things are as revered as they are feared.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Those unforgettable eight weeks of summer in 2005 etched the names of Vaughan and his players into English cricketing folklore.

Read more on BBC

This trip and those who made it, then, will hold a special place in football folklore.

Read more on BBC

As the folklore around the shirt grew so did demand - and the manufacturer simply couldn't keep up.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• custom 
• fable 
• legend 
• myth 
• mythology 
• superstition 
• tradition 
• wisdom