Ever heard that you shouldn't ever take a knife for nothing?

It's as old as the hills and found in many cultures. In Scotland (UK as a whole I believe) if you are gifted a knife you need to give them a silver coin, although these days any coin will do. The same is true for countries all over Europe and I have seen a similar affair happening when in Asia, too.
In Asia the gifting of knives can also be seen as a death threat or a way to actually cut ties with someone. Today knife nuts are the same the world over so I'm pretty sure the knives I was given by friends in Asia were really just gifts, and I'll not be pulled out the river in a suitcase without a face in the future. :p
 
It isn't just a European traditional belief. In at least a few Asian countries, it isn't considered desirable to give knives (or scissors) as gifts, especially as wedding gifts, as it can represent severing a relationship, or of an intent to harm the recipient.

I've also heard that in China, it's not recommended to give shoes as gifts, as it may represent the giver or others 'walking over' the recipient. I've also heard it can represent one or the other walking away from the relationship.

Jim
 
If giving money to friends for knives is good luck, then I ("knifehoarder") ought to be one lucky sumbitch. :D

Great thread/posts, guys.
 
I've gifted a bunch of knives; don't remember if I ever got a coin in return. But that's fine.
 
Never heard of that superstition, only way i'd hand someone my knife, is making them sign a contract.
 
Haze said:
In Asia the gifting of knives can also be seen as a death threat or a way to actually cut ties with someone.
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The same applies (in Asian countries) to the gifting of a clock - the symbolism is that the gift receiver is running out of time (but, then again, aren't we all!).
 
Never heard of it until now. Will be honoring the superstition from here on out though. Awesome thread!
 
leghog said:
As you say, it's superstition, so why even practice it (and according to this thread many do)?
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Why not do it ? It's been done for generations and is an ingrained tradition, I see no harm in the practice at all.
 
Such tales are fun, but it is hard to imagine that people still believe them (and they do!) in modern, more enlightened times.
 
DocT said:
Such tales are fun, but it is hard to imagine that people still believe them (and they do!) in modern, more enlightened times.
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It's easy to be nothing short of shocked at what people still believe and practice in these "modern and enlightened times". The trading of a coin for a knife is really the least of them.....
 
DocT said:
Such tales are fun, but it is hard to imagine that people still believe them (and they do!) in modern, more enlightened times.
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If somebody believes in the coin for a knife thing and you plan to give them a knife, why not respect that and follow it for them? It's not as if doing so really costs anything. Even though I personally feel that most such beliefs are a self-fulfilling prophecy...if you believe it so deeply, you will consciously or subconsciously do things to bring it about. But then again, you never know.

I'm not really sure these times are all that enlightened. Being technologically more advanced is not the same thing. There are still a lot of ignorant people out there who think they're enlightened. I've also seen a lot of so-called reasonable, logical people, who are self-described skeptics, who believe in all kinds of things that even contradict themselves. Such people's core beliefs can be far less reasonable than those whom they describe as 'superstitious'.

Jim
 
There sure a lot of undesirable people in my life I'd like to try this superstition out on.
 
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