NEVER Say This Word If You Travel Here

On the Isle of Man, superstition and tradition reign supreme…

When driving along the A5, the main road between Douglas and Port Erin on the Isle of Man, one important tradition must be heeded: Saying “hello”tto the fairies when crossing the Fairy Bridge outside of the small town of Santon. If you don’t, you might get in trouble.

The Isle of Man is a self-governing Crown Dependency of Great Britain, located in the Irish Sea between England and Ireland. The island was initially settled by the Celts but was conquered by the Vikings in the 11th century. Today, it is best known for its TT Races, an annual motorcycle race, its flag depicting a triskelion made up of three legs, and its rather weird-looking cats without tails.

Roughly the size of Aruba, its 85,000-strong population, the Manx people are a Celtic ethnic group with their own language—and they are a superstitious lot. Whatever you do, never say the word “rat,” as in the rodent, in front of the locals.

Ever.

Manx Fairies

When most people think of fairies, they imagine pretty little things with wings flitting around on soft moss cushions. Not so the Manx fairies. Here they are the size of a small child, reaching a height of three feet, human-looking, but with distinct outfits featuring a red cap, green jacket, and a temper.  

They are a mischievous bunch, living in the woods and by streams. A popular location for them is beneath the Fairy Bridge, and the fairies expect to be greeted by everybody who crosses the bridge. If you fail to do so, you might be jinxed with bad luck following you, ranging from drivers running out of petrol straight after the bridge to old tales of children being abducted by the fairy folk.

Even the TT competitors, who race around the island’s roads at speeds up to 136.36mph, usually take their time to greet the fairies. Stories have been told of racers who neglected to heed the custom and who consequently had flat tires and even missed their flights back to the mainland.  

A normal “hello, fairies” is sufficient, but if you want to get into their good books, address them in the Manx language with moghrey mie (good morning) or fastyr mie (good afternoon).

A Rodent That Cannot Be Named

While the fairies can wreak havoc, another superstition that is even more pronounced is that of saying “rat.” Nobody on the island will say the word out loud, and when I asked the landlady of a busy pub, who was from England, what would happen if I said the “r-a-t” word, she advised against it, saying that I would most likely be  “clobbered” and kicked out by the locals.

The superstition originated in the 1600s when a leading aristocrat from the island was due to travel to England to receive a knighthood but stepped on a rat, which also bit his foot. He fell over, broke his nose, and, according to Manx law, people with facial disfiguration could not rule, and the poor old rodent has been blamed ever since.

The belief is so strong that only alternative words are being used, with “ringies” and “longtails” being the most popular. When the Irish band The Boomtown Rats were due to play at the TT Races, they had to promise to change their name for the event and were subsequently billed as the Boomtown Longtails.

When uninitiated visitors to the island accidentally refer to the rodents by their given name, they tend to set off a myriad of countermeasures to avoid the sure-to-follow bad luck. Locals start to whistle, touch wood or iron, and generally turn very pale, fearing the worst.

The Story of the Talking Mongoose

But it is not only fairies and longtails which have deep roots in the Isle of Man’s folklore. There is also a talking mongoose.

Now, if you think a mongoose is unlikely to live on an island in the Irish Sea, then you’d be right. This was an Indian mongoose called Gef (pronounced Jeff), who spoke several languages and, in the 1920s, lived in the farmhouse of the Irving family. According to the family, he was a witty conversationalist, and the story brought journalists from near and far to their house. 

Alas, Gef only spoke to members of the family, never to outsiders. Yet, the story has caught the imagination of the islands and Hollywood, with a recent film, Nandor Fodor and the Talking Mongoose, reigniting the interest. The film is based on the true story of early-20th century parapsychologist, Nandor Fodor (who was not related to the founder of this publication, Eugene Fodor), and his investigation of the Manx mongoose. 

The Hauntings of Moddey Dhoo

Peel Castle, in the small port of Peel on the island’s west coast, is another local legend, said to be by the Moddey Dhoo. The words “moddey dhoo” are an aberration of the original Manx words mauthe doog, which simply means black dog.

First documented in the 1700s, the dog was said to have been a shaggy spaniel-type who tended to enter the castle at night via a passage to meander through the various rooms of the castle but preferred to snuggle down in front of the lit fire in the guards’ room. According to lore, two guards were supposed to go together each night lock the passage gate, as the pair could effectively ward off the apparition; but one night, a guard went against the rules and locked the passage gate alone. He saw something so terrifying he died shortly thereafter. The passage was subsequently blocked off, another one constructed, and the Moddey Dhoo was not seen again for years.

Sir Walter Scott resurrected the legend in his 1823 novel Peveril of the Peak, but it was not until the early 1900s that new sightings of Moddy Dhoo were reported, and the dog still seems to roam the countryside today.

Festivals to Ward Off Evil

On October 31, Hop tu Naa is celebrated. The oldest continuously celebrated festival is the Isle of Man’s Halloween equivalent. Formerly the Celtic New Year, it was thought to be the time you were between our world and the other world when fortunes were told, superstitions ran amok, and all evil was actively shoo-ed away with lanterns, song, and fires. 

Just to be on the safe side, there is another annual festival, Oie Voaldyn, also known as Beltane, which takes place on May 1, combining the welcoming of summer and scaring away the darkness of winter and all evil. Fairies are supposed to be most active during that night, and festivities also include a large black dog, considering the celebrations take place in Peel, by the castle.

To this day, some locals are still thought to be following the old tradition of placing a simple cross called the Crosh Cuirn, made from twigs and held together with sheep’s wool, on doorways, warding off evil and bad luck. Because on the little Isle of Man, you simply cannot be too careful.