Throwing Salt Over Your Shoulder: The Origins and Superstitions

Throwing salt over your right shoulder is believed to bring good luck and ward off misfortune. The custom has been passed down through families for generations, and some people still toss a pinch of salt behind them after spilling it, before an important occasion, or simply as a good-luck gesture.

Salt has a long history in superstitions involving money, arguments, betrayal, and evil spirits. The direction you throw it also has a story behind it. Although the left shoulder is traditionally associated with warding off the Devil, the right shoulder has its own place in folklore, including an old American superstition about attracting good luck.

The Origins of Throwing Salt Over Your Shoulder

Before refrigerators existed, salt was essential for preserving meat and fish. It was traded over long distances, used in religious ceremonies, and valued for its ability to keep food edible for months.

An old Czech saying, Sůl nad zlato, translates to “Salt is worth more than gold.” It is also the title of a fairy tale about a king who learns that even his enormous wealth is useless without something as ordinary as salt.

Spilling salt was considered wasteful and eventually became associated with bad luck. Knocking over a salt cellar at dinner could supposedly lead to an argument, financial trouble, or a falling-out with someone close to you.

Salt also became associated with betrayal. In Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper, Judas has an overturned salt cellar near his arm. The spilled salt has traditionally been interpreted as a symbol of his betrayal of Jesus.

Throwing a pinch of salt over the shoulder became a customary way to counteract the bad luck associated with a spill. The left shoulder was traditionally associated with the Devil, and throwing salt in that direction was supposed to blind him. The right shoulder, associated with guardian angels and good fortune, became part of a different good-luck custom. Historical American folklore records specifically mention tossing salt over the right shoulder to attract luck, and some families even threw salt over both shoulders.

That’s why the instructions differ from one household to another. Some people were taught to use the left shoulder to ward off evil, and others learned to throw salt over the right for good luck.

The Right Shoulder and Good Luck

The right-shoulder custom has a documented place in American folklore. A superstition collected in Detroit on February 10, 1971, states that a person should throw salt over their right shoulder to bring good luck.

The record is preserved in the University of Detroit Mercy’s James T. Callow Folklore Archive. Another entry in the same collection instructs people who spill salt to throw it over their right shoulder.

These examples are interesting because the familiar European custom specifies the left shoulder. The Detroit records show that the right-shoulder version was also passed down as a good-luck practice.

Some families even used both shoulders. Another entry in the Detroit collection, dating from the 1950s, describes throwing a few grains of spilled salt over each shoulder for good luck.

So, if your parents or grandparents taught you to use the right shoulder, that custom has a place in recorded folklore too.

Salt and Guardian Angels

The right shoulder also has a connection with guardian angels.

In Christian symbolism, the right side is associated with honor, righteousness, and divine favor. The Bible describes the right hand of God as a position of power and authority.

European folklore places a guardian angel behind the right shoulder and the Devil behind the left. According to an old superstition, throwing salt over the right shoulder could offend the guardian angel standing there.

The familiar left-shoulder ritual comes from the idea that tossing salt into the Devil’s eyes will blind him and prevent him from causing trouble.

This explains why some families insist on the left shoulder and others have inherited a right-shoulder custom. The instructions vary, even though both gestures are associated with avoiding misfortune or bringing good luck.

Spilled Salt, Arguments, and Betrayal

Spilling salt has long been connected with quarrels, particularly arguments between family members or people sharing a meal.

Salt was associated with hospitality and friendship. Sharing it at the dinner table represented trust, and accidentally spilling it could be interpreted as a warning that a relationship was about to suffer.

A Romanian family custom recorded by the USC Digital Folklore Archives describes throwing spilled salt over the shoulder three times to prevent a fight in the household.

Other superstitions connect spilled salt with losing money, receiving unpleasant news, or experiencing a disagreement with a romantic partner.

In some families, the person responsible for the spill must also be the person who throws the salt. The gesture is performed immediately, before the expected bad luck has an opportunity to develop.

Salt in Cleansing and Protective Rituals

Salt has been used for purposes beyond reversing bad luck at the dinner table.

In European folk practices, people placed salt near doorways and windows to keep harmful influences outside their homes. Others carried a small amount in a pocket or kept it in a pouch as protection against jealousy, curses, and the evil eye.

Some household customs involved putting salt in the corners of rooms. An Italian-American superstition recorded in Detroit describes hiding small bags of salt in room corners to prevent bad luck from entering the home, particularly after the arrival of a baby.

Salt also plays a role in Japanese sumo. Wrestlers scatter it into the ring before matches as part of a purification ritual connected with Shinto customs.

Salt baths are another practice associated with cleansing. Adding salt to bathwater is used in some spiritual rituals to represent washing away unwanted influences or the emotional weight of a difficult experience.

These customs give salt a purpose beyond cooking. A pinch near the front door, a small pouch carried in a pocket, or a handful scattered during a ceremony can all have a protective significance.

Salt for Prosperity and New Beginnings

Throwing salt behind you can also be part of a personal ritual for good fortune, especially at the beginning of a new year.

Some people use salt during housewarming rituals, placing it near an entrance before settling into a new home. Others include it in customs associated with prosperity, new opportunities, or leaving an unpleasant experience in the past.

The gesture is simple enough to become a family tradition. You take a pinch of salt, toss it behind you, and make a wish for the days ahead.

Personally, I have a tradition of tossing a pinch of salt behind me every New Year’s Eve. For me, it represents leaving the difficulties of the previous year behind and welcoming a fresh start.

I like doing it just before January begins. It takes only a moment, and every year I have something different that I want to leave behind.