Failing to ring bells during a funeral causes hail to fall afterward.

Skipping Funeral Bells Brings Hail, Says Folklore

Details

This superstition warns that if bells are not rung during a funeral procession or burial, the community may be punished by a hailstorm. The ritual of tolling funeral bells served not only to honor the deceased and alert the village of death but also to spiritually cleanse the area and ward off malevolent forces. Bells held spiritual significance, often believed to drive away evil spirits or disrupt supernatural phenomena. The absence of this sound was considered disrespectful to both the dead and divine forces, potentially resulting in a weather-related punishment such as hail — a damaging and ominous natural occurrence. Historically, this belief likely served to ensure communal adherence to funeral rites and maintain religious reverence around death.

Historical Context

The practice of ringing bells during funerals has roots in Medieval Christian traditions, especially in Catholic Europe. Church bells were believed to sanctify the air, drive away evil spirits, and announce the soul’s transition to the afterlife. The clang of metal was also associated with divine power or angelic presence. Communities held great respect for the ritual and feared repercussions if not performed correctly. In agrarian societies, hail represented major agricultural devastation, so linking funeral impropriety to hail intensified the need for spiritual correctness. This belief likely arose to enforce attention to proper burial customs and maintain harmony with religious norms and nature.

Modern Relevance

This superstition has largely faded in contemporary society, especially in secular or Protestant settings where the use of church bells is no longer central to funerary rites. However, in some rural areas of Eastern Europe and parts of the Mediterranean, traditional bell-ringing is still practiced during funerals, often more as a cultural custom than a fear-based ritual. While the association with hail is rarely believed today, the symbolic role of sound—such as chimes or bells—to honor the dead still exists in modern funeral services or remembrance ceremonies. In sociocultural studies, the superstition is now viewed as part of the rich tapestry of weather-related omens connected to human rites of passage.

Sources

Dundes, Alan. The Meaning of Folklore. University Press of Colorado, 2007.

Quick Facts

Related Superstitions

A baby’s future career or fate is predicted by the first object they select during a ceremonial setup.

In several Asian and Eastern European cultures, a traditional ceremony is held for babies usually around their first birthday. Known

Why Superstitions Persist in Modern Times

Despite widespread access to scientific knowledge and rational frameworks, superstitions continue to influence everyday behavior across cultures and demographics. From