Vincent Van Gogh - Wheat Field with Crows
Vincent Van Gogh – Wheat Field with Crows

I was listening to A Great Reckoning the other day and it mentioned that the phrase “a murder of crows” came from folklore. I knew the phrase but never knew where it came from, so I though it would be a perfect story to share today. There’s just one minor problem – I can’t find the story. I thought I’d go ahead and tell you what I did find though.

There are several different explanations for the origin of the term, a “murder of crows,” mostly based on old folk tales and superstitions. For instance, there is a folktale that crows will gather and decide the capital fate of another crow. One such tale, “A Parliament of Crows” is mentioned in a couple of places, but I can’t find the actual story. Although these are mostly considered folklore, apparently some actual instances have been witness. In Sweden the trials are called “kråkriksdag,” roughly translated as “crow’s parliament” with stories of crows acquitted and others where the crow is found guilty and torn apart.

Have you ever heard a crow court story? Or know where I can find one?

Thursday’s Tales is a weekly event here at Carol’s Notebook. Fairy tales, folktales, tall tales, even re-tellings, I love them all. Feel free to join in.

1 Comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.