folklore

noun

Etymology: From folk + lore, coined by British writer William Thoms in 1846 to replace terms such as "popular antiquities". Thoms imitated German terms such as Volklehre (“people's customs”) and Volksüberlieferung (“popular tradition”). Compare also Old English folclar (“popular instruction; homily”) and West Frisian folkloare (“folklore”).

1. The tales, legends, superstitions, and traditions of a particular ethnic population.

   “[T]here is no true American music but the wild sweet melodies of the Negro slave; the American fairy tales and folk-lore are Indian and African; and, all in all, we black men seem the sole oasis of simple faith and reverence in a dusty desert of dollars and smartness.”

   “Why has not England a great mythology? Our folklore has never advanced beyond daintiness, and the greater melodies about our country-side have all issued through the pipes of Greece.”

2. The tales, superstitions etc. of any particular group or community.

   “A selection of longer items of hacker folklore and humor is included in Appendix A, Hacker Folklore.”

   “Foxes boss Rodgers had a smile that illuminated Wembley as he joined Leicester's players in joyous scenes of celebration after the manager and his players had written their name into the club's folklore.”

3. The collective of proofs or techniques which are widely known among mathematicians, but have never been formally published.