folklore

Folklore is defined as stories, customs and beliefs in a culture that are unwritten and passed down orally from generation to generation.

(noun)

An example of folklore is a story about where their family came from told to a grandchild by his grandma.

See folklore in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun

all of the unwritten traditional beliefs, legends, sayings, customs, etc. of a culture
the study and scientific investigation of these

Origin: folk + lore: suggested (1846) by W. J. Thoms (1803-85), Eng antiquary, to replace earlier popular antiquities

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See folklore in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun

The traditional beliefs, myths, tales, and practices of a people, transmitted orally.
The comparative study of folk knowledge and culture. Also called folkloristics.
a. A body of widely accepted but usually specious notions about a place, a group, or an institution: Rumors of their antics became part of the folklore of Hollywood.
b. A popular but unfounded belief.

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