folklore
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
the traditional stories, customs, and beliefs of a particular group of people.
the traditional beliefs, legends, and customs of a specific ethnic or social group, typically transmitted through oral tradition.
Simple“In local folklore, the mountains are said to be protected by a giant spirit.”
In context“The professor spent decades documenting the folklore of the island, focusing on how ancient seafaring myths influenced modern social rituals.”
- 02 C1 Advanced
ideas or methods that experts know and share with each other, but which are not yet written in official books.
the body of proofs, techniques, or observations widely known within a professional community but not formally published.
Simple“That specific way to solve the equation is part of mathematical folklore.”
In context“While the result is widely accepted as part of the field's folklore, a rigorous formal proof has yet to appear in any peer-reviewed journal.”
UsageOften used with 'mathematical' or 'scientific' to describe shared but unrecorded insights.
Synonymsoral traditioninformal knowledgeAntonyms
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”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.