Editing Old wives' tale (section)

== Origins ==
In this context, the word ''wife'' means "woman" rather than "married woman". This usage stems from [[Old English language|Old English]] ''{{lang|ang|{{wt|ang|wif}}}}'' ("woman") and is akin to the [[German language|German]] ''{{linktext|Weib|lang=de}}'' (also meaning "woman"). This sense of the word is still used in [[Modern English]] in constructions such as ''[[midwife]]'' and ''[[fishwife]]''.

Old wives' tales are often invoked to discourage certain behaviours, usually of children, or to share knowledge of [[traditional medicine|folk cures]] for ailments ranging from [[toothaches]] to [[dysentery]].

The concept of old wives' tales has existed for centuries. In 1611, the [[King James Version|King James Bible]] was published with the following translation of a verse: "But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise thyself [rather] unto godliness" ([[First Epistle to Timothy|1 Timothy]] [[1 Timothy 4|4:7]]).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.blueletterbible.org/Bible.cfm?b=1Ti&c=4&v=7&t=KJV#7|title=1 Timothy 4:7 (KJV)|access-date=14 March 2018}}</ref>

Old wives' tales originate in the oral tradition of storytelling. They were generally propagated by illiterate women, telling stories to each other or to children. The stories do not attempt to moralise, but to teach lessons and make difficult concepts like death or [[coming of age]] easy for children to understand. These stories are also used to scare children so they don't do undesirable things.<ref>''The Guardian'', 15 May 2010, Greer, Germaine. "Grandmother's footsteps" http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/may/15/germaine-greer-old-wives-tales</ref>