Itchy palm
An itchy right palm meant money on the way in old England, while old Chinese belief took an itching palm as a bad omen. Either way, the itch draws your eye to your open hand and to how easily you let things land in it.
This page only describes folk beliefs. If the sensation keeps coming back or worries you, please see a doctor.
What it may mean
Of all the body superstitions, the itchy palm is the most practical-minded: it is nearly always about money. An early English book had the right palm itching before money arrived; Creole lore read a left palm that itched as a sign of loss; in Hungary you rubbed the palm in your hair and counted the strands for coins. Beyond the cash, an open palm is the shape of receiving. Plenty of people find it easier to give than to accept a compliment, a favor or a hand with something heavy. When your palm itches, you might notice how comfortable you are with things landing in your hand, and whether you tend to brush them off. The coins, if any, are another matter.
Depending on how you saw it
Right palm itching
In the old English reading, the right palm is the receiving hand. If yours itches, it may be a good day to accept whatever is offered without the reflexive "oh, you shouldn't have." Which kindness did you wave away this week that you could have taken gladly?
Left palm itching
Creole lore, recorded in 1903, saw loss rather than gain in a left palm that itched. Money paid out is not always bad news: it also buys the things you need. What are you paying for right now, in money or effort, that is worth every cent?
Both palms at once
When both hands itch, the old readings cancel each other out, gain on one side and loss on the other. Most weeks look like that, too. Can you name one thing that came in and one that went out, and call it even?
Rubbing it in your hair or on your hip
Old charms told you exactly what to do with the itch: rub the palm in your hair in Hungary, spit on it and rub it on your hip in central Maine. Both customs turned the itch into an action. Do you have a ritual of your own that makes a passing worry feel handled?
Why it happens in nature
An itchy palm is a common sensation that most people notice now and then. The hands touch more things in a day than any other part of the body, from soap and paper to door handles and phone screens.
What folk beliefs say
England
Melton's Astrologaster, an early English catalog of superstitions quoted by Brand, says that when the palm of the right hand itches, it is a shrewd sign that you will receive money.
Source: John Brand; Henry Ellis (ed.), Observations on the Popular Antiquities of Great Britain, vol. 3 (1849), vol. 3, p. 177. View the page
Hungary (Magyar)
A Magyar belief, recorded in 1903, held that to get money when your palm itches, you must rub it in your hair: as many hairs as you touch in one stroke, so many coins will come.
Source: Cora Linn Daniels; C. M. Stevans (eds.), Encyclopaedia of Superstitions, Folklore, and the Occult Sciences of the World, vol. 1 (1903), vol. 1, p. 299. View the page
China
In China, an itching palm was taken for a bad omen.
Source: Cora Linn Daniels; C. M. Stevans (eds.), Encyclopaedia of Superstitions, Folklore, and the Occult Sciences of the World, vol. 1 (1903), vol. 1, p. 299. View the page
Maine, United States
A money charm found in central Maine was to spit on the left hand when it itched and rub it on your side or hip.
Source: Cora Linn Daniels; C. M. Stevans (eds.), Encyclopaedia of Superstitions, Folklore, and the Occult Sciences of the World, vol. 1 (1903), vol. 1, p. 299. View the page
Creole lore
Creole belief held that an itching left palm was a sign of coming loss.
Source: Cora Linn Daniels; C. M. Stevans (eds.), Encyclopaedia of Superstitions, Folklore, and the Occult Sciences of the World, vol. 1 (1903), vol. 1, p. 300. View the page
To reflect on
When someone offers you help, praise or a gift, how easily do you let it land?