Frightening Fields: The Folklore of Scarecrows, the Boogeyman, and Human Sacrifice

The rituals and beliefs that surrounded farming and harvesting crops in ancient times was strange and even frightening. 

Scarecrows are now a common fall household decoration as well as a staple in many fields, but they have a very creepy side to them. Some people have even claimed to see scarecrows walking through the fields and peering in their windows at night. In Polish folklore, there is a creature that looks like a scarecrow called Hastrman that lurks along riverbanks making the sound of a baby crying to lure people to it. It carries a large sack, which it uses to abduct its victims. 

The very first scarecrows could have been actual humans who had been sacrificed to their gods for the fertility of the crops in ancient times.  Human sacrifice was a part of farming and harvesting crops in many ancient cultures all around the world. In some cultures, the heads of sacrificed humans were cut off and placed on pikes. Some ancient pagans placed humans in a wicker man and burned them as a sacrifice to their gods. In the area of what is now known as Sweden, men and male animals were hanged as a sacrifice every nine years. The Moche sacrificed prisoners of war, put their bodies on display, and offered their blood to their gods. They even made some of their skulls into cups. Instead of burying the bodies, they were left out in the elements to decompose and were consumed by scavenging animals and birds. 

The tradition of making scarecrows was brought to America by immigrants. The Pennsylvanian farmers who immigrated from Germany called their male scarecrows bootzamon  or boogeyman and their female scarecrows bootzafrau or boogeywoman. Although, the legend of the boogeyman may have originated from much earlier times. During the black plague of the middle ages, the buggy man would push a cart that he used to collect the bodies of plague victims. Over time, the name buggy man may have developed into boogeyman.

The next time you pass a corn field or see a scarecrow watching over its field of crops, remember the frightening folklore and history that surrounds them.