# Why do we say 'White rabbits' 3x on the first of the month? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 30, 2004, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371 "2004-11-30T19:42:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371/21 "2004-12-01T03:41:31Z")
My ancestry is as English–not just British–as the day is long, and I have _never_ heard of this. Mybe it got dropped when Grandpa lived on the Prairies… ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371/22 "2004-12-01T04:38:59Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > When she was a child, Canadian Gilda Radner felt Gilda Radner was American. She worked in Toronto for a few years, but was born and raised in the Detroit area. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371/23 "2004-12-01T05:14:34Z")
We discussed this in a thread a couple of months ago. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371/24 "2004-12-01T06:09:11Z")
Yes, we did, including the “Rabbi, Rabbi” variant. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371/25 "2004-12-01T09:08:55Z")
Hadn’t heard of it and am from NZ. ---
**Author:** ![curly\_chick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ba0ec/32.png) [@curly\_chick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curly_chick)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371/26 "2004-12-01T09:17:28Z")
I said it this very morning. It is a tradition in our family, on my Mum’s side. My Mum is English, from Lancashire, if that helps you at all to pin it down to a region. ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371/27 "2004-12-01T11:09:48Z")
> [@](#): > > We do have “pinch and a punch, first day of the month”, though. We do? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371/28 "2004-12-01T11:24:18Z")
> [@+MDI](#): > > We do? 😕 Punch and a kick for being so quick. ---
**Author:** ![Futile\_Gesture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f05b48/32.png) [@Futile\_Gesture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Futile_Gesture)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371/29 "2004-12-01T12:10:40Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > Punch and a kick for being so quick. C’mon! You’re just making stuff up now! Never heard of any of this. I feel like I’m missing out. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Ross](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e274bd/32.png) [@Ross](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ross)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371/30 "2004-12-01T12:24:00Z")
> [@+MDI](#): > > > [@Tapioca Dextrin](#): > > > > I’m British, but I’ve never heard of it. We do have “pinch and a punch, first day of the month”, though. > > We do? 😕 We do. For the first time in ages I managed to catch my wife with it before she got me. I didn’t give her the deadarm she usually gives me, though. My wife got it from her dad, who’s from Bristol. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371/31 "2004-12-01T12:26:31Z")
I’m English and I heard the “White rabbits” thing as a kid. We only said it once, though, not three times, and it had to be the first thing you said in the new month. “Pinch, punch, first of the month” is very widespread, too. [Google it](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=%22pinch+punch+first+of+the+month%22&btnG=Search). ---
**Author:** ![jinty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/dbc845/32.png) [@jinty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jinty)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2004, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371/32 "2004-12-01T13:05:56Z")
> [@curly chick](#): > > I said it this very morning. > It is a tradition in our family, on my Mum’s side. My Mum is English, from Lancashire, if that helps you at all to pin it down to a region. My GF is from Yorkshire, and she says it, so maybe it’s a north of England thing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-say-white-rabbits-3x-on-the-first-of-the-month/277371.md?page=1)