Haint Blue

The good ol' south: where sweet tea goes with everything and nobody eats till you say amen. It's where I grew up, and yet I am constantly learning new and incredibly fascinating bits of history too good not to share

If you grew up in the south, and maybe even if you didn't, you have heard the term "haint blue" and you know that it is the color that you paint your porch. but do you know where the tradition came from?

found on Apartment Therapy.com

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If you grew up in the South, you've heard of "Haint Blue". It's a name given to a very specific color of pale blue that can be found on porch ceilings, window frames, and front doors all throughout the Southern States. Especially in South Carolina, where the tradition was first introduced to America. 
The religious and cultural traditions of African American slaves residing in the Carolinas where greatly influenced by the predominantly Christian views of the Puritan slave owners, which is what shaped the traditions we know as 'Hoodoo' today. (As opposed to slaves located in the French Provence of Louisiana, who's main influence was Catholicism, giving birth to Voodoo.) 

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Once emancipated, but still not truly free, the people of this area retreated to the islands off the coast of South Carolina and Georgia (St.Helena and Sapelo Islands, i.e.) Here they lived in isolation, and thus free from being forced to conform to the Puritan's belief systems which allowed a good amount of their own traditions, dialect, religious practices and beliefs to flourish. The descendants of these people today are known as the Geechee or Gullah of the Low Country. Their traditions are still very much alive and have become a huge part of the historical foundation that the South was built upon. 
One such tradition that has survived and spread to find a new meaningful place among our country is "Haint Blue". 

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In the Gullah tradition, a malevolent spirit thgouht to seek out the living to cause harm was known as a "Haint". The use of the color blue to provide protection and promote good luck and prosperity is well known throughout many different cultures and spiritual practices. It is very rare to find any Gullah house whose windows, porch, and /or door are not painted blue - as to protect against the Haints and other negative entities.

This tradition has become such an integral part of the history of the South, that it's relevance is everywhere in our society. Even the doors of my apartment complex are painted blue. Houses all over the Carolinas and Georgia can be seen with Haint Blue porches, Indigo Blue windows, Blue flower planters. The color blue, especially "Haint Blue" has become almost a calling card for Southern living and tradition. Home Depot presently has a can of house paint with the label 'Haint Blue' even today.

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