Like Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy is a symbol of childhood. The Tooth Fairy exists in many cultures and across many religions. But where did the Tooth Fairy come from? Dr. Greg Weeder and our team at Weeder Pediatric Dentistry are happy to shed some light on the subject.
The Tooth Fairy came to be fairly recently, but myths and traditions that evolved into the Tooth Fairy date back for millennia. In early Norse and European tradition, when a child lost a baby tooth, the tooth was buried to save the child from hardships in the next life. Vikings believed that baby teeth and other items from their children would bring them good luck in battle.
There are many traditions relating to the loss of baby teeth going back thousands of years. When a child lost a baby tooth, they would do one or more of the following:
– Throw it into the sun
– Throw it into the fire
– Throw it backwards between the legs
– Bury it in the ground
– Hide it out of sight of animals
– Put it inside a tree or on the wall
– Swallow it, or have their mother or pet swallow it
More recently, the lost baby tooth would be “buried” under a pillow and replaced with gifts like money. In many countries (including Russia, Spain, and China), the “tooth deity” who takes the teeth and gives gifts is a mouse. This is because rodents continue to grow their teeth for their whole lives. In other countries, the tooth deity varies to include beavers, cats, dogs, and squirrels. The Tooth Fairy as we know her was inspired by the legend of the mouse and European legends of a good fairy.
The Tooth Fairy can be a way to encourage dental health in your child. Consider telling your child that the Tooth Fairy gives a larger reward for clean, healthy teeth. The legend of the Tooth Fairy and this kind of encouragement makes dental work easier for children. We invite you to contact our dental office today to schedule your child’s next visit with our pediatric dentist in La Vista, Nebraska.