Pareidolia

Anne here, and today I'm talking about a new-to-me word — pareidolia. I came across it the other day and, being unable to work out its meaning from the context, had to look it up. Thankfully these days it's so easy to look up anything. Not like when I was a child, and my parents would say "work it out yourself or look it up if you can't."

That sounds a bit mean, I know, but it was excellent training. I was a voracious reader from a young age, and was forever coming across new words—lots of Regency-era slang too, when I was reading Georgette Heyer. But I learned to either work it out from the context or look it up in a dictionary, and since I was a bit lazy and wanted to get on with the story, I'd usually work it out from the context. Or skip it. <g>

But this new word intrigued me. Pareidolia—even my word processing program thinks it's a spelling mistake—is something we've all noticed often, and have probably been experiencing since we were small children. We just didn't know it had a name — at least I didn't.

Do you see things that aren't there? That's pareidolia.

Do you use emojis in your texts and emails? Pareidolia again.

Ever lain on the ground, staring up into the sky and picked out people, animals or things from the shape of the clouds? Ever looked at a house or a car and thought it had a face? Looked at a slice of wood and seen something else there in the grain?  Yes, people, examples of pareidolia are everywhere.

Have I teased you long enough?  Pareidolia is, according to one dictionary definition, "the tendency to perceive a specific, often meaningful image in a random or ambiguous visual pattern." In other words it's being able to see recognizable patterns or pictures out of random or vague arrangements of shapes, lines, colors, etc. Like these bears in my fence. 

The word comes from the German, and is used in psychology — for example the  Rorschach inkblot test. But most of us experience it all the time, consciously or unconsciously.  There's more about it here. 

Babies start to perceive faces from an early age, and this never stops. Our brains are wired to look for patterns and "so eager to spot faces that this accounts for the most common form of pareidolia."  The Guardian (2021)

One of my favorite books when I was small was an Australian classic called SnugglePot and Cuddlepie, which was about the adventures of gum-nut babies. The villains in the stories were the big bad banksia men, and I had no trouble at all imagining them. The photo on the left is of a real banksia pod and do you wonder that I can still see a big bad banksia man every time I see a banksia bush?

More examples of pareidolia:

During the September 11 attacks, television viewers supposedly saw the face of Satan in clouds of smoke billowing out of the  World Trade Centre after the plane crashed into it.^[37] 

Heikeopsis japonica is a kind of crab native to Japan, with a shell that bears a pattern resembling a human face which is interpreted to be the face of an angry samurai hence the nickname samurai crab.

This painting —The Jurist by Giuseppe Arcimboldo, painted in 1566—might look like a face, but if you look closely, it's actually a collection of fish and poultry. (Click on it to see a larger image)

The advertisement for this teapot was pulled because people thought it looked like Adolf Hitler. Internet discussion of the phenomenon was so intense that the teapot became a collectors' item as "the Hitler teapot."  

At Hallowe'en many people decorated their house to look like a face.

Examples of pareidolia are everywhere. Do you have a favorite example that gives you pleasure or entertains you?

(PS is it just me, or has the print on this blog shrunk?)

Comments

[Christina Courtenay]

The print looks fine to me, Anne! And what an interesting post! I had no idea that had a name but I do look for faces in most everything. Definitely cars - my Mini Cooper has a big friendly grin - and lots of other things too. When I was a little girl, every time I visited my grandparents I'd go in their bathroom which had a marble floor and one of the tiles definitely had the face of a man on it. He was kind of scary-looking but I was fascinated anyway.

[Mary T]

First off - that painting by Arcimboldo freaked me out.

I do look at clouds to see what I can see. But most of the times they just look like poodles to me.

I remember as a very young child, I would sometimes wake up before full daylight and spot something in the room that I couldn't identify. Wasn't sure what it was but it was scary enough to make me hide under the covers. Later when it was daylight, I could see that it was just a rolled up sock in the corner and not a rat or some other scary thing (smile).

I learned a new word today. Thanks Anne.

[Karin]

What a great word! I've never heard of it before. I have seen faces in trees, and I see them on the fronts of certain cars. But I have to admit that the people seeing religious figures on a piece of toast do entertain me.

[Kareni]

What a fascinating post, Anne!

I saw mention of pareidolia a few days ago. (A case of the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon at work!) Your examples were intriguing; the Jurist is definitely disquieting. My personal example: we have a dehumidifier which when draped with a towel makes me think of Darth Vader.

[Annette N]

I did not realize there is a word for it. I did not realize that I am not quite as nuts as I thought I was, because there is a word for it. I do see faces and other things in every day items or at times not so every day items. Cars - yep, faces. They used to have better faces but now they all look alike. Plants and trees - yep, generally they change if I look again. The arrangement of items, can be something completely unexpected. I thank you so much for this post. I have always seen things. And now I may have a nightmare because of the face that is not a face.
That is a very creepy painting.

[Anne Gracie]

Thanks, Christina — the print is obviously my computer's problem. It looks 8pt to me, so I enlarged the print of the blog, but now the print size in the comments is tiny. Weird. Maybe when I switch to my new computer it'll be better.

Oh, you have a mini. I started my driving life with a Mini — not a MiniCooper, though I did seriously consider one when I was buying a new car last year. And you're right, a lot of new cars don't have faces, though some of the smaller Asian models do. Maybe it's a marketing thing.
Love the man in the marble in your grandma's house.

[Anne Gracie]

Yes, it's a very creepy painting isn't it, Mary? Sorry about that.

We used to find things in clouds all the time when I was a kid, but these days I tend more to looking up and wondering whether they're bringing rain or not.

Love your scary rat in the corner. I think when you're little your imagination is more fertile.

[Anne Gracie]

It's fun, isn't it, Karin? I had a great picture of a face in a tree—in fact I had a lot more images— but had to limit them as the new typepad system doesn't seem as image-friendly as the old one, so I was erring on the side of caution.

And oh, religious figures on food also entertain me — Jesus on a pancake, Mary on toast. Such fun.

[Anne Gracie]

Thanks, Kareni. Isn't it funny how words and ideas seem to arise? Tthe Baader-Meinhof phenomenon indeed.
And yes, that painting is quite creepy.
I do like the idea of your dehumidifying Darth Vader.

[Anne Gracie]

Annette, I didn't realize it either, but was delighted when I found there was a word for it. I agree that cars don't have faces as they used to — those big metal grills were teeth, weren't they? I'm not so sure about things changing when I look again — I used to see those bears in the fence every time I stepped into my back garden in the old house.
Apologies in advance for any nightmares that arise from the creepy painting.

[Katja]

Interesting post and interesting reaction to the Arcimboldo. I admit the jurist is a bit creepy, but I always liked Arcimboldo especially his Librarian, which seems quite fitting for a writers blog: https://de.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Datei:Arcimboldo_Librarian_Stokholm.jpg
I also like his four seasons and the turn-around pictures, which are still lifes in one direction and portratîts if you turn them on their head.

[Mary M.]

Just the other day, I looked in my rear view mirror and was startled to see an angry bird behind me. The headlights and grill configuration made me feel the car was going to run me right over!

I wondered why you didn't give us the pronunciation, but of course, you left us to look it up or figure it out. I won't spoil the fun except to hint it's origin is not German but another G country (which should help in figuring out the pronunciation, hehee).

Great post for us wordies!

[Binnie Syril Braunstein]

Anne-I loved your post. And the new word. I have often heard/read of wood artisans executing their work based in what the wood tells them. So now I'm imaging Michelangelo staring at a hunk if marble and seeing David or La Pieta. As for me, just the other day, I was blindly staring at something, which eventually resolved itself into an animal. If only I could draw. I once drive by a house and the "for sale by owner" resolved itself into a full blown story by the end of the evening. I wonder if that was some form of paredolia? Thanks again for the post.

[Anne Gracie]

Thanks, Mary — I'm not sure what definition you're using, but when I looked it up it was on the OED, which said "Origin: A borrowing from German. Etymon: German Pareidolien.
Etymology: Originally, as plural noun "

But after your comment I looked further and found the bases of the word are Greek. My guess is that the word was "created" by German psychologists from Greek parts, but the whole word entered the world in German as a German word. That's my guess anyway. Thanks for that hint — I enjoyed looking deeper. Thanks.

Sounds like the car that was following you was quite a scary looking one.

[Anne Gracie]

Thanks Katja — yes he does sound like a very interesting person, with a unique way of perceiving and portraying the world. Thanks for the link. Fascinating.

[Anne Gracie]

Thanks, Binnie Syril, glad you enjoyed it. Yes, I've heard of sculptors "seeing" the figure buried in the stone or wood — not sure if that is pareidolia, though. My guess is both the sculpting and the imagining os a story is pure imagination.

[Mary M.]

Anne, I think your guess about German philosophers is likely correct! One source I looked at said the word originated in the 1960s, another said the 1890s, but either way it's not ancient Greek.

And yes, that angry car had the scariest "eyes" I've seen on an automobile. Fortunately, though, not an aggressive driver.

[Teresa Broderick]

Well you learn something new everyday:) What a great word. I'm always seeing pictures in other things. I love the pic of your two bears Anne :)

[Anne Gracie]

Thanks, Teresa, glad you enjoyed the new-to-us word. And I miss my lovely bears in the fence. No bears or other creatures in the fence at the new house. ;)

[Vicki L]

Now if only I can remember that word and how to say it to amaze and astound others! But yes, I do see "things" in other things and definitely things that aren't there out of the corner of my eye.

It is always fascinating to find out that there are official words for odd circumstances.

Thanks Anne for going down the rabbit hole and taking us with you!

[Jeanne Behnke]

Excellent post Anne! I never knew there was an actual word for seeing things that aren't there. Another AHA moment.

[Anne Gracie]

Thanks, Vicki — I think you need to use the word a few times in different contexts before it comes easily. I'm still having to think — but Mary's comment on the Greek bases of the word help.
I admit, I do enjoy the odd rabbit hole.

[Anne Gracie]

Thanks, Jeanne — I'm relieved that the word was new to so many people as well. I did wonder when I was writing the blog, whether I'd get a load of comments saying, "Doesn't everyone know about pareidolia?. Where have you been that you didn't know it?" LOL

[Bona]

Nice post! That's a word that I discovered with authors of popular science, especially from the skeptical movement. Many 'paranormal' experiences are explained in this way, by the way in which our brain processes lights, shadows, movements... and they believe they see ghosts, apparitions and similar things in what are no more than natural forms and fenomena.