Ladybug Meaning and Symbolism

As a Sign of Protection

Many believe when newborn babies possess something related to ladybugs, like a ladybug-printed toy or clothes, it ensures their safe-keeping while auspiciously blessing them.

Having Ladybug as Your Spirit Animal (Totem Animal)

Having a ladybug as your totem animal means you see the world with child-like wonder, and believe in magic, even if just a little.

Like the colorful insect, you have high spirits, bringing everything around you to life with your presence.

Having an inquisitive nature, you are never satisfied with the mundaneness of daily life and are always in search of something extraordinary, even in the most ordinary things.

Trusting, open-minded, and easy-going, you are generally liked by those around you, children and grown-ups alike.

You know that the secret to a happy life is finding joy in all the small things, and learning to be happy with yourself, regardless of your surroundings.

You are naturally self-content, and your words can work like magic on people around you when they are worried or scared.

What Does it Mean to See a Ladybug

What do the Spots on a Ladybug Mean

Their spots are generally believed to stand for human prosperity, where darker the color of the spots, the greater is one’s fortune.

For newly-weds, the spots refer to the number of children you are going to have. This also explains its Italian name “commaruccia,” meaning “little midwives” in English, as they bless you with children.

Does a Ladybug without Spots Mean Anything

A ladybug without spots does not signify anything out of the way. The same goes for the different colors of orange, yellow, and pink the insect is found in.

Seeing a Ladybug in Your House

Its presence in your house signifies the boon of good luck that you’d be showered with.

What Does it Mean if a Ladybug Lands on You

It essentially brings good luck. Different beliefs are associated with this, like:

If you make a wish the moment a ladybug sits on your hand, your wish will come true, but you would have to wait the same number of months or years as the number of its spots.

If a ladybug flies away immediately after sitting on your hand, the following Sunday is going to be sunny and cheerful.

If it lands on your clothes, you will get new clothes soon.

When You Dream about Ladybugs

Seeing a ladybug in your dream suggests you are to receive good news from someone you least expect. Generally, it means something bright and auspicious, with specific dreams often being associated with specific meanings:

A flying ladybug refers to prosperity in both work and love.

A ladybug falling on the ground means your current projects may be delayed.

A ladybug slowly crawling on your head may indicate a financial crisis.

A ladybug in your garden imbibes a moral lesson – the need to express your true emotions in life.

A giant ladybug may indicate plenty of options for you in your ongoing project.

Exploring the Roots of Its Symbolic Significance

Relation with Virgin Mary

In pre-Christian times, a ladybug symbolized a number of divinities that were slowly assimilated and given new content by Christian faith. One such is the story of two farmers in the Middle Ages. Being distressed over the widespread destruction of their crops by aphids, when they prayed to Virgin Mary to provide them relief, she responded by sending thousands of ladybugs to kill the aphids, thereby saving their crop. Since then the name “ladybug”, referring to “beetle of our lady”, has come into being.

The Goldie Bird

The ladybug is considered the bringer of gifts, bringing oil to Jesus, wine to Mary, and bread to God, the Father. It also brings life and positivity to humans, thus earning it the name ‘golden bird’ or ‘goldie bird’ in some parts of England.

Killing a Ladybug

Since it symbolizes the human soul, and lives under the protection of Virgin Mary (‘anima della Madona’ or soul of Our Lady), killing a ladybug is believed to put one in her bad book for nine days. Another belief says when a person kills a ladybug, he will face death the very next day. Seeing a dead ladybug, however, does not symbolize anything.