Could some one tell me about some myths?

Question

I don't want greek myths- I have a book on that. I want to know about things like Irish Myth, Scotish Myth, Native American things (i'm not sure if they have a myth). And please include a source so i can check out more about the subject at hand.

Perhaps you peopel should know, i am Irish. So don't insult the Irish people. i know leprechauns aren't real. i know most of the myths probably aren't even based on anything, but i have an interest in the myths nonetheless because they spark one's imagination and creativity and it is through myths that modern culture has evolved. So don't bad mouth them or the Irish if you expect anythign from your answer.

Answer 1

Anansi

The Ashanti trickster/culture hero, also called 'the Spider'. He is the intermediary of the sky god Nyame, his father, on whose command Anansi brings rain to quench the forest fires and determines the borders of oceans and rivers during floods. Later Anansi's place as representative was usurped by the chameleon. His mother is Asase Ya.
Anansi is sometimes regarded as the creator of the sun and the moon and the stars, as well as the one who instituted the succession of day and night. It is also believed that he created the first man, into which Nyame breathed life. A typical trickster, he is crafty, sly, villainous, but he also taught mankind how to sow grain and how to use the shovel on the fields. He set himself up as the first king of the human beings and even managed to marry Nyame's daughter. He was beaten only in his encounter with the wax girl, to whom he stuck fast, having struck her with his legs when she refused to talk to him. The people then rushed forwards and beat the tricky Anansi.

Anansi is one of the most popular characters in West African mythology.

Yorimasa

A famous Japanese hero. When a monster was discovered on top of the emperor's palace, he slew it and was rewarded with of Lady Ayame's hand. He also received the famous sword called shishi-o ("Master of Lions").

(These are two of my favorite myths that I learned about in my travels)

Answer 2

Remember myths are the stories, religion, and legends of a culture that is either not current or not popular enough to be considered a current religion. Otherwise you would be asking for a comparative religion class.

Ancient Greek myths were the active changing religion of the Greeks of their time. They were not a homogenous group and myths varied from country to country and even city to city. Any collection of Greek myths is going to be limited by the where and when anthologist choose to get his collection from.

Please, enjoy and learn about many myths and legends but do not forget that any overview is just that, an overview, and there are tons more stories to just one culture if you look a little deeper.
Every culture has or has had beliefs and myths.

ADD: The red hats (some call them leprechauns) are real. You asked about MYTHS not current living entities.

PATRICIA, *gives her a sad look* I am sure you did not mean to say "Ireland is a myth"; I assure you that Ireland is really there (even if I have not visited it personally).
Stories about The Good Folk are NOT from the Dark Ages. While Europe was in the Dark Ages, Ireland was a land of literacy and freedom for women.
Also, the Grimm Brothers began the science of collecting and studying folk tales in 19TH Century not the Dark Ages.
Despite media hype, serious first person accounts of meeting the Wee Folk continue into the 20th century (Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries by W. Y. Evans-Wentz).

Answer 3

One of my favorite non-Greek myths is the story of the Apache Tear. Apache Tears are bits of obsidian that have the interesting property of being translucent when held up to the light.

The story goes that in the days of the western expansion, the white settlers kept attacking some Apache tribes. The Apaches retaliated, but were sorely outnumbered. They were backed up to a cliff and rather than be taken prisoner, they chose to jump to their deaths. Their women came to the cliff and wept for their fallen heroes. Their tears fell into the obsidian at the bottom of the cliffs and when these rocks are held up to the light, they are still plainly visible. (The story is a lot better when one has an Apache Tear to show ;))

I've forgotten where I originally heard this story because I collect so many in my mind from everything I read, hear and see. However, I was able to find an article on wikipedia about the Apache tear.

Although this myth is very recent, the Native Americans have many, many stories. Some of my other favorites involve Coyote.

Answer 4

o.k.! I will tell you a legend which is based on a fact. It happened
a very long time ago. Only a few fragments will survive for
such an old legend. Right! However, most of the main narrative
survived for this legend. Now, you tell me, which is the largest
largest Latin epic? The Aeneid by Virgil. Visit this site:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeneas

Read about the descendants. So many tribes from so widely
locoted lands claim as descendands. Do you still doubt?
Then read ahead.

(1) The god of love in Telugu literature is called
Kaamudu, the word is cognate with Cupid.

(2) In some old European drawings, the Cupid is shown
wearing blind-folds. Gamta, a word which is cognate
with Cupid, means 'blind-folds' in Telugu.

(3) Cupid is shown shooting arrows in to hearts of
persons to generate love. The ancient texts of India
say that heart is the seat of love. Gumde, a word which
is cognate with Cupid, means 'heart' in Telugu.

(4) Cupid is described as a small child. Gumta, a word
which is cognate with Cupid, means 'a small child' in
Telugu.

The above words are used in Telugu for more than
1000 years.

Answer 5

Paul, give your head a shake! Irish Myths, Ireland is a myth. The land of the little people? We all grew up with those stories. Every society, deep in it's history, has stories of ghosts, gremlins, giants, dragons and ghouls.
These stories all stem from what we now call the Dark Ages, roughly between 400-1000. it is well researched...but please...don't dismiss it all as superstition. Perhaps there really were dragons!!

Answer 6

I got a real interesting one for you. The Inca belief system is very similar to the Old Testiment in a lot of ways. Why this is remains a mystery. These myths were around before the white man arrived. They have a story that sounds a lot like the fall in the Garden of Eden. They also have a Flood Account, much like that of Noah. There is even a great leader leading the people to a land promised to them by their god.

Answer 7

One of my favorite myths would be that of the Flying Dutchman. There are a couple different versions of the legend. Basically the Flying Dutchman is a Ghost Ship that is crewed the the damned, and can never return to home port. The Captain collects lost souls at sea. You never want the FLying dutchman to cross your path at sea because he brings stormy and foul weather with him, waves big enough to sink the largest ships. You can read more in many different sources, but you can get the basics at wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Dutchman

Also have you checked out anything about vampires.... they have a very interesting history.

Answer 8

Every culture has myths. Google 'myth and legend' and you will get a good sampling. Hit a library and you will find lots of books.

Check out "The Golden Bough" and books like that. Online, check out the source below.

Answer 9

There are so many stories out there. How about Nessie for instance and the belief of the Fae folk. There are a lot of Native American myths as well. Like coyote bringing fire to man.

Answer 10

Here's a great book with lots of Native oral tradition:
"American Indian Myths and Legends"

It is not exactly politically correct to call oral tradition myths. So, if you desire to be culturally sensitive the correct word is oral tradition or tribal stories.

Here are some websites with such stories:
http://www.ewebtribe.com/NACulture/stories.htm
http://www.ilhawaii.net/~stony/loreindx.html
http://www.indians.org/welker/legend.htm

Remember that many Native people respect these stories as true. It is good to respect them and not try and dissect them as false, fable, or myth.

Hope you enjoy!