Most Popular
1500 questions
5
votes
0 answers
Who was the swift woman from from Irish Mythology described as having backward knees?
This question got me thinking about the Irish depiction of legs in mythology.
I remember one woman, in particular, from (I believe) the Ulster Cycle, described as having backward legs, similar to a stag or horse, to connote her inhuman swiftness.…
DukeZhou
- 14,202
- 4
- 43
- 106
5
votes
1 answer
Which gods were in Mikael Agricola's list?
I was reading up on Finish mythology when I came across this interesting tidbit:
It wasn't until the 16th century that anyone tried to write down some of these stories. A bishop named Mikael Agricola created a list of the most important gods in…
yannis
- 17,215
- 8
- 77
- 209
5
votes
0 answers
What legends inspired Cleverman's Hairypeople?
The plot of the Australian television series Cleverman is centred around the struggles the mythological Hairypeople - or Hairies for short - face in co-existing with humans. Wikipedia describes these Hairies as "stronger and hardier than humans,…
yannis
- 17,215
- 8
- 77
- 209
5
votes
1 answer
Why is the Loch Ness monster all the way from Scotland draw so many parallels with the Hawkesbury river monster?
They seem to be described the same way (a long sea serpent that eats stuff), and are commonly compared to each other.
Are there any reasons there are so many parallels?
bleh
- 6,718
- 5
- 33
- 75
5
votes
1 answer
How long was the voyage of the Argonauts?
Is there any indication in the Argonautica or any other ancient telling of the myth of roughly how long it took Jason and his Argonauts to travel from Iolcos to Colchis and back?
yannis
- 17,215
- 8
- 77
- 209
5
votes
1 answer
How to interpret Roger Lancelyn Green's writing on mythology?
I know he's a famous children's writer and an Oxford academic who has rewritten a number of introductory books to Greek myths and other mythological works such as the Tale of Troy and King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table. However, I have…
Eric Wu
- 59
- 2
5
votes
3 answers
How to reconcile the size differential between giants and non-giants in Norse mythology?
In particular, is there any thinking on how things might work between Loki and Angrboða, who produced significant offspring? I'd also be interested in other examples of giant/non-giant matches.
From a more general perspective, I'm interested in how…
DukeZhou
- 14,202
- 4
- 43
- 106
5
votes
1 answer
Did the vikings/medieval Scandinavians actually worship Odin, Thor, etc?
Or were they seen more as folklore, like, for example, Holger Danske or St George and the Dragon?
iammax
- 153
- 3
5
votes
1 answer
How do you say and write "Question" in Norse?
How would you say "questions" in Norse? How would the wrote it in runes? Does it has any important or philosophical meaning in the Eddas?
Xhark
- 459
- 1
- 4
- 11
5
votes
1 answer
What is the mythological significance/symbolism of oxen?
There was a question on Lit regarding Thomas Hardy's poem "The Oxen".
The poem features heavily Christian symbolism. It is set on Christmas Eve, features a manger (a "strawy pen"), and vocabulary such as "meek", "kneel", "hoping". It is even…
DukeZhou
- 14,202
- 4
- 43
- 106
5
votes
1 answer
Which Celtic god is the equivalent of the Roman Dis Pater?
In Book IV of his Commentaries on the Gallic War, Julius Caesar tells us all Gauls claimed descent from Dis Pater:
18. All the Gauls assert that they are descended from the god Dis, and say that this tradition has been handed down by the Druids.…
yannis
- 17,215
- 8
- 77
- 209
5
votes
6 answers
Why is Athena "gray eyed"?
Obviously because her eyes are that color, but I suspect there are deeper, symbolic reasons for that particular color and description.
This is in regard to the epithet γλαυκῶπις, in the lexicon defined as "bright eyed", but which is often translated…
DukeZhou
- 14,202
- 4
- 43
- 106
5
votes
2 answers
According to Biblical account, why fallen angels' offspring are giants? Or are they egg-born?
In the epic of Sodom and Gomorrah the angels appeared to Abraham were comely men desired by the citizens there, that is, they appeared as normal humans to the people except they were extraordinarily beautiful. Thus Lot was able to exchange them with…
Mishu 米殊
- 285
- 1
- 8
5
votes
1 answer
Why does Atlas care about the golden apples?
Hera received a golden apple tree as a gift from Gaia. She planted it near the place Atlas was imprisoned, and employed a dragon named Ladon, and Atlas' daughters, the Hesperides, to guard it.
I have heard about a legend where Atlas refused to let…
Pritt Balagopal
- 306
- 2
- 9
5
votes
2 answers
Who and what are the winged "faries" that feature in fairytale?
Winged "fairies" often feature in fairytale, and a good example would be the Fairy Godmother from Cinderella. However, as, this link points out, the term "fairies " does not necessarily refer to the winged ones but instead, it refers to all(or most)…
user1385