Everything about Mythological Creature totally explained
A
legendary creature is a
mythological or
folkloric creature (often known as "fabulous creatures" in historical literature).
Description
dragon or the
griffin, have their origin in traditional
mythology and have been believed to be real creatures. Others were based on real creatures, originating in garbled accounts of travelers' tales; such as the
Vegetable Lamb of Tartary, which supposedly grew tethered to the earth (and was actually a type of
fern). The traditional
unicorn may have come from garbled stories about the
rhinoceros and/or
narwhal. Examples of the legendary creatures can be found in
medieval bestiaries.
Conversely, some creatures downplayed as just storytelling, have been rediscovered and found to be real in recent times, such as the
giant squid. In Africa, Natives of the Congo told European visitors of an animal that looked like a cross between a zebra and a giraffe. While the visitors assumed the stories were just folk tales, in 1901, Sir Harry Johnston brought back pelts that proved the creature, which we now call the
okapi, was real.
Often mythical creatures are
chimeras, a combination of two or more animals. For example, a
centaur is a combination of a man and horse, a
minotaur of a man and bull, and the
mermaid, half woman and half fish. These were not always intended to be understood as literal juxtapositions of parts from disparate species. Lacking a common
morphological vocabulary, classical and medieval scholars and travelers would attempt to describe unusual animals by comparing them point-for-point with familiar: the
giraffe, for example, was called
cameleopard, and thought of as a creature half-
camel, and half-
leopard. The leopard itself was so named as it was historically believed to be a half-
lion (Latin: "leo") and half-
panther (Latin: "pardus"). This etymology has been kept until the present day, despite its zoological inaccuracies.
Many legendary creatures appear prominently in
fantasy fiction. These creatures are often claimed to have supernatural powers or knowledge or to guard some object of great value, which becomes critical to the plot of the story in which it's found. Dragons, for instance, are commonly depicted as perched on a gleaming hoard of gold which becomes the target of adventurers.
Other legendary creatures are thought to exist even today, (these monsters are called
modern monsters or monsters that are supposed to exist) including
Bigfoot,
Mothman,
Yeti,
Yowie,
Yeren,
Jersey Devil,
Chupacabras,
Loch Ness Monster, and even the
Space alien. These are often called
cryptids and are studied in modern times by
cryptozoologists, who working from the example of legendary creatures rooted in reality like the Vegetable Lamb mentioned above, attempt to discover what, if anything, is the real-life inspiration for these animals. Some, like the aforementioned giraffe and, much more recently, the
giant squid, have been proven to be real creatures.
Media monsters are monsters from books and movies. These include
Dracula,
Frankenstein's Monster,
Godzilla,
King Kong,
Mothra,
Werewolves and
Zombies.
Throughout history legendary creatures have been incorporated into
heraldry and
architectural decoration. Legendary creatures have also been accepted into many facets of
popular culture most notably in fantasy
role playing games such as
Dungeons & Dragons or
Everquest,
video games, and
Hollywood movies.
Further Information
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