Kiwi Farms
Fans of folklore and classic literature please share with us the best/lesser known/ obscure myths of your homeland, or just lesser known myths you're particularly fond of.
EDIT: Cryptids and urban legends are also welcome, seeing as the USA is pretty bare bones in terms of ancient mythology.
I myself hail from the magical island of potatoes and heroin addiction known to some as Ireland, and to others trying to get punched in the teeth as "You guys are still a part of the UK right??"
Most of you hear the words "Irish Folklore" and we all know the first thing you think of, leprechauns. Those little bearded bastards you see on the Lucky Charms cereal box. But actually leprechauns are a pretty minor part of Irish mythology. They were mostly popularized by the 1959 Disney film Darby O' Gill and the Little People.
Some foreigners (especially these days) look at this film and are tempted to cry "racism!" as it's outdated and quaint depictions of rural Irish people (or "culchies" as we call them here) does kind of give the film a Song of the South vibe. However native Irish opinions of this movie are generally positive, and to its credit, it came out during a time when there was still a fair share of anti-irish racism in America and it's family friendly depiction of Irish people and culture did contribute towards acceptance of Irish Catholics into American Protestant mainstream society.
Here are some better examples of myths and legends you'd be familiar with if you grew up native Irish. Some of you who play SMITE might be familiar with Cú Chulainn.
As the art clearly depicts, all native Irish people have the supernatural ability to turn into giant, brutish, rampaging tards.
There are many stories surrounding Cú Chulainn, hes kind of the Irish version of classical Greek warrior heroes such as Odysseus and Achilles. Except if Achilles was best known for murdering a man's dog, and then stealing the dog's job.
Next we have The Children of Lír. Which is your typical evil stepmother story but a bit weirder. Tl;dr King's wife dies, king remarries, new wife isn't happy the king loves his kids more than her, new wife plots to get rid of them. She takes them to a river and considers drowning them, but is worried their ghosts will end up haunting her. Understandable. So instead of that, she decides to turn the kids into swans for 900 years. wat.jpeg
So the kids are just kinda fucking around as swans for 900 years till they reach a man's house where they tell him their sad tale. As they do so some fuckin mad lad kicks the door down. This man is one of the kings of Ireland and heard this guy had some magic swans and here's here for that heretical feathery goodness. At that moment the spell on the children broke, and they turned back into humans, the same as they were 900 years ago. Except as the king and the man looked on, the kids started to age rapidly, catching up with their 900+ lifespans till they turned to fucking dust like Spiderman at the end of Infinity War
Fin.
Lastly we'll go with The Legend of the Giants Causeway. For those who don't know the Giant's Causeway is an area of naturally occuring volcanic basalt columns on the coast of Northern Ireland known for their distinctive interlocking hexagonal shapes. It's one of Ireland's best known wonders and is a major tourist destination for those visiting the North.
Mmmmm, dems some fine lookin rocks.
Naturally the distinct geometric nature of this formation made the ancient Irish think it couldn't POSSIBLY have occurred naturally, it must be man made. Or in this instance, Giant made.
As the legend goes, Fionn mac Cumhaill was a giant from Ireland famed for being the tallest and strongest of giants who could take anyone in a fight IRL. Eventually word of him reached a giant in Scotland named Benandonner, who himself had a reputation for being big and strong, decided he wanted to fight him, and so began a boogaloo.
The two giants decide to build a bridge between Ireland and Scotland to have their fight, and the Causeway was Fionn's part of the bridge. However, as he was building it, Fionn could see Benandonner in the distance, and turns out, Benandonner was way fucking bigger and tougher looking than him. Fionn then runs back home to his wife and asks her what the fuck should he do cause if he fights this guy he's gonna get fucking murdered. His wife then hatches a cunning plan. She then proceeds to dress Fionn up as a baby, and put him inside a giant ass crib.
It's foolproof, and I'm just the fool who'l prove it.
Benandonner completes the bridge and soon comes to the house looking for Fionn so they can have their fight. Fionn's wife invites him in and tell's him her husband is out, but will be back to fight him soon. Benandonner takes one look at this giant ass baby, that's almost as big as him and shits himself. He asks "Is that Fionn's baby??" the wife says yes, it is. This baby is almost as big as Benandonner is, so the Scottish giant thinks to himself, "Fuck me, imagine how big Fionn must be!" so he turns tail and fucking legs it back to Scotland, and once he gets there he tosses a massive boulder destroying the bridge behind him so that Fionn can't follow him. And the Giant's Causeway that we see today is all that's left of this bridge.
Hope you guy's enjoyed, please share the best and banterest myths and legends from whatever country or region you're from, the more obscure the better.
EDIT: Cryptids and urban legends are also welcome, seeing as the USA is pretty bare bones in terms of ancient mythology.
I myself hail from the magical island of potatoes and heroin addiction known to some as Ireland, and to others trying to get punched in the teeth as "You guys are still a part of the UK right??"
Most of you hear the words "Irish Folklore" and we all know the first thing you think of, leprechauns. Those little bearded bastards you see on the Lucky Charms cereal box. But actually leprechauns are a pretty minor part of Irish mythology. They were mostly popularized by the 1959 Disney film Darby O' Gill and the Little People.
Some foreigners (especially these days) look at this film and are tempted to cry "racism!" as it's outdated and quaint depictions of rural Irish people (or "culchies" as we call them here) does kind of give the film a Song of the South vibe. However native Irish opinions of this movie are generally positive, and to its credit, it came out during a time when there was still a fair share of anti-irish racism in America and it's family friendly depiction of Irish people and culture did contribute towards acceptance of Irish Catholics into American Protestant mainstream society.
Here are some better examples of myths and legends you'd be familiar with if you grew up native Irish. Some of you who play SMITE might be familiar with Cú Chulainn.
As the art clearly depicts, all native Irish people have the supernatural ability to turn into giant, brutish, rampaging tards.
There are many stories surrounding Cú Chulainn, hes kind of the Irish version of classical Greek warrior heroes such as Odysseus and Achilles. Except if Achilles was best known for murdering a man's dog, and then stealing the dog's job.
Next we have The Children of Lír. Which is your typical evil stepmother story but a bit weirder. Tl;dr King's wife dies, king remarries, new wife isn't happy the king loves his kids more than her, new wife plots to get rid of them. She takes them to a river and considers drowning them, but is worried their ghosts will end up haunting her. Understandable. So instead of that, she decides to turn the kids into swans for 900 years. wat.jpeg
So the kids are just kinda fucking around as swans for 900 years till they reach a man's house where they tell him their sad tale. As they do so some fuckin mad lad kicks the door down. This man is one of the kings of Ireland and heard this guy had some magic swans and here's here for that heretical feathery goodness. At that moment the spell on the children broke, and they turned back into humans, the same as they were 900 years ago. Except as the king and the man looked on, the kids started to age rapidly, catching up with their 900+ lifespans till they turned to fucking dust like Spiderman at the end of Infinity War
Fin.
Lastly we'll go with The Legend of the Giants Causeway. For those who don't know the Giant's Causeway is an area of naturally occuring volcanic basalt columns on the coast of Northern Ireland known for their distinctive interlocking hexagonal shapes. It's one of Ireland's best known wonders and is a major tourist destination for those visiting the North.
Mmmmm, dems some fine lookin rocks.
Naturally the distinct geometric nature of this formation made the ancient Irish think it couldn't POSSIBLY have occurred naturally, it must be man made. Or in this instance, Giant made.
As the legend goes, Fionn mac Cumhaill was a giant from Ireland famed for being the tallest and strongest of giants who could take anyone in a fight IRL. Eventually word of him reached a giant in Scotland named Benandonner, who himself had a reputation for being big and strong, decided he wanted to fight him, and so began a boogaloo.
The two giants decide to build a bridge between Ireland and Scotland to have their fight, and the Causeway was Fionn's part of the bridge. However, as he was building it, Fionn could see Benandonner in the distance, and turns out, Benandonner was way fucking bigger and tougher looking than him. Fionn then runs back home to his wife and asks her what the fuck should he do cause if he fights this guy he's gonna get fucking murdered. His wife then hatches a cunning plan. She then proceeds to dress Fionn up as a baby, and put him inside a giant ass crib.
It's foolproof, and I'm just the fool who'l prove it.
Benandonner completes the bridge and soon comes to the house looking for Fionn so they can have their fight. Fionn's wife invites him in and tell's him her husband is out, but will be back to fight him soon. Benandonner takes one look at this giant ass baby, that's almost as big as him and shits himself. He asks "Is that Fionn's baby??" the wife says yes, it is. This baby is almost as big as Benandonner is, so the Scottish giant thinks to himself, "Fuck me, imagine how big Fionn must be!" so he turns tail and fucking legs it back to Scotland, and once he gets there he tosses a massive boulder destroying the bridge behind him so that Fionn can't follow him. And the Giant's Causeway that we see today is all that's left of this bridge.
Hope you guy's enjoyed, please share the best and banterest myths and legends from whatever country or region you're from, the more obscure the better.