Since ancient times, stories are passed orally from one generation to another. Some of them were about real events, and some of them were stories that talk about supernatural beings, like gods, goddesses, unusual creatures, muses, heroes.
The stories that talk about supernatural beings are called myths. The collection of myths from cultures all over the world is called MYTHOLOGY. In this lesson, we are going to discuss some interesting points, related to MYTHS and MYTHOLOGY.
The word mythology comes from the Greek mythos for story-of-the-people and logos for word or speech.
Mythology is a collection of myths from cultures all over the world. But may also mean the study of such myths. Mythology tries to answer the most difficult and basic human existence questions: Who am I? Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where am I going?
Myths are stories that usually talk about people's early history or explain some natural or social phenomenon and involve supernatural beings or events. The main characters in myths are usually not humans, but they include them. Myths are without an author. Myths are usually intended to teach a lesson, explain one of the many mysteries of life, explain a phenomenon of nature, describe the customs, institutions, or religious sites of a people. Myths are stories that tell us about battles between good and evil. Every religion has stories like that, both ancient and modern.
Some myths may have factual origins, while others are completely fictional.
Myths are usually mixed with legends. But they are not the same. While myths are based on religious or faith belief systems and explain natural phenomena, legends are based on history rather than tell a historical story.
There are many different types of myth but, essentially, they can be grouped into three:
Mythologies are similar to each other. It is because human cultures are to varying degrees, similar to each other. Very similar myths can be found across different mythologies. Some of the popular mythologies across the world are:
Roman mythology is the combination of the beliefs, rituals, and observances of supernatural occurrences by the ancient Romans from early periods until Christianity replaced the native religions of the Roman Empire.
The three most important gods were Jupiter (protector of the state), Juno (protector of women), and Minerva (goddess of craft and wisdom). Other major gods included Mars (god of war), Mercury (god of trade and messenger of the gods), and Bacchus (god of grapes and wine production).
"Romulus and Remus" is probably the best-known myth from Roman mythology.
The Greeks had numerous gods and many stories and myths that surrounded them. Greek mythology consists of all the stories and tales about the Greek gods. In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the twelve Olympians are the major deities of the Greek pantheon, commonly considered to be Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, Hephaestus, Aphrodite, Hermes, and either Hestia or Dionysus.
The myth of the legendary Odysseus, the Myth of Jason, and the Argonauts, Myth of Theseus, are probably the most famous ancient Greek myths.
Norse mythology is the body of myths of the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Norse paganism and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Scandinavian folklore of the modern period.
"How Odin Created The World" is one of the best-known Norse myths.
Japanese mythology is a collection of traditional stories, folktales, and beliefs that emerged in the islands of the Japanese archipelago. Shinto and Buddhist traditions are the cornerstones of Japanese mythology.
"Japanese Creation Myth" is one of the most known Japanese myths.
Chinese mythology is the mythology that has been passed down in oral form or recorded in literature in the geographic area now known as "China". One of the most important and popular figures in Chinese mythology, the Jade Emperor is the supreme ruler of Heaven and the first emperor of China.
Sun Wukong – the monkey king, The Jade Rabbit, The weaver girl and the cowherd, are some interesting myths from Chinese mythology.
The major deities in the Sumerian pantheon included An, the god of the heavens, Enlil, the god of wind and storm, Enki, the god of water and human culture, Ninhursag, the goddess of fertility and the earth, Utu, the god of the sun and justice, and his father Nanna, the god of the moon.
Of all written myths, the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh is the oldest known myth.
Egyptian mythology is the collection of myths from ancient Egypt, which describe the actions of the Egyptian gods as a means of understanding the world around them. The beliefs that these myths express are an important part of ancient Egyptian religion. Amun-Ra, Mut, Osiris, Anubis, Ra, Horus, are some of the Egyptian gods.
"The Story of Ra" is the most famous Egyptian myth.
American mythology, Mayan mythology, Aztec mythology, Inca mythology, Hindu mythology, Slavic mythology are other known mythologies.
