It was an almost universal belief, among white people, that this was to keep the occupant of the bed out of reach of the tokoloshe. Jabari and antoine go over some of mythical creatures from africa you. Mythical creatures the ultimate list of mythological. The concise list can be found on our pantheon page of african gods and spirits. The inkanyamba is a huge carnivorous eellike animal in the legends of the zulu and xhosa people of south africa.
Ps mythopedia, an ongoing project to catalog an entire worlds worth of mythology, from the ancient greeks. Because this wild african safari will surely be one of mythic proportions. Here we shall keep track of some of the interesting myths and legends from south africa. It is the most discussed and wellknown of the african mystery beasts. According to many african myths, the creation of heaven precedes the creation of earth and man was created before the animals. Six creepy urban legends from the dark heart of south africa. African mythology is a blend of different culture with most of the themes relating to animals and especially tricksters. One spook i learned of from a south african friend of min only recently is the tokoloshe a. The book is available in hardcover and paperback versions and includes over sixty pages of monster illustrations. Heuvelmans initially believed the dingonek to be an odd species of prehistoric crocodile. Native american monsters of myth and legend list of native american monsters from various tribes ice cannibals witches ghosts serpents lake monsters sea monsters giants stifflegged bear giant animals giant birds bigfoot vampires shapeshifters little people mermaids nature spirits list of specific native american monster names aniwye ojibwe.
Hosh tokoloshe is a poprap song influenced by the tokoloshe by south african rapper jack parow. In some cultures, professional storytellerscalled griotspreserved the oral tradition. Table mountain as the watcher of the south perhaps one of the most wellknown legends with origins on african soil is the xhosa folktale that recounts the story of qamata, a prominent god who is believed to have been responsible for creating the world. As one of the most popular greek monsters in mythology, centaurs are known as the children of nephele a cloud created in heras image and ixion, a king of lapiths, the most ancient tribe of thessaly. Explaining why the post office chose to feature south african myths and legends on stamps, philatelic services communications specialist louis van niekerk said it was because of countrys rich cultural heritage and diversity. These 9 urban legends of south carolina are strange. The african continent includes so many countries, regions, languages, tribes, cultures and crossovers that the sheer diversity of prevailing gods would seem overwhelming if there werent a few handy shortcuts. For purposes of this safari, it makes the most sense to fly into kenya, where our travel story begins, and then work our way south. Here we have 5 african mythological creatures that you should know just in case.
The archenemy of maat the goddess of truth mentioned in the previous slide, apep was a giant mythological snake that stretched for 50 feet from head to tail oddly enough, we now have fossil evidence that some reallife snakes, like the allusively named titanoboa of south america, actually attained these gigantic sizes. Traditional african belief is overwhelmingly monotheistic. A brief history of the worlds most storied mythical creatures. African mythology myth encyclopedia god, story, legend. The bogeyman of south african mythology african mythology, world mythology.
Top 10 african myths from the freaky showstoppers that give more chills than the finest horror movies, to lighter and funny legends passed from time immemorial, africa has the most diverse stories to tell. When we want to drive home how horrible a persons actions are, we call them a monster. Forget hercules for a moment and allow african mythology to blow your mind. The horn, unlike other unicorns, did not cure disease. African mythologies are credited for most happenings in their part of the world and revered as deities to be worshiped. Wikimedia commons has media related to african legendary creatures. You can use the comment box below to add more african myths and legends you know. An introduction to fascinating myths and legends from around the world dk on. Some fled their tormentors, settling in different areas and starting new lineages. Discover the magic of the internet at imgur, a community powered entertainment destination. This category has the following 7 subcategories, out of 7 total.
It is perhaps inspired by the freshwater eels in south africa that can grow to be six feet long, but this monster is not just an overgrown sea creature. Centaurs, also known as ixionidae, are mythical creatures in greek mythology with the torso and head of a human being and the body of a horse. Far from a detailed local legend, the myth of the mokelembembe evolved to suit the needs. The scariest creatures from legends, books, and movies. These lot use every trick in the book to add to their body count. This list is frequently updated we are constantly discovering more.
Jan van hunks, a dutch pirate in the early 18th century, retired from his eventful life at sea to live on the slopes of devils peak, table mountain. Its power extends from scaring children to causing illness and even death to its target. Mythical creatures the ultimate list of mythological creatures. Anansi is a mythological figure who mainly appears as a spider but can take on human form and features in many west african cultures. Africa is an extensive continent with thousands upon thousands of tribes, each with their own unique culture and cycle of myths, yet borrowing from each other. Godcheckers az names list of african gods and spirits. Table mountain myths and legends cape town attractions. African myths and legends all about myths chambers, catherine on. Twentyfive south african tales by arthur shearly cripps. Russian mythology is an amazing blend of pagan and christian traditions mixing over centuries. According to legend, the creatures make people believe they have whatever their.
African mythology gods and spirits from the african continent. Africa is a very big area which also means the african mythology is very vast and diverse. Telling your sister to go fight one is like asking her to go punch a shark to death. It lives on a diet of human flesh, but has very specific preferences.
Childrens book of mythical beasts and magical monsters. Finally, rock art from a cave in brakfontein ridge, south africa, has been claimed to depict a walruslike dingonek, but the location is far from the dingoneks habitat, and the association is arbitrary. The monster of that name lives in a cave called the wonder hole in the richtersveld area of south africa. South african mythology south africa the real issues. May 31, 2015 and kids, be sure to be there for your parents in case they get scared. Make way europe and america, south africa has some rather interesting mythological creatures. The scariest creatures from legends, books, and movies chris mcnab on. We know what we like to hear about our state, about the place we dwell, the place we let our children call home, however, nothing is all sunshine and rainbows. Our alphabetical list of african gods and goddesses names. Six creepy urban legends from the dark heart of south africa lets hope you arent unlucky enough to bump into these things on friday the th. Others went south, but the liqimsa followed them and swallowed them all. The impundulu is a vampirelike creature that can be found in the folklore of many south. Heres a list of 100 free mythology and folklore ebooks i made. For the basotho and bavenda peoples of lesotho, south africa, he is their creator.
The first day, of course, is all about getting there. Now, in basotho mythology, a nanabolele is a waterdwelling dragon. The bogeyman of south african mythology african mythology. Belief in the tikoloshe is a major part of gavin hoods film a reasonable man.
A witch doctor may send a tokoloshe to jinx his enemies, causing anything from harmless fright to illness or death. President jacob zuma, president of south africa, leads the anc leadership and tens of thousands of anc supporters in singing the cabinet will shoot the boer with machine guns in bloemfontein on 8th january 2012 it appears that he may well have done this again on 16th december 2012. When a young boy flees from slave traders, he finds refuge in the african bush, but the bush is inhabited by ghosts. There is a rich trove of tales thanks to native american folklore coupled with that of ensuing immigrants. In your opening you do state that most of your mythical creatures are north american, european etc. Posters of different mythological creatures etc all around the world.
Our holy database currently contains 400 african deity names and 196 unique articles. Hes known as the spirit of all knowledge and tales and is particularly fond of playing tricks on the unsuspecting whether they be humans, animals or even the gods. A look at the mythological creatures of west africa. Spirits are less grand, less powerful, and less like humans than the gods, who often have weaknesses and emotions. If you want to read more about african myth i wrote a book about one. Mythical creatures the ultimate list of mythological creatures june 11, 2017 by metin from the ancient egyptian hieroglyphs to the oral tradition of inuits and urban legends of the present day, mythical creatures are an integral part of any folklore or mythological account. There are forty five pages explaining in detail the key characteristics of the monsters.
Brussels book fair celebrates morocco as guest of honor. In this lesson were going to look at some russian mythological creatures and see what they tell us. This website and the book that is available for free download here discuss this and many other unpleasant facts that point to some very unpleasant conclusions about the direction that south africa. The old explorers and cartographers marked off unexplored areas with the ominous phrase, here there be monsters. Pages in category south african legendary creatures.
In many african stories, huveane is the first man, while in others he is portrayed as a conniving deity. A writers list of mythical creatures and beings bryn. Home browse literature myth and folklore african folklore. It had one long thin horn that could curl up when not in use so it wouldnt get in the way. The mythical southern african creature, the tokoloshe is a dwarflike, mischievous and evil spirit can make itself invisible by swallowing a pebble. Prepare to be wowed out of your boots by the following larger than life myths. Given the abundance of cultures and civilizations that inhabit the african continent, it is no surprise to learn that this variety of mythological traditions has.
This was the perfect opportunity for the younger brother to seize two lances, heat their points in fire, and run the monsters through their bellies. Childrens book of mythical beasts and magical monsters dk us. The book also contains more detailed maps of different countries. The sun and the moon are given high status, even seen as gods in some cultures and because all african societies depend on rain, it is also held in high regard. The inkanyamba is a creature of zulu and xhosa folklore, and is said to live in the lake at the base of howick falls, south africa. After the creation of the earth and the heavens, huveane wanted to enjoy some peace and quiet while proudly admiring his handiwork. The two monsters began to argue, then fight, each claiming to more deserving of the gift of immortality.
Mysterious forces, mythical creatures in coronavirus. Perfect for a monster to watch out for while stalking the plains of the notseregeti, the deserts of the notsarhara, or the deep dark jungles of centralnot africa. What others are saying ndzoodzoo south african myth. Childrens book of mythical beasts and magical monsters is the latest in the series that includes the highly successful childrens book of art and childrens book of music. Apr 21, 2015 these 9 urban legends of south carolina are strange, disturbing, and terrifying. List of books and articles about african folklore online. Jan van hunks, a dutch pirate in the early 18th century, retired from his eventful life at sea to. They are horrible creatures who give off light in the dark, and always arrive in a cloud of red smoke. From the freaky showstoppers that give more chills than the finest horror movies, to lighter and funny legends passed from time immemorial, africa has the most diverse stories to tell. African mythology is filled with spirits, invisible beings with powers for good or evil. Discover librarianselected research resources on african folklore from the questia online library, including fulltext online books, academic journals, magazines, newspapers and more. Tokoloshes are called upon to cause trouble for others.
This little imp has got to be the most popular mythological creature in south africa. Written accounts of african mythology began to appear in the early 1800s, and presentday scholars labor to record the continents myths and legends before they are lost to time and cultural change. The mythical monster book contains 45 monsters from across the world. It itself may be born from the soul of an incestuous person or taboobreaker. Yet perhaps no continent has more history of folkloric myths, monsters and demons than africa. Mythological monsters of latin america, volume one. Unknown creatures sighted in south africa cartoon network africa. This was my first experience with african mythology, and this book was a great introduction and overview. Moroccan embassy decries south african stance on western sahara. African mythology gods and spirits from the african. Many of the stories were created long ago, when presumably a lack of education, mass communication and critical thinking made such fables easier to believe. Malevolent creatures called tokoroths appear in michelle pavers chronicles of ancient darkness series. Pages in category african legendary creatures the following 4 pages are in this category, out of 4 total.
In south africa, where many white families have maidservants, the maids would often raise their beds by placing the legs of their beds on bricks. Several books by nigerian author amos tutola could be considered fantasy, but my life in the bush of ghosts is the best fit. Heres a list of 100 free mythology and folklore ebooks i. A smooth talker, a seducer and just plain attractive. Many spirits are associated with physical features such as mountains, rivers, wells, trees, and springs. Local news reports several sightings of mysterious creatures in and around cape town and joburg. The following 5 pages are in this category, out of 5 total. Jabari and antoine go over some of mythical creatures from africa you might not know like the benevolent aziza and the mischievous tokoloshe. At this rate, the borana knew they would be exterminated before long. Stories have been told on every continent since the dawn of time, and some have lasted for thousands of years, becoming what we know today as myths. Even today, legendary beasts and beings continue to captivate us as stories of old receive contemporary updates in books, movies and on.