Hello, Everyone! Join us for Monday's theme: Sea Adventures. Which myths feature a sea voyage? Write out a story and use the tag #MythologyMonday. See you soon! ⚓️
#FolkloreMoment : I've been translating a lot of vampire folklore from northeastern Germany as of late. And they are not at all similar to modern media portrayals of the phenomenon.
For starters, they rarely if ever actually leave their graves. Instead, all their "feasting" is usually done via some sort of sympathetic connection to their victims (usually their relatives).
The reason why someone becomes a vampire after death also varies a lot. But the account I am currently translating ("Der Vampyr im Wendlande"/"The Vampyre in the Wendland Region") has a particularly interesting take on this.
You see, people will become vampires if they have been weaned off their mother's breast twice as infants - that is to say, the first attempt at weaning them off mothers' milk didn't take. They must survive to become adults, but then, once they die, they will become vampires. They are also called "Dubbelsüger" or "Doppelsauger" - "Double Sucker" for this reason.
And then, once they are dead, they will sit up in their graves and attempt to suck their own breasts - presumably because they are so used to sucking breasts during their infancy. And this "sucking" is then somehow transferred to their next of kin, who will become pale, scrawnly, and weak until they finally die.
Quite a difference to the usual Anne Rice-type vampire, isn't it?
(Incidentally, I will publish the full translation of this account on my Patreon page this December.)
Greetings, myth lovers! Join @AimeeMaroux for today's theme: Pumpkins. Which myths feature pumpkins, gourds or squashes? Tell us a the myth & tag #MythologyMonday with your #pumpkin lore. See you #Monday! 🎃
Hello, Myth Lovers! Join us for the last theme of October: Creepy Crawlies. Which stories feature these tiny creatures? Tag us if you're joining for the first time and use #MythologyMonday for boosts. See you Monday! 🕷️🐛🦗🐜
Greetings, myth lovers! Join @AimeeMaroux for today's theme: redheads. Which #myths feature redheads, gingers, or otherwise red-haired characters? Tell us a the myth & tag #MythologyMonday with your #redhead lore. See you #Monday! 👩🦰
Hi, Myth Lovers! Join @AimeeMaroux for Monday's theme: #WorldFoodDay. Which myths feature food, feasts or famines? Write up a story & tag #MythologyMonday with your food lore. See you #Monday! 🥘
Happy January! Join us for Monday's #MythologyMonday theme: #Prophesy, soothsaying, and divination. Which myths feature prophesy? Write up a story and we'll see you on January 8! 🔮🔮🔮
A reminder: I put the locations of all the German-language folk tales I've translated on an interactive map, with links to both my translations on my Patreon (the "balloon" shapes link to publicly visible posts) and to the original German-language sources.
Check out what supernatural events took place in your part of Germany!
Greetings, myth lovers! Join us next #Monday on #WorldEmojiDay and tell us a #myth using only emojis 😯 ☺️ 💖 and use the hashtag #MythologyMonday for boosts!
Put the full story in the reply and let's have fun guessing each other's myths, all right? 🤩
Your host @AimeeMaroux is looking forward try and guess your myths! 😚
Hello, everyone! Join us for Monday's theme: Farming & Agriculture. Which myths feature farming? Write out a story and use the hashtag #MythologyMonday. See you Monday!
Hello, Myth Lovers! Join us for #Monday's theme: BONES. How are bones featured in mythology? Use the hashtag #MythologyMonday and write out a story. See you soon! 🦴🦴🦴
One aspect in which German folklore is lacking is giving its supernatural creatures cool names.
I mean, Japanese folklore apparently has names for any weird haunt you could name. But German folklore is like:
"Okay, there's a weird iron pig haunting the town. It has a tall shrub growing out of its back. It can also transform itself into bird and a porcupine and turn invisible, and has a tendency to pull off the trousers of miners.
But no, it doesn't have a specific name because Sod You, Encyclopedia Writers!"
And this isn't just a hypothetical example, either - I translated the tale featuring this critter last weekend.
Tell us the #myth in a toot and use the hashtag #MythologyMonday for boosts! If you are participating for the first time, best tag us too so we won't miss your toot! 💖
Five Norwegian White Bear Tales is an anthology of five Norwegian folktales that follow the story of Cupid and Psyche, but instead of the god of love, in all of these we meet an enchanted white bear.
A brief introduction puts the tales into a more international context.
And the illustrations are gorgeous.
.epub format that may be read on nearly any digital device.
#FolkloreMoment : In the early 17th century, innumerable dice carved made of bones - presumably of Roman origin - were found in the ground at a meadow near the Swiss town of Baden, and they were traded among collectors far and wide.
Then the church began to preach that God had multiplied these "as if from a seed" from the original dice of the Roman soldiers who had gambled for the gown of Jesus Christ at the cross. Which meant that these dice now were relics and thus worthy of the highly lucrative relic trade!
Hello, Myth Lovers! Join us for #Monday's theme: Fruits, Nuts, and Seeds. Which myths feature a fruit or nut as part of the story? Write out a tale and tag us with #MythologyMonday. See you on December 4 🌰
During the First Maroon War in Jamaica, the Maroons were near starvation and Grandy Nanny had been on the verge of giving up. It's said that she had a vision in which her ancestors encouraged her not to surrender. When she awoke, she found three pumpkin seeds in her pocket. Shortly after planting them on a hillside, now known as Pumpkin Hill in Portland, the vines bore enough large pumpkins to save the Maroons from starvation.
Greetings, myth lovers! 2023 is coming to a close. In celebration of the #NewYear our theme for the first #MythologyMonday of 2024 is #Hope.
Which #myths are about hope and optimism? Tell us a myth and tag us with your hopeful stories. See you next year 🍀 🕛 🎆
Located on the Scottish island of Fetlar, the Haltadans is a circle of standing stones that folklore claims were once trows (Shetland's fairy folk). The story goes that they were still dancing in a circle when the sun rose one morning and turned them to stone. #MythologyMonday