Writing, Films & Other Creative Story-based Projects
We might write a story with a motif as it's seed, develop more interesting aspects to a character in a story, or help develop hidden symbols within a film. We also frequently get asked for consulting help if you'd like help, please let us know.
| X | Code | Original | Cultures |
|---|---|---|---|
| A18.1 | Creator with dragon’s head. Chinese: Werner 77. | Chinese | |
| A36 | Creator’s companions: unicorn, phoenix, tortoise, and dragon. Chinese: Werner 76. | Chinese | |
| A139.3 | Dragon god. India: Thompson-Balys; Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 136. | Chinese, India | |
| A162.2 | Combat between god of light and dragon of ocean. Jewish: Neuman; Babylonian and Egyptian: Müller 104; cf. Chinese: Werner 215. | Chinese, Egyptian, Jewish | |
| A162.2 | Combat between god of light and dragon of ocean. | ||
| A671.2.5 | Dragons in hell. Irish: Cross; Icel.: MacCulloch Eddic 319, 332 (Nidhogg). | Iceland, Ireland | |
| A1072.4 | Fettered monster as dragon. Irish: Cross; Gaster Thespis 160, 329. | Ireland | |
| A1142.2 | Thunder from flying dragon. Siberian: Holmberg Siberian 440. | Siberian | |
| A1265 | Men created from sown dragon’s teeth. Cadmus, Jason.--Grierson FL XXXIII (1922) 380.--Greek: Fox 10, 45, 112; Frazer Apollodorus I 315 n. 2. | Greek | |
| A1541.4.2 | Origin of dragon festival. Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 238 No. 185. | Chinese | |
| A2468.3 | Why dragon dies by means of fire. Ila (Rhodesia): Smith and Dale 379 No. 4. | Rhodesia | |
| B11 | Dragon. **Smith Dragon; *Fb Drager, lindorme, slanger i folkets tro (Særtryk af Naturen og Mennesket, 1894, pp. 164--196); *Nyrop Dania II 341ff.; *Róheim Drachen und Drachenkämpfer; *Hdwb. d. Abergl. II 364 ff.; Meyer Germanische Mythologie (1891) 95ff.; **Du Bose The Dragon, Image and Demon (London, 1886); Norlind Skattsägner 44f., 77f., Solheim Register 17; Danish: Kristensen Danske Sagn II (1893) 133ff., 176ff., (1928) 119ff.--*Type 300; *BP I 547.--Icel.: MacCulloch Eddic 216; Celtic: *Henderson Celtic Dragon Myth (Edinburgh, 1911), *Cross; Lettish: Auning Ueber den lettischen Drachenmythus; Armenian: Ananikian 76ff; Jewish: Neuman; Chinese: Ferguson 101; India: Thompson-Balys; Korean: Zong in-Sob 169, No. 73. | Armenian, Celtic, Chinese, Danish, Iceland, India, Jewish, Korea, Lettish | |
| B11.1 | Origin of dragon. | ||
| B11.1.1 | Dragon from cock’s egg. (Cf. †B12.1.)--*Fb “drage”; Hdwb. d. Abergl. II 600--603. | ||
| B11.1.2 | Dragon from transformed horse. White horse plunges into water and is changed into a dragon. Chinese: Werner 368. | Chinese | |
| B11.1.3 | Dragon from transformed man lying on his treasures (Fáfnir). (Cf. †B11.6.2.)--Hdwb. d. Abergl. II 367; Eisen Esthnische Mythologie 74ff.; Icel.: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| B11.1.3.0.1 | Transformed princess as dragon. Irish: Cross; German: Grimm No. 88. | German, Ireland | |
| B11.1.3.1 | Dragon from worm. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.1.3.1.1 | Dragon develops from small worm placed on gold. It grows together with the gold. De Vries Studien over Faerosche Balladen 122ff.; Hdwb. d. Abergl. II 384f.; Icel.: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| B11.1.4 | Devil in form of dragon. German: Grimm No. 125. | German | |
| B11.2 | Form of dragon. *Smith Dragon, passim.; Chinese: Werner 208ff. | Chinese | |
| B11.2.0.1 | She-dragon. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.2.1 | Dragon as compound animal. (cf. †B14.)--Smith Dragon 81 (serpent or crocodile, with scales of a fish for covering, and feet and wings and sometimes also the head, of an eagle, falcon, or hawk, and the forelimbs and sometimes the head of a lion).--Chinese: Werner 208 (ears of an ox, feet of a tiger, claws of an eagle, horns of a deer, head of a camel, eyes of a devil, neck of a snake, abdomen of a cock, scales of a carp); Egyptian: Smith op. cit. 79 (lioness, falcon, human being). | Chinese, Egyptian | |
| B11.2.1.1 | Dragon as modified serpent. Smith Dragon 92, 101f., 107ff. (American Indian, Japanese, East Indian).--Icel.: *Boberg; Japanese: Ikeda; Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 65. | Chinese, Iceland, Japanese | |
| B11.2.1.2 | Dragon as modified lizard. Smith Dragon 109. | ||
| B11.2.1.3 | Dragon as modified fish. Smith Dragon 108f.; Irish: Cross; Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 65. | Chinese, Ireland | |
| B11.2.1.4 | Dragon as modified shell-fish. Smith Dragon 165ff. | ||
| B11.2.1.5 | Dragon as modified toad. Smith Dragon 109. | ||
| B11.2.1.6 | Dragon as modified elephant. Smith Dragon 109. | ||
| B11.2.1.7 | Dragon as modified horse. Smith Dragon 97f. Japanese: Ikeda. | Japanese | |
| B11.2.1.9 | Dragon as modified ram. Smith Dragon 134 (Egyptian, Soudanese, West African, Hindu, Chinese, Japanese, American Indian). The evidence of this identification is merely the spiral horn. | North American | |
| B11.2.1.10 | Dragon as modified deer. Smith Dragon 131. | ||
| B11.2.1.11 | Dragon as modified eagle. Smith Dragon 92f., 108. | ||
| B11.2.1.12 | Dragon as other modified animal. Smith Dragon 108 (falcon), 165ff. (octopus, whale). | ||
| B11.2.2 | Color of dragon. Smith Dragon 108 (blue), 137 (red).--Breton: Sébillot Incidents s.v. “dragons” (regiment of green dragons).--Icel.: Bósa saga 62 (golden). | Breton, Iceland | |
| B11.2.2.1 | Dragon with golden feathers. Icel.: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| B11.2.3 | Many-headed dragon. (Cf. †B15.1.2.)--Danish: Fb “hoved” 65b; Jones PMLA XXIII 569.--Greek: Fox 87 (hundred); Persian: Carnoy 265 (three); Japanese: Anesaki 228 (eight), 333 (nine). | Danish, Greek, Japanese, Persian | |
| B11.2.3.1 | Seven-headed dragon. *Type 300; Smith Dragon 211f.--Breton: Sébillot Incidents s.v. “bête”. Missouri French: Carrière; Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 42 No. 302*A: Gaster Thespis 80f, 186.--India: Thompson-Balys; Araucanian: Alexander Lat. Am. 327. | Araucanian, Breton, India, Spanish, Missouri French | |
| B11.2.3.2 | Three-headed dragon. Cheremis: Sebeok-Nyerges; Africa (Fulah): Frobenius Atlantis VI 182ff. No. 4. | Cheremis, Fulah | |
| B11.2.3.3 | Six-headed dragon. Cheremis: Sebeok-Nyerges. | Cheremis | |
| B11.2.3.4 | Nine-headed dragon. Cheremis: Sebeok-Nyerges. | Cheremis | |
| B11.2.3.5 | Twelve-headed dragon. Cheremis: Sebeok-Nyerges. | Cheremis | |
| B11.2.3.6 | Two-headed dragon. England: Baughman. | England | |
| B11.2.4 | Feet of dragon. | ||
| B11.2.4.1 | Feet of dragon--number. Irish: Cross; Japanese: Smith Dragon 101f.; Chinese: Werner 368. | Chinese, Ireland, Japanese | |
| B11.2.4.2 | Feet of dragon--nature. Cloven hoofs: Smith Dragon 137.--Claws: Chinese: Werner 368. | Chinese | |
| B11.2.5 | Horns of dragon. Smith Dragon 137.--Chinese: Werner 368, Eberhard FFC CXX 73, 85. | Chinese | |
| B11.2.6 | Wings of dragon. Smith Dragon 137.--Chinese: Werner 368. | Chinese | |
| B11.2.7 | Snakes issue from dragon‘s shoulders. Persian: Carnoy 320. | Persian | |
| B11.2.8 | Tail of dragon. Smith Dragon 137; Fb “drage” (if one throws fire over dragon’s long tail, the tail falls and is full of treasure). | ||
| B11.2.8.1 | Dragon encircles city with its tail. India: Thompson-Balys. | India | |
| B11.2.9 | Heart of dragon. Fb “hjærte” 631b. | ||
| B11.2.10 | Scales of dragon. Chinese: Werner 368. | Chinese | |
| B11.2.11 | Fire-breathing dragon. *Type 300; Hdwb. d. Abergl. II 391; Fb. “drage”, “gloende” (glowing eyes and tongue), “ild” (fire from mouth). Irish: Cross; Icel.: *Boberg. | Iceland, Ireland | |
| B11.2.11.1 | Dragon spews venom. Icel.: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| B11.2.11.2 | Breath of dragon kills man. Scotland, England: *Baughman Chinese: Werner 236.--N. A. Indian (Iroquois): BBAE XXX pt. 2, 720 s.v. “Teharonhiawagon”. | Chinese, England, Iroquois, Scotland | |
| B11.2.12 | Dragon of enormous size. Jewish: Bin Gorion Born Judas II 170, 349, Neuman; Irish: Cross; African (Fang): Einstein 47. | Fang, Ireland, Jewish | |
| B11.2.13 | Blood of dragon. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.2.13.1 | Blood of dragon venomous. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.2.14 | Dragon with jewel in head. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.3 | Habitat of dragon. | ||
| B11.3.1 | Dragon’s home in bottom of sea. Smith Dragon 82.--Chinese: Werner 210 (only in autumn and winter); Icel.: Boberg. | Chinese, Iceland | |
| B11.3.1.1 | Dragon lives in lake. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.3.1.2 | Dragon‘s home beneath waterfall. (Cf. †F426.) Icel.: Boberg. | Iceland | |
| B11.3.2 | Dragon’s home at top of mountain. His breath forms clouds to hide the mountain.--Smith Dragon 82.--Scotland: Baughman. | Scotland | |
| B11.3.3 | Dragon‘s visit to sky. Chinese: Werner 210 (only in spring and summer). (Cf. †B11.4.1.) | Chinese | |
| B11.3.4 | Dragons live beneath castle. Mediaeval Romance: Wells Manual of Writings 39 (Nennius’s Historia Britonum) 42f. (Arthour and Merlin). | Mediaeval Romance | |
| B11.3.5 | Dragon lives under the ground. By his movements a building or village will be dislodged. (Cf. †A1070.)--Zingerle Zs. f. deutsche Mythologie und Sittengeschichte II 347; Hdwb. d. Abergl. II 890.--Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.3.6 | Dragons live in hell. Irish: Cross; Icel.: MacCulloch Eddic 319, 352. | Iceland, Ireland | |
| B11.3.7 | Dragon lives beneath tree. Danish: Kristensen Danske Sagn II (1893) 179ff., (1928) 122ff.--Icel.: MacCulloch Eddic 319. | Danish, Iceland | |
| B11.3.8 | Dragon lives in isolated island. German: Grimm No. 129. | German | |
| B11.4 | Dragon‘s habits. | ||
| B11.4.1 | Flying dragon. (cf. †B11.2.1.11.)--BP III 423; *Fb “drage” (flies over the mountain).--Icel.: MacCulloch Eddic 319, 345; *Boberg; Greek myth: *Frazer Apollodorus I 38 n. 2 (air-going chariot and dragons); Irish: Cross; India: Thompson-Balys. | Iceland, India, Ireland | |
| B11.4.2 | Dragon as giver of omens. Smith Dragon 97. | ||
| B11.4.3 | Sleepless dragon. Greek Myth (Jason): *Frazer Apollodorus I 95 n. 2. | Greek | |
| B11.4.4 | Dragon travels on sea or land. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.4.5 | Talking dragon. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.5 | Powers of dragon. | ||
| B11.5.1 | Dragon’s power of self-transformation. Chinese: Werner 223. | Chinese | |
| B11.5.2 | Dragon‘s power of magic invisibility. Chinese: Werner 209. | Chinese | |
| B11.5.3 | Dragon’s miraculous vision. Can see a fly miles away.--Africa (Gold Coast): Barker and Sinclair 97 No. 18. | Gold Coast | |
| B11.5.4 | Dragon‘s miraculous speed. Gold Coast: Barker and Sinclair 97 No. 18. | Gold Coast | |
| B11.5.5 | Self-returning dragon’s head. (cf. †B11.2.3, †B11.11.2.)--*Type 300; BP I 547; Eng.: Baughman; Greek: Fox 81 (hydra).--Onondaga: Beauchamp JAFL II 261. | England, Greek, Onondaga | |
| B11.6 | Deeds of dragons. | ||
| B11.6.1 | Dragon helps hero out of gratitude. Dickson Valentine and Orson 121 n. 64. | ||
| B11.6.1.2 | Grateful dragon saves hero and rescues him from prison. Chinese: Eberhard 180. | Chinese | |
| B11.6.2 | Dragon guards treasure. *Norlind Skattsägner 77f.; Gould Scandinavian Studies and Notes IX (1917) 170 No. 4; Penzer III 133; Smith Dragon 157--165; Finnish-Swedish; Wessman 76, 78 Nos. 632, 657; Icel.: Boberg; Danish: Kristensen Danske Sagn II (1893) 133ff., (1928) 119ff., III (1895) 454ff., (1931) 311ff.; Greek: *Grote I 219; U.S.: Baughman; Wienert FFC LVI 37; Phaedrus IV 21; Chinese: Werner 209. | Chinese, Danish, Greek, Iceland, U.S. | |
| B11.6.2.1 | Dragon must give up treasure when steel is thrown on him. Fb “stål”. III 647a; Finnish-Swedish: Wessman 76 No. 632. | Finnish-Swedish, Swedish | |
| B11.6.2.3 | Dragon‘s pearl stolen. Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 233 No. 181. | Chinese | |
| B11.6.3 | Dragon feeds on treasure. Oberwallis: Jegerlehner 321 No. 75; Chinese: Werner 210. | Chinese, Oberwallis | |
| B11.6.4 | Dragon guards holy land. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.6.5 | Dragon guards hermit’s food, frightens off robbers. Spanish Exempla: Keller. | ||
| B11.6.6 | Dragon guards bridge to otherworld. Icel.: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| B11.6.7 | Dragon eats an ox at every meal. Icel.: Boberg. | Iceland | |
| B11.6.8 | Dragon flies to its nest with human being. Icel.: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| B11.6.8.1 | Dragon flies away with lion. Icel.: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| B11.6.9 | Dragon gnaws the roots of tree. Icel.: MacCulloch Eddic 332. | Iceland | |
| B11.6.10 | Sandalwood tree is guarded by dragon with venomous breath. India: Thompson-Balys. | India | |
| B11.7 | Dragon as rain-spirit. Smith Dragon 1, 78, 82, 90.--Chinese: Werner 208. | Chinese | |
| B11.7.1 | Dragon controls water-supply. Hindu: Keith, Thompson-Balys; Japanese: Ikeda. | Hindu, Japanese | |
| B11.7.1.1 | Dragon causes deluge. China: Eberhard FFC CXX 233 No. 181. | China | |
| B11.7.2 | Dragon guards lake. Penzer VII 235 N. 2; Irish: Cross; India: Thompson-Balys. | India, Ireland | |
| B11.8 | Dragon as power of good. Smith Dragon 82, 97.--Chinese: Werner 208ff., Graham. Icel.: Boberg. | Chinese, Iceland | |
| B11.9 | Dragon as power of evil. So considered everywhere except in the East, where are also found beneficent dragons.--Smith Dragon 82.--Irish myth; Chinese: Werner 208 (introduced by the Buddhists). | Chinese | |
| B11.10 | Sacrifice of human being to dragon. *Type 300; Penzer VII 236, 240; Dickson Valentine and Orson 226f.; Gaster Thespis 176; Hartland Legend of Perseus passim; Fb “drage”, “pige”.--Irish: Cross; Greek: Fox 34; Persian: Carnoy 320; India: *Thompson-Balys; Breton: Sébillot Incidents s.v. “exposition”; French Canadian: Barbeau JAFL XXXIX 17; Missouri French: Carrière; Africa (Zulu): Callaway 41; Japanese: Anesaki 249. | Breton, Canada, French, French Canadian, Greek, India, Ireland, Japanese, Persian, Zulu | |
| B11.10.0.1 | Sacrifice of animals to dragon. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.10.1 | Dragon keeps maiden tied with golden chain. Köhler-Bolte I 128. | ||
| B11.10.2 | Dragon eats people for his rent. Chinese: Graham. | Chinese | |
| B11.10.3 | Dragon devours children. India: Thompson-Balys; Eng., U.S.: Baughman. | India, U.S. | |
| B11.11 | Fight with dragon. *Type 300; *BP I 547; *Smith Dragon 79ff., 104; *Róheim Drachen und Drachenkämpfer; *Norlind Skattsägner 67f., *Liebrecht Zur Volkskunde 70; **von Sydow Sigurds Strid med Fåvne; *Schoepperle Tristan and Isolt I 204 nn. 1, 2; Clouston Pop. Tales and Fictions I 155ff.; *Spence 80; *E. Siecke Drachenkämpfe; Fb “Jörgen” II 67a (St. George and the Dragon).--Germanic: Hdwb. d. Abergl. II 371; Heusler Altnordische Dichtung und Prosa von Jung Sigurd (Sitzungsberichte der Berliner Akad. v. Wissenschaften, 1919, 162--195); **H. Sandkühler Der Drachenkampf des heiligen Georg in englischer Legende u. Dichtung vom 14. bis 16. Jahrhundert (Diss. München 1914); *Loomis White Magic 65, 119; Greek: *Frazer Apollodorus 27 no. 4 (Apollo and Python), I 153 n. 1 (Bellerophon and Chimera); Celtic: MacCulloch Celtic 130ff.; Irish: Cross; Icel.: *Boberg; Jewish: Neuman, Gaster Thespis 140 ff., 326ff.; Egyptian: Müller 127; Persian: Carnoy 266, 270, 273, 322, *325, 329f.; Hindu: Keith 33 (Indra); India: *Thompson-Balys; Armenian: Ananikian 77; Japanese: Anesaki 228; Chinese: Werner 224, 361, Eberhard FFC CXX 105, 138; Arabian: Burton I 172.--English: Wells Manual of Writings 16 (Guy of Warwick), 115 (Sir Eglamour), 117 (Torrent of Portyngale); Missouri French: Carrière; Africa (Fang): Einstein 44, 47.--Cf. *Olrik Ragnarök 57ff. (fight with giant serpent). | Arabian, Armenian, Celtic, Chinese, Egyptian, England, Fang, French, German, Greek, Hindu, Iceland, India, Ireland, Japanese, Jewish, Persian | |
| B11.11.1 | Dragon fight: respite granted and dragon returns with renewed strength. French Canadian: Barbeau JAFL XXXIX 21; Missouri French: Carrière. | Canada, French, French Canadian | |
| B11.11.2 | Hero’s dogs (horse) prevent dragon‘s heads from rejoining body. (Cf. †B11.2.3.)--*Type 300; *BP I 547. | ||
| B11.11.3 | Dragon combats attack with showers of fiery spines. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.11.4 | Dragon fight in order to free princess. Icel.: *Boberg. (See also †R111.1. and most of the references to †B11.11.). | Iceland | |
| B11.11.5 | Dragon fight in order to free man. Icel.: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| B11.11.6 | Dragon fight in order to free lion. Icel.: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| B11.11.7 | Woman as dragon-slayer. India: Thompson-Balys. | India | |
| B11.11.8 | Dragon doubles his demand after men‘s rebellion. Africa (Fang): Einstein 42. | Fang | |
| B11.12 | Other traits of dragon. | ||
| B11.12.1 | Dragon cannot be killed with weapons. Wesselski Mönchslatein 171 No. 136; Irish: Cross; Eng.: Baughman; Gaster Oldest Stories 69. | England, Ireland | |
| B11.12.1.1 | Dragon which cannot be killed with weapons is kicked in vulnerable spot. England: Baughman. | England | |
| B11.12.1.2 | Dragon dips wounded part in holy well, is healed immediately. England: Baughman. | England | |
| B11.12.2 | Dragon’s shriek makes land barren. Irish: Cross; MacCulloch Celtic 130. | Ireland | |
| B11.12.3 | Fiery dragon. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| B11.12.4 | Dragon is fond of milk. | ||
| B11.12.4.1 | Dragon is fed great quantities of milk to keep him pacified. England: *Baughman. | England | |
| B11.12.5 | The dragon-king. Chinese: Eberhard 25 No. 13,65, 87 No. 7,158, 245 No. 190. | Chinese | |
| B11.12.6 | Dragon can hear a child cry even at great distance. India: Thompson-Balys. | India | |
| B11.12.7 | Human-dragon marriage. Chinese: Eberhard 49, 64f., 103, 135, No. 92. | Chinese | |
| B217.1.2 | Animal languages learned from eating dragon‘s heart. Smith Evolution of the Dragon 82; *BP I 131; *von Sydow Fåvne 35ff.; **Scott Thumb. | ||
| B217.6 | Animal languages learned by exchanging tongues with helpful dragon. Italian Novella: Rotunda. | Italian | |
| B248 | King of dragons. Chinese: Graham. | Chinese | |
| B498.1 | Helpful dragon. (Cf. †B11.)--Italian Novella: Rotunda, Swiss Jegerlehner Oberwallis 328 No. 17; Chinese: Graham. | Chinese, Italian | |
| B524.1.1 | Dogs kill attacking cannibal (dragon). *Type 300; *BP I 547.--Irish: Cross; French Canadian: Barbeau JAFL XXIX 20.--Africa (Basuto): Jacottet 56 No. 9, (Zulu): Callaway 51, (Kaffir): Kidd 226 No. 1. | Basuto, Canada, French Canadian, Ireland, Kaffir, Zulu | |
| B529.2 | Dragon swallows arrow (thunderbolt) intended for hero. Italian Novella: Rotunda. | Italian | |
| B549.2 | Dragon makes bridge across stream for holy man. (Cf. †B11.)--Jewish: Bin Gorion Born Judas@2 II 170, 349. | Jewish | |
| B560.1 | Grateful dragon king gives hero advice. Korean: Zong in-Sob 170, No. 73. | Korea | |
| B605 | Marriage to dragon. Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 64f. | Chinese | |
| B765.24 | Dragon fly serves as snake‘s servant, feeds snake; it is called snake-feeder. U.S.: Baughman. | U.S. | |
| B765.24.1 | Dragon fly acts as doctor to injured snakes. U.S.: Baughman. | U.S. | |
| C92.2 | Tabu: killing sacred dragon. (Cf. †B11.)--Greek: Frazer Apollodorus I 334 n. 1. | Greek | |
| C422.1 | Tabu: revealing dragon-fighter‘s identity. Dragon-fighter forbids princess whom he has rescued to tell who he is.--*Type 300. | ||
| D199.2 | Transformation: man to dragon. (Cf. †B11.)--English: Wells 103 (Alliterative Alexander Fragment A); Irish: *Cross. | England, Ireland | |
| D199.2.1 | Magician fights as dragon. Icelandic: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| D399.1 | Transformation: water-dragon to person. (Cf. †B12.)--Chinese: Werner 233. | Chinese | |
| D412.3.5 | Transformation: pig to dragon. Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 162. | Chinese | |
| D418.1.2 | Transformation: snake to dragon. Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 31. | Chinese | |
| D419.1 | Transformation: dragon to other animal. (Cf. †B11.) | ||
| D419.1.1 | Transformation: sea dragon to serpent. Chinese: Werner 311. | Chinese | |
| D419.1.2 | Transformation: dragon to horse. Korean: Zong in-Sob 64 No. 35. | Korea | |
| D429.2 | Transformation: dragon to object. (Cf. †B11.) | ||
| D429.2.1 | Transformation: dragon-king to gust of wind. Chinese: Werner 311. | Chinese | |
| D429.2.2 | Transformation: dragon to stone. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| D444.6 | Transformation: drinking horn to dragon. Norse: Herrmann Saxo Gr. II 596. | Norse | |
| D659.4.2 | Sea dragon in serpent’s form to accompany hero. (Cf. †D419.1.1, †B11.)--Chinese: Werner 311. | Chinese | |
| D812.7 | Magic object received from dragon king. Japanese: Anesaki 315. | Japanese | |
| D950.0.1 | Magic tree guarded by serpent (dragon) coiled around its roots. Irish: *Cross; Greek: Fox 87f. (Apples of Hesperides). | Greek, Ireland | |
| D1015.1.2 | Magic dragon heart. (Cf. †B11.2.9.) Icelandic: Völsunga Saga 66. | Iceland | |
| D1337.2.3 | Dragon‘s breath renders hideous. (Cf. †D1029.1.)--Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| D1345.2 | Magic statue of dragon gives longevity. (Cf. †B11, †D1268.)--Jewish: Neuman. | Jewish | |
| D1355.3.8 | Person burns dragonsblood (plant) and says charm to bring lover to spot. England: *Baughman. | England | |
| D1358.1.1 | Eating dragon‘s heart makes courageous. (Cf. †B11, †D1015.1.2.)--Icelandic: Völsunga Saga 79, Boberg. | Iceland | |
| D1385.14 | Milk of two king‘s children protects hero in dragon fight. (Cf. †B11.11, †D1043.) Dickson 135 n. 117. | ||
| D1402.14 | Magic circle of saliva kills dragon. (Cf. †D1001, †D1272.) Wesselski Mönchslatein 171 No. 136. | ||
| D1500.1.7.3.3 | Dragon’s heart-blood as remedy. (Cf. †B11.2.9, †D1015.1.2, †D1016) *Type 305*. | ||
| D1846.4 | Invulnerability through bathing in dragon‘s blood. *Von Sydow Sigurds Strid med Fåvne 27ff.; Lithuanian: Balys Index No. *650A. | Lithuanian | |
| D1975 | Dragon-fighter’s magic sleep. While waiting for fight with dragon, hero falls into magic sleep. (Cf. †D1962.2.) *Type 300; *Hartland Perseus III 211.--French Canadian: Barbeau JAFL XXIX 20; India: Thompson-Balys. | Canada, French Canadian, India | |
| E263 | Adulteress returns from dead as devastating dragon. *Herbert III 18, 279. | ||
| E738.1 | Soul in form of dragon. (Cf. †B11.) Tobler 81; Icelandic: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| F531.1.3.1 | Giant with dragon-scales for feet. Greek: Frazer Apollodorus I 43 n. 2. | Greek | |
| F628.1.3.1 | Man kills serpents, toads, dragons with own hands. Irish: *Cross. | Ireland | |
| F721.3.2 | Underground kingdom reached in a box which was swallowed by a dragon and later released. India: Thompson-Balys. | India | |
| F796 | Dragon seen in sky. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| F872.3.1 | Bath of blood of dragons, lions, adders, etc. Irish: Cross. | Ireland | |
| F960.2.5.3 | Earthquake at dragon’s death. Icelandic: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| G211.9.1 | Witch in form of dragon. (Cf. †D119.2.). Icelandic: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| G225.5 | Witch has an army of dragons, lions and bears. Icelandic: Þiðriks saga II 271--75, Boberg. | Iceland | |
| G303.3.2.4 | Devil in form of dragons and monsters of various sorts. *Loomis White Magic 74. | ||
| G303.8.10 | Devil in dragon’s head on a shield. Is expelled by a knight (Percival). Dickson 197 No. 84. | ||
| G308.4 | Lake made dangerous by haunting serpent (dragon, péist). Irish: *Cross. | Ireland | |
| H105.1 | Dragon-tongue proof. Dragon slayer cuts out the tongues and uses them later to prove his identity as slayer. *Types 300, 303; *Hartland Perseus III 203ff.; **Ranke FFC CXIV 251ff.; *BP I 534ff., 548; Fb “tunge” III 893b; Hdwb. d. Märchens I 242a nn. 24--47; Schoepperle I 204 n. 3; Irish: Cross; French Canadian: Barbeau JAFL XXIX 7, 18f.; Italian Novella: Rotunda; Greek: Frazer Apollodorus II 63 n. 4; India: *Thompson-Balys; N. A. Indian: Thompson CColl II 323ff.; Jamaica: Beckwith MAFLS XVII 278 No. 90. | Canada, French Canadian, Greek, India, Ireland, Jamaica, N. A. Indian | |
| H105.1.1 | False dragon-head proof. Impostor cuts off dragon heads (after tongues have been removed) and attempts to use them as proof of slaying the dragon. *Type 300; *BP I 534ff. and all references to †H105.1; *Parsons FL XXXII 194ff.; Missouri French: Carrière; Italian Novella: Rotunda; India: *Thompson-Balys. | French, India, Italian | |
| H105.6 | Identification between lovers by matching claw and leg of dragon. Icelandic: Boberg. | Iceland | |
| H322.3 | Suitor test: bringing leg that fits into dragon claw left by the beloved of the princess. Icelandic: *Boberg. | Iceland | |
| H335.3.1 | Suitor task: to kill dragon to whom the princess is to be sacrificed. Italian Novella: Rotunda. | Italian | |
| H1024.5 | Task: sowing dragon‘s teeth. Greek: Frazer Apollodorus I 109 n. 4. | Greek | |
| H1174.2 | Task: overcoming dragon. Icelandic: Þiðriks saga I 175ff. | Iceland | |
| H1274 | Quest in hell for three dragon feathers. (Cf. †B11.) Fb “helvede” I 589a. | ||
| H1292.14 | Question (propounded on quest): Why can‘t the dragon king ascend to the sky? Chinese: Graham. | Chinese | |
| H1332.6 | Quest for liver of thunder and heart of dragon. Chinese: Graham. | Chinese | |
| H1333.6 | Quest for branches of tree guarded by dragon. Irish: *Cross. | Ireland | |
| J1761.8 | Man mistakes dragon for log, sits on it. (Cf. †B11.) England: Baughman. | England | |
| J2488.1 | Numskull dragon wants to see courage. India: Thompson-Balys. | India | |
| K484.2 | Host with overstock of sour wine spreads rumor of dragon at his house. A crowd gathers and he sells all his wine. *Wesselski Morlini 309 No. 65. | ||
| K722.1 | Dragon enticed into pot while in its child-form, boiled, so it can see ”courage“. India: Thompson-Balys. | India | |
| K835 | Dragon deceived into listening to tale: hero cuts off its head. Bolte Zs. f. Vksk. IX 86. | ||
| K1052 | Dragon attacks own image in mirror. Spanish: Boggs FFC XC 40 No. 300; Japanese: Ikeda. | Japanese, Spanish | |
| M357.1 | Prophecy: fiery bolt from a dragon to kill world population. Irish: *Cross. | Ireland | |
| Q223.9.1 | Neglect to fast punished by sight of dragon ready to carry man off to hell. Spanish Exempla: Keller. | ||
| Q552.25.1 | Earthquake at dragon‘s death. Icelandic: Boberg. | Iceland | |
| Q569.2 | Sinners in hell swallowed by dragons. Irish: *Cross. | Ireland | |
| R111.1.3 | Rescue of princess (maiden) from dragon. *Types 300, 303; *Hartland Perseus III 1--65 passim; **Ranke FFC CXIV; *BP I 534; *Loomis White Magic 119. See also references to †B11.10 and †B11.11. -- Icelandic: *Boberg; Missouri French: Carrière; Spanish: Espinosa II Nos. 133--135, Espinosa Jr. Nos. 68f.; Greek: *Frazer Apollodorus I 158 n. 3; India: *Thompson-Balys; Japanese: Ikeda. | French, Greek, Iceland, India, Japanese, Spanish | |
| S262.4 | Girl offers to sacrifice herself to dragon in place of her parents. India: Thompson-Balys. | India | |
| T118.2 | Marriage of dragon girl to orphan boy. Chinese: Graham. | Chinese | |
| T172.2 | Bridal chamber invaded by magic dragon (serpent). (Cf. †B176.1.) *Types 507AB, 516; Liljeblad passim; Italian: Basile Pentamerone IV No. 9; India: *Thompson-Balys. | India, Italian | |
| T521.3 | Conception from rays of a dragon. Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 91. | Chinese | |
| T532.1.4 | Conception by smell of cooked dragon heart. Italian: Basile Pentamerone I No. 9; India: Thompson-Balys. | India, Italian | |
| T554.11 | Supernaturally impregnated woman gives birth to dragon. Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 102 No. 60. | Chinese | |
| V1.8.8 | Dragon worship. Jewish: Neuman; Chinese: Eberhard FFC CXX 103f. | Chinese, Jewish | |
| V229.4 | Saint overcomes (destroys) monsters (dragons). Irish: *Cross. | Ireland | |
| V229.5.1 | Saint confines monster (dragon) in lake. Irish: *Cross. | Ireland |
About StorySearch
The Project
This website is a search engine of almost 50,000 patterns within stories world over called "Motifs" and several projects fueled by this search engine.
The Motif Collection
The work comes from a folklorist named Stith Thompson who spent his life reading and cataloging these stories which he published as the Motif Index of Folklore and Literature. You can read more about his work here: Wikipedia page for Stith Thompson
The Goal
While we have Mr. Thompson's motifs, we have yet to track down all of the stories he read, which is our ultimate goal. We then will provide the stories for all to read, explore and see the connections and commonalities between these stories which we hope to further understandings between cultures and deeper into ourselves.
The Stories
Of course, since there are a current total of 46,248 motifs, we've estimated there to be as many as 51,822 stories which might take some time to collect.
The Strategy
For now, we are working to build a crowdsourcing application to help us collect, organize these stories along with tagging the motifs within them.
Until then, please use the following FAQ.
Frequently Asked Questions about Story Search
What do you use this site for?
We use it to find stories, or to know there are stories worldwide with patterns in them. From there, we've found three common uses:
Lectures, Professional & other Metaphor Development
Another common request is from people wanting to tell better stories in their work. This might be someone trying to communicate a tricky idea which is in need of a good metaphor. Since we know these "story seeds" have proven themselves to be quite memorable, we try to adapt motifs to fit as a solid and simple metaphor. We've helped Scientists, Lawyers, Medical Organizations, and even those in the Financials Industry to help better convey what they are doing by telling a better story.
Storytelling, Mentoring & Narrative Therapy
And last (usually the most important in the story world) but not least, we do a lot of work with how people can grow and develop parts of who they are and the connection therein through story. So, we might tell research specific stories to tell a child or youth who is working through an issue, such as dealing with anger, attention issues, or life changes by carefully choosing a motif which can help them understand what they're dealing with. (This works well for adults too.)
If you find a new usage for these, please tell us.
What exactly is a Motif?
A Motif is a trait common between two stories. They can be from nearby places, but the interesting ones (we find) are from very different parts of the world. That is to say, two ideas that simultaneously erupted most likely independently. This is because we can then develop a theory about well, pretty much anything.
Let's give you an example of two excerpts from stories so you can spot their motifs.
Sedna - Eskimo
In this mortal peril the father determined to offer Sedna to the birds and flung her overboard. She clung to the edge of the boat with a death grip. The cruel father then took a knife and cut off the first joints of her fingers. Falling into the sea they were transformed into whales, the nails turning into whalebone. Sedna holding on to the boat more tightly, the second finger joints fell under the sharp knife and swam away as seals; when the father cut off the stumps of the fingers they became ground seals.
Handless Maiden - Germany
The devil still could not approach her, he was very angry, and ordered the miller, "Chop off her hands, so I can get to her."
The miller was horrified and answered, "How could I chop off my dear child's hands? No, I will not do it."
"Then do you know what? I will take you, if you don't do it!"
That frightened the miller terribly, and driven by fear he promised to do what the devil had ordered. He went to his daughter and said, "My child, the devil will take me if I don't chop off both your hands, and I have promised him that I will do it. I beg for your forgiveness."
"Father," she said, "do with me what you will," stretched forth her hands, and let him chop them off.
Interpretations
What could we infer about this story? Well, we might use it to interpret a major plot point in another storyline such as Star Wars, Winter's Bone or Game of Thrones.
We might see it as a symbol for the the loss of ability, that is to say, the loss of the ability to do things.
And so, it might be a useful story to tell someone who has issues with motivation, or the lack of the ability to do things.
We'd also be very curious what the relationship between the symbolic "father" is in each of these stories is, including the three newer stories we mentioned.
Where did you get all of the info about Motifs and Stories?
This search engine is a digitized version of the life work comes of a folklorist named Stith Thompson who spent his life reading and cataloging stories which he published as the Motif Index of Folklore and Literature. This book is very hard to come by, as are many of the books Mr. Thompson referenced. We will be collecting the stories (with the help of folks on the internet) to allow everyone to enjoy and educate themselves about this work.
I have a story I'd really like to find. Can you send it to me?
If we can find it, yes, we will definitely try to so you're always welcome to ask. We don't have digital copies of all of the books referenced in the search engine yet, but we currently have more than two thirds of the 800 or so. Feel free to use the contact form, and we will let you know what we can do.
When I be able to read all of the stories online?
That is hard to tell because it is dependent on two things: our helpers and funds.
Feedback - If you have feedback to offer as far as features you'd like, or requests for stories, this helps us polish the new systems we are putting in place in order to collect all of Stith's stories. Don't hesitate to use our contact form.
Donate Time - If you would like to donate some of your time to help comb stories, please fill out the form below.
Donate Funds - Or, you can use the fully tax deductible donation to our 501(c)3 non-profit hosting organization the Center for Symbolic Studies via a form at http://symbolicstudies.org
How can I help?
We've created a twitter feed for StorySearch, and since it is using his work, we've put the feeds under the name @StithThompson.
Every 15 minutes, a new random motif is tweeted. Below are the 20 most recent tweets:
Twitter Feed for @StithThompson
Updated every 15 minutes with a new random motif.
Video
Writing
TEDx - Lower East Side
Here is a talk by the creator of the Story Search, Richard Schwab, did on myth featuring stories about ways we use this site. October 25th 2013.