Folklore: Did you mean...?

The River of Separation is one of the many versions of the Navajo creation story detailing how the people first came up from below the earth, learned to live on its surface and, just as importantly, learned...

Dragons appear in the mythology of many ancient cultures but nowhere else in the world was the creature quite so revered as in China. There, in marked contrast to other world mythologies, the dragon was almost always...

Passover is a Jewish festival celebrated since at least the 5th century BCE, typically associated with the tradition of Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt. According to historical evidence and modern-day practice...

The Black Death of 1347-1352 CE is the most infamous plague outbreak of the medieval world, unprecedented and unequaled until the 1918-1919 CE flu pandemic in the modern age. The cause of the plague was unknown...

Falling Star is a Cheyenne tale of the great hero Hotoketana'ohtse ("Falling Star") who came from the heavens to stand up for those who could not defend themselves, slay monsters, and save the people from starvation. The hero-from-heaven...

The Periplus of the Euxine Sea (Circumnavigation of the Black Sea) is a description of trade routes along the shores of the Black Sea written by Arrian of Nicomedia (Lucius Flavius Arrianus), a historian and philosopher...

The Day of the Dead, known in Spanish as Día de los Muertos, is a holiday that celebrates life and honors the dead through traditions, food, decorations, and activities intended to sustain the connections between the living and...

Persian literature derives from a long oral tradition of poetic storytelling. The first recorded example of this tradition is the Behistun Inscription of Darius I (the Great, r. 522-486 BCE), carved on a cliff-face c. 522...

The United States holiday of Thanksgiving is generally understood to be inspired by the harvest feast celebrated by the citizens of Plymouth Colony (later known as pilgrims) and the Native Americans of the Wampanoag...

The Jolly Roger with its white skull and crossbones set against a black background has become a rather jovial part of pirate folklore but, in its day, this flag and others with similar blood-curdling designs, had...