A giant animal in
mythology is unusually large, either for their species or in relation to humans. The term giant carries some ambiguity; however, in mythology, definitions of what constitutes 'large' vary, with definitions ranging from 40 kg (88 lb) upwards.[1] At the upper end of this scale, they may be further subdivided into small (250–500 kg (550–1,100 lb)), medium (500–1,000 kg (1,100–2,200 lb)) and large (over 1,000 kg (2,200 lb)).
Megafauna often form one of the
mythemes of a story. The narrative may revolve around a real animal or a
primordialarchetype of a gigantic
creature, such as a
dragon, sea monsters,[2] or the
Midgard snake.
Examples of megafauna
Numerous myths and folklore exist depicting giant animals, including Australian,[3][4] Greek,[5] Native American,[6][7] among others.
^Spriggs, Matthew; Blench, R, eds. (1997). Archaeology and Language: Theoretical and methodological orientations. Routledge. pp. 357–358.
^Darlington, Robert; Mraz, Judy; Benson, Cathy; Rood, Benjamin; Richardson, Matthew; Phelan, Simon (2023). Jacaranda Humanities Alive 7 Australian Curriculum 3e LearnON and Print. Wiley. pp. 52–53.
ISBN9781394150939.
^McPhee, Ross D E (2018). End of the Megafauna: The Fate of the World's Hugest, Fiercest, and Strangest Animals. W. W. Norton.
ISBN9780393249309.
^Deloris, Jr., Vine (2018). Red Earth, White Lies: Native Americans and the Myth of Scientific Fact. Fulcrum Publishing.
ISBN9781682752418.
^Bastian, Dawn E.; Bastian, Dawn Elaine; Mitchell, Judy K. (2004). Handbook of Native American mythology. Handbooks of world mythology. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. p. 30.
ISBN978-1-85109-538-4.
A giant animal in
mythology is unusually large, either for their species or in relation to humans. The term giant carries some ambiguity; however, in mythology, definitions of what constitutes 'large' vary, with definitions ranging from 40 kg (88 lb) upwards.[1] At the upper end of this scale, they may be further subdivided into small (250–500 kg (550–1,100 lb)), medium (500–1,000 kg (1,100–2,200 lb)) and large (over 1,000 kg (2,200 lb)).
Megafauna often form one of the
mythemes of a story. The narrative may revolve around a real animal or a
primordialarchetype of a gigantic
creature, such as a
dragon, sea monsters,[2] or the
Midgard snake.
Examples of megafauna
Numerous myths and folklore exist depicting giant animals, including Australian,[3][4] Greek,[5] Native American,[6][7] among others.
^Spriggs, Matthew; Blench, R, eds. (1997). Archaeology and Language: Theoretical and methodological orientations. Routledge. pp. 357–358.
^Darlington, Robert; Mraz, Judy; Benson, Cathy; Rood, Benjamin; Richardson, Matthew; Phelan, Simon (2023). Jacaranda Humanities Alive 7 Australian Curriculum 3e LearnON and Print. Wiley. pp. 52–53.
ISBN9781394150939.
^McPhee, Ross D E (2018). End of the Megafauna: The Fate of the World's Hugest, Fiercest, and Strangest Animals. W. W. Norton.
ISBN9780393249309.
^Deloris, Jr., Vine (2018). Red Earth, White Lies: Native Americans and the Myth of Scientific Fact. Fulcrum Publishing.
ISBN9781682752418.
^Bastian, Dawn E.; Bastian, Dawn Elaine; Mitchell, Judy K. (2004). Handbook of Native American mythology. Handbooks of world mythology. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. p. 30.
ISBN978-1-85109-538-4.
