The Mythology and Folklore Database
E1A - The first humans made of fragile materials.
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Source Data from Berezkin's Analytics Catalogue, if using this data please acknowledge and link to it here:
Ю.Е. Березкин, Е.Н. Дувакин. Тематическая классификация и распределение фольклорно-мифологических мотивов по ареалам. Аналитический каталог.
Summary of Motif
The first humans are made of fragile materials (clay, wax, fire, honey, etc.) and prove to be unviable.Berezkin category: The origins of people and culture
This is of motif type Cosmology and etiology and is part group 5, Origin of human beings, ethnic groups, etiology of human anatomy, strange body configuration, ways of behavior, marriages before the establishment of the present norms
E1 has 7 other sub-motifsE1. The first human being was created, made by a certain character, and did not exist initially (on earth, underground, in the sky, in a small container) and did not arise spontaneously. Only variants that specify the material from which humans were created, or that refer separately to the creation of the human figure and its ensoulment, rather than simply to the fact of "creation" itself, are taken into account. E1a. The first humans are made of fragile materials (clay, wax, fire, honey, etc.) and prove to be unviable. E1a1. A deity or ancestor moulds people from clay. Some of the figures got wet, which is why there are cripples among people. E1b. A character made of unsuitable material and turns out to be short-lived or poorly suited to performing his functions. E1b1. A man who has married an unusual girl is warned that she must not perform certain tasks or eat certain foods. Other members of his household ensure that the young woman breaks the prohibition, and as a result she dies or disappears. E1c. Man made from human excrement or (Inupiat) from carrion. E1d. (The first) boat is made of obviously unsuitable material. E1e. The son of the first human couple initially takes the form of a small plant that has grown from the ground, a stalk. Click here if would you like to see a distrbution map combining all of E1's motifs? |
Top 10 Motifs with similar dispersal patterns
| Motif | Similarity | Motif Summary |
|---|---|---|
| I14 | 97.42% | Creatures without an anal opening are described. |
| G15 | 95.31% | In another world or in the past, products or materials used by humans look or looked like people. |
| F23 | 93.63% | Blood spilled during sexual intercourse or artificial defloration at the time of creation is the reason why menstruation occurs to this day. |
| I48 | 93.17% | The character is deprived of the ability to move, after which he acquires cosmic dimensions: he supports the earth (sky) or his movements cause earthquakes (less often - storms). |
| C14 | 93.16% | During or on the eve of a global catastrophe (flood, darkness), animals or monsters attack people. (See motif C13A (rebellion of things: animated objects and/or domestic animals threaten people, attack them).) |
| I20C | 92.80% | Dwarves live in an underground world that partly resembles the earthly world. If dwarves and humans meet, it happens underground. |
| C7 | 92.69% | Initially or after the flood, an earthen or stone barrier, the body of a character or creature prevents the flow of water. Later, this barrier is removed or destroyed. |
| F6 | 92.61% | (The first) woman does not have a vagina at first. Usually, it is made for her by a bird, animal, fish, etc. |
| G12A | 92.58% | Cultivated plants arise from drops of blood or flow like blood from cuts on the body of a human or animal. |
| H28 | 92.24% | A creature that has been killed and destroyed (often burned) (usually a cannibal, a ferocious animal, or a powerful shaman) turns into stinging insects or other harmful, unpleasant, or dangerous creatures. |
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Map of Motif Dispersal
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This motif has been recorded in 13 traditions: Ngbakka, Mbum (incl Mbai), Mundang, Fali, Tupuri, Maya (=Bali), Nyong, Mindanao and Sulu: Blaan (Bilaan), Bagobo, Bukidnon, Cotabato, Hiligáynon, Binukid, Magindaan (=Magindanao: main Muslim population), Mandaya, Mansaka, Manobo (Agusan, Ata, Dibabawon, Sarangani, Ilianen), Maranao, Samal, Subanon (=Subanun), Subanen, Tboli, Lepcha, Kirati (Kiranti): Rai (incl Thulung), Limbu, Newar, Byelarusians, Belarusians, Mansi, Nanai, Upper Tanana (Nebesna), Tanacross, tarasques, Quiche, Achí, Cakchiquel, Pocomchi, Pocomam, Tzotzil, Pemon: Arekuna (incl. Kamarakoto), Taulipang (Taurepan), Mura (Pirahã)