The Mythology and Folklore Database
G8A - Cutting down a tree to make a boat.
Please log on to view the narratives.
Motif Summary - Motifs with Simlar Dispersals - Map of Myth Distribution - List of Traditions - Myths |
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
A man cuts down a tree to make a boat or something else from the trunk (Yap: a board for building a house; one of the texts from Ulithi: a wooden bird), goes away to rest, and upon returning finds the tree intact again. Usually, the character who restored the tree in the man's absence then cuts down the tree himself and makes what the hero needs.Berezkin category: Fertility and Agriculture
This is of motif type Adventures and tricks and is part group 10, Adventures
G8 has 7 other sub-motifsG8. People or animals cut or gnaw at a tree, mountain, or pillar of the sky. The damage disappears as soon as the workers are distracted from their task (usually when they take a break) or periodically (at certain times). G8a. A man cuts down a tree to make a boat or something else from the trunk (Yap: a board for building a house; one of the texts from Ulithi: a wooden bird), goes away to rest, and upon returning finds the tree intact again. Usually, the character who restored the tree in the man's absence then cuts down the tree himself and makes what the hero needs. G8b. A person hides in a tree or (Kazakhs) hides behind walls. Another tries to cut down the tree (break down the walls) to get the person, but the cut tree grows back (or the already felled tree rises, the wall is restored). G8c. The first ancestors try to cut down a tree (less often a high rock) to get useful plants hanging on the branches (at the top) or water or fish in the trunk. The damage disappears as soon as the workers are distracted from their work, or periodically. G8d. A tree (pillar, mountain) is cut down (gnawed, ground down) or prevented from being cut down in order to save the world (or the gods, the king, etc.) from danger. G8e. A character unsuccessfully cuts down a tree growing on the moon. G8f. Characters cut down a tree, but the trunk grows back. They manage to finish the job after the splinters are carried away or burned. G8g. There is a unique tree that must be bent or felled. Different creatures inhabit its separate parts and/or objects of special importance are made from its wood. Click here if would you like to see a distrbution map combining all of G8's motifs? |
Top 10 Motifs with similar dispersal patterns
| Motif | Similarity | Motif Summary |
|---|---|---|
| A21A | 95.94% | The moon is an object that was accidentally released by its owners or stolen from them and ended up in the sky. |
| B118 | 95.94% | A character who was unable to reach the sky or returned from the sky to earth becomes an owl. |
| B74B | 95.94% | The owl is forced to part with the moon and now cries out when it sees the moon. Usually, the story tells how the marriage of the owl and the moon fell apart or did not take place. |
| E39A | 95.94% | An animal (snake, pig) conceives from a man's urine and gives birth to a human child (or twins). |
| F43C | 95.94% | The husbands of the first women, Amazons or single women are small animals - usually flying foxes. |
| K32F | 95.94% | A woman or girl raises a bird of prey chick, which brings her food and fire. This usually happens after an evil spirit leaves the girl or young woman in a tree or on an island. |
| K37D | 95.94% | The character recognises the presence of another by noticing traces of their teeth or nails on fruit or leaves. |
| L132 | 95.94% | When one member of a small (family) group, left alone, secretly eats food, this leads to serious conflict, often resulting in the murder of the guilty party. |
| L133 | 95.94% | The character keeps his limbs separately, connecting them to his body when necessary. |
| M5A | 95.94% | Small animal characters sail in the boat, it sinks, everyone escapes as best they can. |
See more...
Please log on to view the narratives.
Map of Motif Dispersal
Click here for a clustered map
Drag the map around by clicking and using the mouse, use the wheel to zoom
This motif has been recorded in 17 traditions: Tonga, Santa Cruz Islands (incl Nguna, Reef Islands), Northern Vanuatu: Banks Islands (incl Mota, Mota Lava, Gaua, Santa Maria), Torres Islands, Tikopia, Bellona, Rennell, partly Aneytium, Futuna (=Erronan, not to be mixed with Futuna in Western Polynesia), Vaeaka-Taumato, incl Matema, Nifeloli, Nukapu, Nupani, Pileni, Maori, Moriori (Chatam Islands), Society Islands: Tahiti, Borabora, Raiatea, Northern Cook Islands: Rakahanga, Manihiki, Tongareva, Southern Cook Islands: Mangaia, Rarotonga, Atiu, Iatutakim Pukapuka, Tubuai (=Austral Islands, incl Rapa), Tuamotu, incl Pukapuka (different from Pukapuka in Cook Islands), Vahitahi, Anaa, Hao, Fangatau, Mangareva, Hawaii, Tuvalu (Ellice), Yap, Truk, Eastern Fayu, Losap, Pulap, Puluwat, Mortlock (incl. Satawan), Marshall Islands, incl Ailinglapalap, Arno, Jaluit, Kili, Lae, Maloelap, Majuro, Ratak, Wotho, Ujae, Jaluit (=Jalooj), Namdrik, Scotland, Scots, Picts, Scotti, Scottish, Jicarilla