The Mythology and Folklore Database
K100F1 - The Wild Man, ATU 502.
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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
A man (king) catches a strange (anthropomorphic) creature. His son releases the wondrous captive (after which he flees from his father's wrath or is banished). The freed captive helps him. Cf. motif K161.Berezkin category: Adventures: Acts of heroes
This is of motif type Adventures and tricks and is part group 10, Adventures
K10 has 9 other sub-motifsK10. A monstrous bird (bat) attacks people, heroes engage in battle with it. See motifs K10A – K10G. K10a. Heroes kill a dangerous bird; during or before the battle, they hide in a shelter (hut, cage, vessel, sack, well) or cover themselves with an object that protects the body. K10b. A huge bird carries away to its nest a cage, bag or other container in which people are located. See motif 10A. K10c. The hero (twins) is weighed down with the blood-filled intestines of an animal. A bird pierces them with its claw, blood flows, the bird thinks its prey is dead, and brings the man to its nest. He kills the adult bird and either kills or transforms the chicks. Cf. motif M91A. K10d. A flying monster carries the hero away to a distant island. The hero kills the monster and uses a boat, bridge or rope made from part of the monster's body to return. K10e. In the bird's habitat, the hero finds the people it has kidnapped and helps them return home. K10f. The character turns the children of a flying monster into ordinary eagles or owls. K10g. Finding himself in the nest of a giant bird on a tree or rock, a man descends to the ground with the help of an adult bird (attaching its feathers or wings to himself), and more often - a chick (grabbing its legs, sitting on the chick, attaching its feathers or wings). K10h. A bird carries a woman or boy to its nest, feeds them, but does not let them go. The captive runs away. K10i. The tree opens its trunk and hides the hero fleeing from a man-eating bird. The monster that flies in after him is held tightly by the tree, which squeezes its trunk again. Click here if would you like to see a distrbution map combining all of K10's motifs? |
Top 10 Motifs with similar dispersal patterns
| Motif | Similarity | Motif Summary |
|---|---|---|
| K131D | 99.89% | Mention is made of footwear that allows the character to quickly cover enormous distances. |
| M106A | 99.88% | The character who caused the damage calls himself by a fictitious name such as "Nobody," "I Myself," etc. Usually, others decide that the victim himself is to blame for what happened. |
| K117B | 99.78% | The hero causes various people (and animals) to stick to each other (or to objects). |
| H7D | 99.72% | A man calls Death, and when it comes, asks it to help him lift a bundle of firewood or pull a cart with firewood. |
| K67E | 99.69% | Someone promises to fulfil their duties until they hear a bird singing at a certain moment in a temporal cycle (annual or daily). Another character imitates the bird. The first recognises the deception. |
| J47A | 99.69% | A plant (usually not a mighty tree, but a legume) grows unusually fast, and a character climbs it to reach the sky. |
| K38F5 | 99.65% | Flames burst from the horse's mouth and/or nostrils, or the entire horse is engulfed in fire. |
| K38F1 | 99.61% | After killing a monster or animal, the hero cuts off and hides a part of its body, usually the tongue. (In most cases, the deceiver takes credit for the feat, after which the hero presents the hidden item, thus exposing the deceiver). |
| M81E | 99.59% | young man undertakes to herd cattle and is warned not to cross the borders of a giant, dragon, witch, etc. The young man violates the ban and kills a giant. |
| K35A3 | 99.59% | In order to obtain the privileges enjoyed by the hero, the deceiver manages to swap status with him. |
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Map of Motif Dispersal
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This motif has been recorded in 45 traditions: Yao, Makua, Ontong Java, Nukumanu, Takuu, Nukuria, Thai of Vietnam, Tai Lue, Khao (Kho, Tai Don, White Tai), Tai Dam (Black Tai), Nung; Zhuang, Buyi; Shui, Sinhalese; Vedda, Miao (Hmong) and Yao of Southern China, Ireland, England, British, Bretons, Portuguese, Portugal, Basques, France, Dutch, Flemish, Germans: North (Low- and Central German dialects): Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg, Pommern, Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony, incl East Frisia and Oldenburg), Nordrhein-Westfalen, Hessen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Thüringen, Saxony-Anhalt, Sachsen, Brandenburg, Rügen, Poles, Slovakians, Slovaks, Greeks (modern), Balkarians, Lithuanians, Latvians, Livonians, Estonians, Finns, Karelians, Vepsians, Western Sami, Eastern Sami (including Skolts), Norwegians, Swedes, Danes, Danish, Western Ukrainians, Byelarusians, Belarusians, Persians, Ossetians, Tats, Georgians, Armenians, Kazan (Middle Volga) Tatars, Mari (Cheremis), Udmurt, Mansi, Lkungen (Straits; including Samish, Songish, Sooke, Lummi), Klallam, Eastern Ukrainians, Northern Ukrainians, Italians: Central (Toscana, Umbria, Marche, Lazio), Germans: South (Upper German dialects): Alsace (Elsass), Baden-Württemberg, Bawaria, Swabia, Switzerland, Bohemia, Sudeten, Austria, Faroe Islands, Russian Federation