Culture hero 143364 223804131 2008-07-05T22:04:40Z Nikola Smolenski 11304 /* Slavic mythology */ {{unreferenced|date=December 2006}} A '''culture hero''' is a [[mythological]] [[hero]] specific to some group ([[culture|cultural]], [[ethnic group|ethnic]], [[Race (classification of human beings)|racial]], [[religion|religious]], etc.) who changes the world through [[invention]] or [[discovery (observation)|discovery]]. A typical culture hero might be credited as the discoverer of [[fire]], or [[agriculture]], [[folk music|songs]], [[tradition]] and [[religion]], and is usually the most important legendary figure of a people, sometimes as the founder of its ruling [[dynasty]]. The hero is sometimes said to be still living, but is often instead a [[star]], [[constellation]] or purely spiritual in nature. In many cultures, particularly [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American]], the mythical figure of the [[trickster]] and the culture hero are combined. To illustrate, [[Prometheus]], in [[Greek mythology]], stole fire from the gods to give it to humans. He is more of a culture hero than a trickster. In many Native American mythologies and beliefs, the [[coyote]] spirit stole fire from the gods (or stars or sun) and is more of a trickster than a culture hero. Natives from the Southeastern United States typically saw a [[rabbit]] trickster/culture hero. The [[Western Africa]]n trickster [[spider]] [[Ananse]] is also widely disseminated. In some cultures, there are dualistic myths, featuring two culture heroes arranging the world in a complementary manner. [[Dualistic cosmology|Dualistic cosmologies]] are present in all inhabited continents<ref>Zolotarjov 1980: 54</ref> and show great diversity: they may feature culture heroes, but also [[demiurge]]s (exemplifying dualistic [[creation myth]]s in the latter case), or other beings; the two heroes may compete or collaborate; they may be conceived as neutral or contrasted as good versus evil; be of the same importance or distinguished as powerful versus weak; be brothers (even twins) or be not relatives at all.<ref>Zolotarjov 180: 40–43</ref> The term is sometimes used to describe great authors or artists in a metaphorical sense (i.e. [[Mzwakhe Mbuli]], a [[South Africa]]n poet [http://www.mzwakhe.org/CULTURE.HTM]). ==Partial list== ===[[Abenaki mythology]]=== *[[Bedig-wajo]] (western) *[[Ktaden]] (eastern) *[[Glooscap]] ===[[Australian Aboriginal mythology]]=== *[[Bunjil]] *[[I'wai]] *[[Wurrunna]] ===[[Abrahamic mythology]] ([[Judaism]], [[Christianity]], [[Islam]])=== * [[Noah]] * [[Abraham]] * [[Isaac]] * [[Jacob]] * [[Moses]] * [[Jesus]] * [[Mohammed]] ===[[Armenian mythology]]=== *[[Haik]] *[[Vahagn]] *[[Aramazd]] *[[Anahit]] ===[[Ashanti mythology]]=== *[[Anansi]] ===[[Aztec mythology]]=== *[[Quetzalcoatl]] ===[[Banks Islander mythology]]=== *[[Qat (deity)|Qat]] ===[[Celtic mythology]] ([[Irish mythology|Irish]], [[Welsh mythology|Welsh]])=== *[[King Arthur]] *[[Cúchulainn]] *[[Lugh|Lug]] *[[Fionn mac Cumhail|Fionn mac Cumhail (Finn McCool)]] ===[[Chinese mythology]]=== *[[Huang Di]] *[[Yao (ruler)|Yao]] *[[Shun (Chinese leader)|Shun]] *[[Fu Xi]] *[[Guan Yu]] *[[Laozi]] *[[Bodhidharma]] *[[Zhang Sanfeng]] ===[[Egyptian mythology]]=== *[[Osiris]] *[[Thoth]] ===[[English mythology]]=== *[[Sceaf]] ===[[Etruscan mythology]]=== *[[Tarchon]] *[[Tyrrehenus]] ===[[Finnish mythology]]=== *[[Väinämöinen]] *[[Ilmarinen]] *[[Lemminkäinen]] ===[[Greek mythology]]=== *[[Cadmus]] *[[Cecrops I|Cecrops]] *[[Castor and Pollux]] *[[Herakles]] *[[Hermes]] *[[Palamedes (Greek mythology)|Palamedes]] *[[Perseus]] *[[Phoroneus]] *[[Prometheus]] *[[Triptolemos]] *[[Kratos]] ===[[Indian mythology]]=== *[[Rama]] *[[Lakshman]] *[[Krishna]] *[[Balarama]] *[[Hanuman]] *[[Arjuna]] *[[Bhima]] *[[Yudhishtira]] *[[Mamuni Mayan]] ===[[Inuit mythology]]=== *[[Apanuugak]] ===[[Lakota mythology]]=== *[[Iktomi]] ===[[Māori mythology]]=== *[[Tangaroa]] *[[Māui]] ===[[Maya mythology]]=== *[[Gukumatz]] *[[Maya Hero Twins]] ===[[Mesopotamian mythology]]=== *[[Gilgamesh]] *[[Enkidu]] *[[Utnapishtim|Ziusudra]] ===[[Ohlone mythology]]=== *[[Kaknu]] ===[[Navaho mythology]]=== *[[Changing Woman]] *The [[Diyin dine]] ===[[Norse mythology]]=== *[[Sigurd|Sigurd Fafnersbane]] *[[Beowulf (hero)|Beowulf]] *[[Starkad]] ===[[Ojibwe]] mythology=== *[[Nanabozho]] ===[[Persian mythology]]=== * [[Rostam]] * [[Sohrab]] ===[[Polynesian mythology]]=== *[[Atonga]] ===[[Roman mythology]]=== *[[Hercules]] *[[Janus (mythology)|Janus]] *[[Romulus and Remus|Romulus]]/[[Quirinus]] *[[Aeneas]] ===[[Serbian mythology]]=== *[[Saint Sava]] ===[[Slavic mythology]]=== *[[Dazbog]] ===[[Solomon Islander mythology]]=== *[[To-Kabinana]] ===[[Folklore of the United States|Mythology of the United States]]=== *[[Daniel Boone]] *[[Johnny Appleseed]] *[[Christopher Columbus]] *[[Pilgrims]] *[[George Washington]] ===[[Ute mythology]]=== *[[Cin-an-ev]] ===[[Weenhayek mythology]]=== *[[Ahutsetajwaj]] *[[Tapiatsa]] ===[[Wikipedian mythology]]=== *[[Jimbo Wales]] *[[Ayn Rand]] ===[[Zuni mythology]]=== *[[Yanauluha]] ==External links== *http://www.antro.uu.se/acta/sample_trickster.html *http://www.sacred-texts.com/pac/om/om12.htm == Notes == <references/> == References == * {{cite book |last=Zolotarjov |first=A.M. |chapter=Társadalomszervezet és dualisztikus teremtésmítoszok Szibériában |editor=Hoppál, Mihály |title=A Tejút fiai. Tanulmányok a finnugor népek hitvilágáról |pages=29–58 |publisher=Európa Könyvkiadó |location=Budapest |year=1980 |language=Hungarian |isbn= 963 07 2187 2}} Chapter means: "Social structure and dualistic creation myths in Siberia"; title means: "The sons of Milky Way. Studies on the belief systems of Finno-Ugric peoples". [[Category:Culture heroes| ]] [[it:Eroe culturale]] [[nl:Cultuurheld]] [[ja:文化英雄]] [[ru:Культурный герой]] [[zh:文化英雄]]