Berezkin Analytical Catalogue · Motif
J16 — Refuses to eat insects.
Source data for narratives and traditions is drawn from Berezkin’s Analytical Catalogue. If you use this data, please acknowledge and link to it: Ю.Е. Березкин, Е.Н. Дувакин. Тематическая классификация и распределение фольклорно-мифологических мотивов по ареалам. Аналитический каталог.
Summary of motif
OverviewThe character perishes because, being forced to look for insects in the head of another, he refuses to chew insects, spits them out in disgust, or is suspected of doing so.
Berezkin category: Avenger heroes: The amerinday cycle
This is of motif type Adventures and tricks and is part of group 10, Adventures.
Top 10 motifs with similar dispersal patterns
Phylogeny| Motif | Similarity | Motif summary |
|---|---|---|
| B27B | 99.59% | The characters ponder what they should transform into and decide to become a celestial object. |
| M73 | 98.20% | Two characters compare their excrement or vomit to learn about each other's diet and decide which of them is the more powerful beast. One of them manages to replace the selections. (Traditions in which vomiting is substituted are greasy). |
| K18A | 97.66% | The boy's father is recognised as the man whose bow or arrows he chooses. See motif K18. |
| L9A | 96.54% | The character's leg is crippled (intentionally or accidentally) or originally pointed. He uses the pointed bone for hunting, fishing or killing people. |
| C12A | 95.04% | The dog warns of an impending global flood or fire and advises what to do. |
| B27 | 94.95% | The characters ponder what object or creature they should transform into, and once they have made their choice, they undergo metamorphosis. |
| L68 | 93.75% | Left alone (usually at night in a deserted place) with his companion, a man undergoes a monstrous metamorphosis. |
| L31 | 93.62% | People are forced against their will to follow an object, person or animal (usually sticking to it) that carries them far away (usually into water or into the sky). |
| E14 | 93.48% | Rituals received from the spirits of the dead. |
| E13A | 93.25% | Sacred knowledge, objects and rituals were first obtained by humans from the inhabitants of the underwater world. |
See the 100 most similar distributions →
Map of motif dispersal
DistributionDrag the map to pan, use the scroll wheel to zoom — choose a texture or projection below
Traditions
14 recordedThis motif has been recorded in 14 traditions: Dan (=Gio), Guro (=Kweni, incl Gagu, Neio), Toura, Mano, Ngere, Beng, Guro , Menominee, Blackfoot, Comanche, Gros Ventre, Assiniboine, Pomo, Tewa (San Juan, Santa Clara, San Ildefonso, Tesuque, Nambe; Hano), Tiwa (Taos, Picuris; Sandia, Isleta), Towa (Jemez), Shuar, Achuar (Shiwiar), Machiguenga, Piro (Yine), Yuracare, Chacobo, Trumai
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How to cite: Fielder-White, J. (2026). The Folklore Database. https://folkloredatabase.com
0009-0006-1672-4451
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