Berezkin Analytical Catalogue · Motif

N33 — Drives the enemy into the ground

88 Myths, legends and folktales
88 Unique narratives for motif N33
46 Cultures & traditions where N33 is told
1 Sub-motifs of motif N33
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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

Overview

hero drives the enemy into the ground, or he and the enemy alternately drive each other into the ground (ankle-deep, waist-deep, etc.).

Berezkin category: Fabulous and epic formulas

This is of motif type Adventures and tricks and is part of group 13, Formulae.

N33 has 1 other sub-motifs

Related

N33.  hero drives the enemy into the ground, or he and the enemy alternately drive each other into the ground (ankle-deep, waist-deep, etc.).
N33A.  The character's opponents trample him into the ground.

🌐 See a combined distribution map for all of N33’s motifs

Top 10 motifs with similar dispersal patterns

Phylogeny
MotifSimilarityMotif summary
I87AA99.81%Describes a giant bull (rarely: horse): head in one field, body in another; a bathhouse on its tail, a lake on its back; people standing at its head and tail have to walk a long way to meet each other; etc. Usually the bull is killed and eaten (by people in Baltic-Finnish traditions and in Olonets antiquity; by birds in most southern traditions).
K85B99.69%The three-legged horse is distinguished by its strength and speed, and is ridden by a rider of non-human nature.
N1499.68%fairy-tale text ends with a formula stating that the narrator attended a feast and/or wedding arranged by the characters of the fairy tale.
N27C99.54%It is claimed that the bird has no milk and/or breasts
K27SS99.53%A strong man must overtake a woman, often an old woman. This is difficult or impossible to achieve.
L108E99.52%A fox has a child, usually adopted (she cares for a lamb, a foal, etc.), a wolf or a bear kills it, and the fox takes revenge.
L81C99.36%The legless man lives together with the blind and armless man (or with one of the two). By working together, they are healed.
B3399.36%There is a female character who embodies the wind or is considered the mother or mistress of the winds.
N2799.27%Bird milk (variant: chicken, pigeon, hawkish, etc.) milk is mentioned in fairy tales, riddles, paroemias and conspiracies as something very rare and difficult to obtain or non-existent actually.
K85C99.24%A three-legged horse is strong and fast, but its four-legged brother is faster.

See the 100 most similar distributions →

Map of motif dispersal

Distribution

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Traditions

46 recorded

This motif has been recorded in 46 traditions: Khmu (Kammu), Puoc, Ireland, Slovakians, Slovaks, Hungarians, Greeks (modern), Balkarians, Romanians, Moldavians, Aromanians, Moldovans, Latvians, Setu, Western Ukrainians, Byelarusians, Belarusians, Uzbek, Sarikoli, Tajik, Abaza (Abazins), Cherkassians, Adyghe, Kabardin, Abkhaz, Abkhazians, Karachays, Balkar, Ossetians, Ingush, Dargin (Dargwa), incl. Mรผregin, Khรผrkilin, Kubachi, Avar, Andi, Akhvakh, Kumyk, Terekemen, Nogai, Tats, Georgians, Armenians, Kazan (Middle Volga) Tatars, Bashkirs, Mari (Cheremis), Mordvins, Chuvash, Eastern Khanty (Ostyaks), Tungus (Evenki): Baikal region, Evenks, Tungus (Evenki) of China (Solon, Birar, Oroqen, Manegir), Evenks, Tungus (Evenki): Russian Far East, Evenks, Inland Tlingit, Tlingit, Eastern Cree, Plains Cree, Chechens, Eastern Ukrainians, Northern Ukrainians, Lutsi (Ludza), Transylvanian Saksons, Rusyns, Hutsuls, Russian Federation

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