Berezkin Analytical Catalogue · Motif
I27C — Four-eyed dog.
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
OverviewDogs with two spots above their eyes stand out and are usually called two- or four-eyed.
Berezkin category: Supernatural objects, objects and creatures
This is of motif type Cosmology and etiology and is part of group 7, Etiology of plants and animals and of their peculiar features, particular animals as protagonists of cosmological stories, metamorphoses, weather and calendar.
I27 has 4 other sub-motifs
RelatedI27. The dog and/or (rarely) the domestic cat is the master, guardian of the land of the dead, guide on the way there; dogs live on the way to the land of the dead. (For indirect evidence and similar beliefs, see also Benson 1991).
I27a. The souls of dead dogs go to a special place in the afterlife and/or go to the afterlife along a special path.
I27b. A dog carries a person across a river to another world. See motif I27.
I27c. Dogs with two spots above their eyes stand out and are usually called two- or four-eyed.
I27d. There is a certain black or red dog that (is associated with objects in the night sky and) negatively affects people's lives.
Top 10 motifs with similar dispersal patterns
Phylogeny| Motif | Similarity | Motif summary |
|---|---|---|
| I57 | 97.81% | Thunder's enemies are animals, reptiles, and spirits that live in burrows. They usually hide from him in various objects and items, and Thunder (a god, angel, etc.) strikes his enemies or these objects with lightning. |
| N36 | 96.21% | is said about the horse that it jumps above trees (grass, the surface of the earth) and below the sky (clouds, clouds). |
| L42E | 94.72% | A demon catches the hero, carries him home, but the hero escapes on the way. The demon returns, catches the hero again, and this time brings him to his home. Or the demon catches and carries several children, but they escape on the way, leaving only one, whom the demon brings to his home. |
| I52 | 94.24% | The world rests on a fish or fish-like creature, or the earth itself is such a creature or originated from a fish. See motif I8B. |
| M38D | 94.15% | Two or more characters, which are small objects or small animals, live or travel together and die one by one while committing protozoa actions. |
| A32F | 93.76% | On the lunar disc, a character is visible who has gone to fetch water and/or is holding a vessel for liquid in his hands. See motif A32D. |
| K98 | 93.30% | An animal or (less commonly) a woman who gave birth to a hero or helped him turns into a house and property. |
| E9I1 | 93.02% | Before meeting the hero, his beloved (wife, helper) takes the form of a swan. |
| L42B | 93.01% | After capturing the hero, the antagonist brings him home and leaves him in the care of a family member. The latter believes the hero's words and follows his instructions. See motif L42. |
| H44 | 92.97% | A human enters into a relationship with a non-human being. When they part, the being tears apart (or intends to tear apart) their child. (Most of the data was collected by S.Y. Neklyudov). |
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
36 recordedThis motif has been recorded in 36 traditions: Indian literary tradition (Vedic, Brahman, Purana, Indian Buddhism, Hinduism, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Panchtantra, Jatakas); iconography of Hindu temples, Wales, Bulgarians, Balkarians, Macedonians, Balkarians, Serbs, Monte Negro, Balkarians, Livonians, Estonians, Western Ukrainians, Rushani, Shughni, Khufi, Bartangi, Persians, Iranian literary tradition (including Avesta, Pahlevi scripts, Sah-nameh, Marzban-nameh); Zoroastrians of Iran, Indian Parsees, Zoroastrianism, Kalmyk, Chuvash, Komi (Zyrians and Permyaks), Eastern Khanty (Ostyaks), Buryats: Western (cis Baikal), Oirats (incl Torgouts, Derbets, Oilots), Tuvinians of Tuva, Tuvans, Khakas, Central Yakuts (Sakha), Dolgans, Tungus (Evenki): Baikal region, Evenks, Tungus (Evenki) of China (Solon, Birar, Oroqen, Manegir), Evenks, Tungus (Evenki): Russian Far East, Evenks, Nanai, Olcha (Ulch), Negidal, Nivkh, Manchu, Forest (Upper Kolyma) Yukaghir, Five Nations Iroquois (Seneca, Mohawk, Onondaga, Oneida, Cayuga), Eastern Ukrainians, Northern Ukrainians, Buryats: Eastern (trans Baikal), i.e. Khori, Japan, Russian Federation
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