Berezkin Analytical Catalogue · Motif
I41B1 — The rainbow swallows fish.
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 rainbow drinks, swallowing fish, people, etc. along with the water. Sometimes this fish falls from the sky to the ground.
Berezkin category: Supernatural objects, objects and creatures
This is of motif type Cosmology and etiology and is part of group 3, Cosmogony, the earth and the sky, etiology of the elements, natural and biological phenomena (fire, water, soil, thunderstorms, dream, etc.), cataclysms and cosmic threats, spirits of nature.
I41 has 5 other sub-motifs
RelatedI41. A rainbow is a reptile (usually a snake), less often a fish or snake-like, usually dangerous, object (snake tongue, scorpion tail).
I41a. A rainbow rises from an anthill or termite mound.
I41b. The rainbow drinks (draws into itself) water (and living creatures).
I41b1. The rainbow drinks, swallowing fish, people, etc. along with the water. Sometimes this fish falls from the sky to the ground.
i41b2. A rainbow emerges from the mouth of a reptile, amphibian or invertebrate animal.
I41c. Rainbow or Milky Way â reflection of a snake (fish) on land or in the sea.
Top 10 motifs with similar dispersal patterns
Phylogeny| Motif | Similarity | Motif summary |
|---|---|---|
| F9A1 | 99.89% | A girl or young woman says (pretends) that she has a predatory mouth in her vagina. {Unlike variants characteristic of the circum-Pacific region, the corresponding texts do not suggest that the female womb is actually dangerous}. |
| K171 | 99.81% | The heroes fight, but the number of enemies does not decrease, because someone is constantly weaving (forging) new warriors. |
| K93B4 | 99.67% | When a woman gives birth to a son, at the same time a mare (dog, and/or other domestic animals) give birth to a boy. These boys grow up together and then set off on a journey. |
| K35C2 | 99.61% | When the ship unexpectedly stops, the hero descends to the bottom of the sea, behaves correctly with the local inhabitants, and returns to the ship. |
| K73B1 | 99.59% | A woman with her newborn son (pregnant with a boy) or a girl with a young man are placed in a barrel (box; rarely: in a boat) and lowered into the sea (river). |
| K175 | 99.33% | A man was carrying flour, but the wind blew it away. The man complains to an authoritative figure and usually receives compensation. Cf. motif M57d3 ("The Wind-Giver"). |
| K33A4 | 99.26% | A woman, transformed into a medium-sized forest animal (lynx, wolf, vixen) by the machinations of a rival, tries to establish contact with her children or husband. |
| L17A1 | 99.25% | Characters with a sequentially increasing number of eyes follow the hero or heroine. He or she puts the eyes to sleep one by one, but forgets about the last one. |
| L42I1 | 99.23% | A boy is rowing a boat. A witch lures him out and carries him away. The boy escapes. |
| K93B1 | 99.19% | After eating fish, a childless woman gives birth to a boy or twins. |
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
15 recordedThis motif has been recorded in 15 traditions: England, British, Bretons, France, Poles, Serbs, Monte Negro, Balkarians, Croatians, Croats; Italians of Dalmatia (if the motif is absent among other Italians), Livonians, Vepsians, Swedes, Western Ukrainians, Byelarusians, Belarusians, Central Yakuts (Sakha), Choco: Embera, Nonama (Waunana), XVI century Dabaiba, pre-Columbian iconography of Sinu, Eastern Ukrainians, Northern Ukrainians, Russian Federation
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