Berezkin Analytical Catalogue · Motif
I46 — Rainbow belt.
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
OverviewRainbow – an ornamented part of clothing, bright fabric, decoration, belt.
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.
I46 has 5 other sub-motifs
RelatedI46. Rainbow – an ornamented part of clothing, bright fabric, decoration, belt.
I46a. The rainbow is associated with a woman, usually an elderly one.
I46b. The colour of the rainbow can be used to predict the harvest of individual crops.
I46c. The rainbow is a rope to which cattle are tied.
I46d. Rainbow – a hunting loop, a trap.
I46e. Rainbow - sword, cutting weapon.
Top 10 motifs with similar dispersal patterns
Phylogeny| Motif | Similarity | Motif summary |
|---|---|---|
| M91A | 97.82% | The character pierces a container of animal blood or other red liquid, simulating murder or suicide. Cf. motifs K10C (wrapped in giblets) and M199H (Giant's ripped belly). |
| K74 | 97.66% | Of two or more characters, each one stays at home or goes to fetch fire for cooking or brings food to the house. Each time, a certain character appears who eats the food and/or defeats the one who stayed behind or came to fetch fire. |
| L94 | 97.03% | A demon or animal helps a person or agrees to let them go, but in return takes a promise to give them a daughter or son. |
| K73A4 | 97.03% | Malicious women replace the newborn with a puppy (telling the father that his wife has given birth to a puppy). See motifs K73, K73A. |
| K72 | 96.82% | A character of high status meets or marries three (less often two or four) women. One (promises to bear and) bears him a son (children) with unusual qualities, the other two (promise to engage in and) engage in crafts or housekeeping, or intend to marry men of lower status. |
| K14A | 96.80% | The antagonist orders the killing of the first person to arrive at the agreed place in the morning. The hero is accidentally delayed, and the antagonist himself or his wife or son are killed. |
| M29B1 | 96.75% | As a result of his stupidity or antisocial behavior, the wolf dies or suffers damage. See the motives in square brackets. |
| L126 | 96.72% | An anthropomorphic character cooks and eats a bird, but the bird cries out from inside his stomach and escapes. The character dies or suffers harm. Cf. motif K132. |
| M85 | 96.68% | character unable to climb a tree threatens to knock it down or climb a trunk if a bird or squirrel does not drop a cub or egg. The third character explains that the threat is untenable. |
| K66 | 96.52% | Each of several companions or brothers excels others in some way (sees, hears, runs, etc. better than anyone else). Cf. motif K2B, "Gorynya and Dubyna". |
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
95 recordedThis motif has been recorded in 95 traditions: Akkad, Assyria, Babylonia, Greeks of Cyprus, Saudi Arabia, Arabs of Levant (Syria, Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan); Bedouins of Sinai, Arabs of Iraq, Iraqi, Arabs of Egypt, Berbers of southern Tunisia and adjacent part of Libya (Matmata and Ghadames areas), Amhara; Zay, Harari; Silte, Gogot, Oromo (Galla), Konso, Sidamo, Darasa, Bussa (Bassa), Kambata, Guji, Kalenjin; including Sabaot, Nandi (Nande), Arusha, Kipsigis, Pokot (Suk), Keiyo (Elgeiyo), Marakwet, Sebeei, Masai, Shone (Shona, =Mashona, =Karanga), Makoni (Shoni dialect), Remba (=Hungwe, Wahungwe); Zezuru, Rozwi, Ndau (Vandau), Mandingo (Manden, incl San, Samo), Kagoro, Bambara (Bamana), Malinke, Kassonke, Diula, Southern Cook Islands: Mangaia, Rarotonga, Atiu, Iatutakim Pukapuka, Tubuai (=Austral Islands, incl Rapa), Mangareva, Hawaii, Flores, incl Mangarai (Western Flores), Nage, Keo, Riung, Ngada or Nad'a (Central Flores), Sika (Eastern Flores), Northern Luzon: Apayao, Bontoc, Nabaloi (Ibaloi), Ifugao, Igorot (highland people, not specified), Ilocan, Ilongot, Isneg, Kalinga, Kankanay, Tingian (Tinggian, Bilongan Itneg); Ibanag, Kasiguran Agta, Keley-i Kallahan, Southern Taiwan: Rukai, Paiwan, Puyuma, Saaroa, Ketangalan, Kachin (Singpho), Chak, Miao (Hmong) and Yao of Southern China, Early Chinese written sources, Spain, Spaniards, France, Germans: North (Low- and Central German dialects): Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg, Pommern, Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony, incl East Frisia and Oldenburg), Nordrhein-Westfalen, Hessen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Thüringen, Saxony-Anhalt, Sachsen, Brandenburg, Rügen, Poles, Greeks (modern), Balkarians, Bulgarians, Balkarians, Macedonians, Balkarians, Serbs, Monte Negro, Balkarians, Croatians, Croats; Italians of Dalmatia (if the motif is absent among other Italians), Slovenians, Slovenes, Romanians, Moldavians, Aromanians, Moldovans, Albanians, Balkarians, Lithuanians, Livonians, Estonians, Vepsians, Western Sami, Eastern Sami (including Skolts), Swedes, Western Ukrainians, Byelarusians, Belarusians, Tajik, Iranian literary tradition (including Avesta, Pahlevi scripts, Sah-nameh, Marzban-nameh); Zoroastrians of Iran, Indian Parsees, Zoroastrianism, Ossetians, Nogai, Tats, Svans, Mingrelians (Megrelians), Laz, Georgians, Armenians, Crimean Tatars, Karaims, Gagauz, Azeris (Azerbaijanis), Kurds, Talysh, Kirghiz, Kazan (Middle Volga) Tatars, Bashkirs, Mordvins, Tuvinians of Tuva, Tuvans, Khakas, Southern Altai: Altai proper (Altai-Kiji), Telengit, Altaians, Northern Altai: Chelkan, Kumanda, Tubalar, Altaians, Nenets, Southern Selkups, Northern Selkups, Central Yakuts (Sakha), Tungus (Evenki): Baikal region, Evenks, Ainu, Nivkh, Wawenock, Abenaki, Penobscot, Western Ojibwa (Chippewa), Eastern Ojibwa (Missisauga, Timagami and other groups in eastern Ontario), Northern Ojibwa (=Severn Ojibwa, Sandy Lake Cree), Naskapi, Montagnais, Arapaho, Plains Ojibwa, Lkungen (Straits; including Samish, Songish, Sooke, Lummi), Klallam, Cherokee, Northern Paiute (=Paviotso), Zuni, Pima, Chinantec, Mazatec, Barasana, Taibano, Macuna, Arabs (literary tradition; incl. One Thousand and One Nights), Eastern Ukrainians, Northern Ukrainians, Byzantine, Bosnians, Itelmen, Morocco, Montenegro
If you wish to get access to data for projects and research, then please contact us, we do our best to help
How to cite: Fielder-White, J. (2026). The Folklore Database. https://folkloredatabase.com
0009-0006-1672-4451
Where applicable, users should also cite the relevant original sources, catalogues, and classification systems, including Berezkin, ATU, Thompson, and other cited authorities, alongside the page accessed and the last time accessed.
Editorial annotations and database enhancements © Jonathan Fielder-White licensed under CC BY 4.0. Berezkin-derived narrative and metadata licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. Full rights information can be found here.
All rights are reserved in the database structure, selection, arrangement, metadata, classifications, software, interface design, and original editorial content.
Important: The Folklore Database expressly reserves all rights in relation to text and data mining, automated extraction, scraping, machine learning, dataset creation, and the training, development, validation, or improvement of artificial intelligence technologies or systems. No part of this website or database may be scraped, copied, reproduced, harvested, downloaded in bulk, or otherwise used for AI training or commercial data extraction without prior written permission.
Designed and Developed by Jon Fielder-White.
© 2024–2026 Crecganford / Jonathan Fielder-White. All rights reserved.