Berezkin Analytical Catalogue · Motif

L109 — The man-eating pumpkin.

42 Myths, legends and folktales

42 Unique narratives for motif L109

28 Cultures & traditions where L109 is told

1 Sub-motifs of motif L109

Please log on to view the narratives.

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

The pumpkin turns out to be a monster-devourer and/or grows from the remains of a monster.

Berezkin category: Adventures: Monsters and evil spirits

This is of motif type Adventures and tricks and is part of group 10, Adventures.

L10 has 1 other sub-motifs

L10. The character has a sharp (biting) tail or a protrusion on its back. See motif L9, cf. motif L9C.
L10a. A demonic character approaches a man's campfire. The man leaves a log in his place and hides. The character throws himself on the log, mistaking it for a sleeping man; usually, the hunter kills or wounds the demon.

🌐 See a combined distribution map for all of L10’s motifs

Top 10 motifs with similar dispersal patterns

Phylogeny

Motif	Similarity	Motif summary
B2G	100.00%	The chameleon walked on the ground when it had not yet hardened.
B98B	100.00%	The Bat comes into conflict with other creatures in connection with someone's death or funeral.
B98C	100.00%	The heavenly deity could have healed the bat's mother or child, but did not do so, and they died.
C30B	100.00%	In response to the claims of an animal or spirit, a person offers to remove their traces from the field or to walk without leaving any traces. The spirit is unable to do so.
D13HH	100.00%	A person visiting another world should not laugh or show surprise when seeing strange things. Those who break this rule will perish or suffer harm.
E1B1	100.00%	A man who has married an unusual girl is warned that she must not perform certain tasks or eat certain foods. Other members of his household ensure that the young woman breaks the prohibition, and as a result she dies or disappears.
E31B	100.00%	Several women participate in reviving a dead man and argue about who did more to revive him.
F73A	100.00%	The vulva is an unhealed wound on the body of the first women, or the first humans did not copulate because they thought that the vulva was a wound.
H1BB	100.00%	One character refuses to resurrect another's beloved dog, and this conflict is linked to the loss of the ability to resurrect people.
H31	100.00%	God summons several characters, including man and the heavenly bodies, and makes man mortal and the heavenly bodies immortal.

See the 100 most similar distributions →

Map of motif dispersal

Distribution

Drag the map to pan, use the scroll wheel to zoom — choose a texture or projection below

🌐 Open as Airocean (Dymaxion) map ↗

Traditions

28 recorded

This motif has been recorded in 28 traditions: Yao, Makua, Shone (Shona, =Mashona, =Karanga), Makoni (Shoni dialect), Remba (=Hungwe, Wahungwe); Zezuru, Rozwi, Ndau (Vandau), Tonga, Swahili, Midjikenda (incl Giryama), Nyika, Duruma; Ngindo, Kiluguru and other Islamic groups of the Eastern Coast of Africa, Kerewe, Sukuma, Kwaya, Kumbi, Busiba, Gusii, Suba, Nyatutu, Kiniramba, Isanzu, Fipa (Bafipa), Iramba, Bende, Kikuyu, Chuka, Embu, Emberre, Mwimbe, Gogo, Kaguru, Luguru, Zigula, Taveta, Shambala (Sambala), Bondei, Taeta, Dabida; Zaramo, Kamba, Tharaka, Kosa (Xosa, Xhosa), Tswana (Chwana), Suto (Soto; incl Pedi, Mbire), Tiv, Bamum (Bamun), Mungaka (Mgaka, Bali), Beba, Anaguta, Bete (Mbete, Karang), Ekoi, Nyang, Vute (Wute), Jukun, Chamba, Bamileke, Kwotto, Kirri; Denya (Nyang), Hausa, Sara, incl. Ngambaye (Ngambaï), Mbaï, Dan (=Gio), Guro (=Kweni, incl Gagu, Neio), Toura, Mano, Ngere, Beng, Guro , Kru: Kru proper, Sapo (Sapã), Grebo, Kran (Krahn, Guere-Krahn; incl. Putu, Tchien), Bete, Neyo, Wobe, Devoin (Dey), Belle (Kuwaa), Bassa, Sikon, Ewe, Kposso, "Togo-Restvölker" (Adele, Akebu, Akposso, Bowiri/Bowili, Santrokofi, Lelemi, Borada Akrade, Teteman, Baakwa, Bowiri), Northern Gur (Oti-Volta): Mamprussi, Dagomba, Dagari (Dagara; incl Lodaga), Bassari, Mosi, Nankanse, Konkomba, Moba; Ditammari, Nyende, Bulsa (pl Builsa, Bulo), Bia: Anyi, Agni, Baule, Nsema, Tenda (incl Bedik, Basari), Biafada, Nalu, Pajadinka, Badyara (Badiaranke), Sandawe, Miao (Hmong) and Yao of Southern China, Yucatec, Itza, Tonga (Tsonga; incl, Soli, Sala, Lenje), Mukulu (Mokilko), Iraq

Please log on to view the narratives.

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.