The Mythology and Folklore Database
B42T - The seven stars of the Big Dipper – animal.
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Source Data from Berezkin's Analytics Catalogue, if using this data please acknowledge and link to it here:
Ю.Е. Березкин, Е.Н. Дувакин. Тематическая классификация и распределение фольклорно-мифологических мотивов по ареалам. Аналитический каталог.
Summary of Motif
All seven stars of the Big Dipper (and not just the stars of the dipper) are considered to be the figure of an animal - a bear, moose, deer, ram, camel, or dog.Berezkin category: The Origins of the Characteristics of the environment
This is of motif type Cosmology and etiology and is part group 2, Moon spots, stars, constellations
B42 has 27 other sub-motifsB42. Hunters, their dogs, fleeing or killed animals are visible in the sky in the form of stars and constellations. B42a. Hunters chase a bear across the sky and kill it in August-October. The bear's blood or fat falls to the ground in the form of dew or colours the foliage red. See motif B42. B42b. In the cosmic hunting plot, the objects of pursuit are hoofed animals (elk, deer, mountain sheep). See motif B42. B42c. In the cosmic hunting plot, the object of pursuit is a bear. See motifs B42 and B42P. B42d. In the cosmic hunting plot, the object of pursuit is a bear. See motif B42. B42e. In the cosmic hunting plot, the object of pursuit is the rhea (Rhea americana, a large flightless bird). See motif B42. B42f. The Big Dipper (as a whole or only the dipper) is identified with a large hoofed animal (elk, deer, mountain sheep). Unless otherwise specified, see motif B42 in the description of cosmic hunting. B42g. The Big Dipper (as a whole or only the dipper) is identified with an animal (animals) pursued by hunters / attacked by other characters. B42h. Orion's Belt – game, another star or group of stars within or outside Orion – hunter. B42h1. In the plot of cosmic hunting, one of the astral objects is identified with an arrow or bullet, and it is emphasised that it struck an animal or three animals, which are identified with Orion's Belt. {In the Khoisan variants, it is emphasised that the arrow did not reach its target}. B42h2. A large reddish star (Betelgeuse or Aldebaran) is identified with an arrow. B42hh. Orion is associated with the theme of cosmic hunting. (Including motifs b42h, b42h1, b42m, b42r). B42i. Cassiopeia is associated with a deer or elk. B42k. In stories about cosmic hunting, the object of pursuit or the hunters are identified with the Pleiades. See motif B42. B42l. The stars of the handle of the Big Dipper are hunters, the dipper itself is a bear, an elk or a meat storehouse where the bear climbs. B42m. The three stars of the Big Dipper's handle are three men (hunters, thieves). The stars of the dipper are the object they seek to obtain (the hunted animal; the bed). Alcor (a faint star near Mizar) is a container, a vessel carried by the second of the three characters. B42m1. The three main stars of the Big Dipper's handle are associated with people of three different nationalities. B42m2. The stars of the Big Dipper's handle are three hunters chasing a beast. Each has a distinct character (one is boastful, another is hasty, etc.). In Siberia, the hunters are identified with people of different nationalities, and in the North American Northeast, with birds of different species. B42mn. Only one character (rather than several) chases an animal (elk or bear) across the sky, associated with one of the circumpolar constellations, but not with the Pleiades or Orion. (In the Kalevala tradition, there is no identification with stars). B42n. The constellation Orion is identified with a man, usually a giant, warrior, or hunter. B42o. A certain constellation is represented by a person who has been struck or wounded in the back. B42o1. The Big Dipper is identified with the fisher (Mustela pennati). B42p. The Big Dipper is identified with a bear. B42q. Ursa Major – chariot, cart. B42r. The three stars of Orion's Belt are three characters chasing each other. B42s. The Big Dipper or Polar Star – a small animal (ermine, marten, forest marmot) or anthropomorphic character with animal features, struck by a spear or arrow. B42t. All seven stars of the Big Dipper (and not just the stars of the dipper) are considered to be the figure of an animal - a bear, moose, deer, ram, camel, or dog. B42U. The stars of the handle of the Big Dipper – three people, and the four stars of the dipper – animals or objects (one or more). Click here if would you like to see a distrbution map combining all of B42's motifs? |
Top 10 Motifs with similar dispersal patterns
| Motif | Similarity | Motif Summary |
|---|---|---|
| L42 | 91.28% | After capturing the character, the enemy brings the prey home or to the place where he intends to eat it. The character runs away and escapes. |
| B87 | 91.03% | Alcor (a faint star next to the second star of the Big Dipper's handle) stands out as a separate celestial object. |
| B48D | 91.02% | People or objects swallowed by a pike become part of its body (bones in its head, liver). |
| K32K | 91.02% | The false wife, replacing the real one – a foul-smelling beetle or larva. |
| K66C | 90.17% | A bear (lion) takes a woman away, or a she-bear takes a man away. They have children who are either human or bear-like in appearance. Less commonly, a woman gives birth to a son in a den because she was pregnant at the time of her abduction by the bear. |
| A32E | 89.95% | On the lunar (rarely: solar) disc, a character holding an object or animal is visible. See motif A32D. |
| M29B2 | 87.38% | As a result of its stupidity or antisocial behavior, the bear dies or suffers damage. See the motives in square brackets. |
| F65A | 86.70% | The spouse leaves the character at the burial site; the (pretend) dead person comes back to life and leaves to be with their lover. |
| K27P1 | 86.62% | The father-in-law (less often the mother-in-law) orders the hero to kill or tame a dangerous animal or not to kill a certain animal while hunting. This animal is himself or his daughter (wife). |
| K125 | 86.18% | The pursuer asks various objects where the hero is hiding or where he has run. Everyone remains silent, but one of the objects betrays the hero. |
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Map of Motif Dispersal
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This motif has been recorded in 32 traditions: Tuareg, Burmese, Intha, Karen, Pa-O, Padaung, Kayah, Portuguese, Portugal, Ancient Italy: Latins, Etruscans, Magna Graecia, Greeks (modern), Balkarians, Ancient Greece, Western Sami, Byelarusians, Belarusians, Russians: Central part of ethnic territory as in A.D. 1500 (Tver, Yaroslavl, Moscow, Kostroma, Vladimir, Ivanovo, Nizhny Novgorod, Ryazan, Tula, Kaluga, Smolensk provinces; in case of absence in other areas also Russians in Vyatka, Perm, Kazan provinces), Mari (Cheremis), Mansi, Eastern Khanty (Ostyaks), Forest Nenets, Central Yakuts (Sakha), Tungus (Evenki): Baikal region, Evenks, Chuvans, Russian-speaking Creols of Markovo, Aleuts, North Alaskan Inupiat, Copper, Netsilik, Caribou, Iglulik, Baffin Land Inuit, Labrador Inuit (Koksoagmiut), Micmac, Chilkotin, Zuni, Western Keres (Acoma, Laguna), Cañari, Arabs (literary tradition; incl. One Thousand and One Nights), Phoenicia