The Mythology and Folklore Database
J49 - The Moon's wife falls down.




15 Myths, Legends and Folktales
15 Unique Narratives for Motif J49
10 Cultures & Traditions where J49 is told
0 Mythemes Indexed
0 Sub-Motifs of Motif J49


Please log on to view the narratives.




 Motif Summary  -   Motifs with Simlar Dispersals  -    Map of Myth Distribution   -   List of Traditions  -   Myths



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

The wife and/or sister of the Moon unsuccessfully tries to climb up to him in the sky or reaches him but returns to earth.

Berezkin category: Avenger heroes: The amerinday cycle

This is of motif type Cosmology and etiology and is part group 1, Sun and Moon



Top 10 Motifs with similar dispersal patterns

MotifSimilarityMotif Summary
E3497.91%The cannibal is killed. From his ashes arise musical instruments taboo for women, used in male rituals.
B30A97.31%A fish emerges from the remains of a killed person or creature. At first, it is concentrated in one place, then spreads throughout the water.
B30B96.71%Animals arise from the remains of a killed person.
F2696.31%The transfer of sacred musical instruments (horns, trumpets) from women to men is associated with the onset of menstruation in women.
F49A93.09%A small animal (mouse, rat, rabbit, two-wombed animal, bird) explains how to give birth. See motif F49.
G8C93.04%The first ancestors try to cut down a tree (less often a high rock) to get useful plants hanging on the branches (at the top) or water or fish in the trunk. The damage disappears as soon as the workers are distracted from their work, or periodically.
I43B92.00%The Milky Way is a reptile, fish or chain of fish.
G1091.55%A tree whose trunk has been cut down remains hanging because it is held up from above.
J22D91.30%Foreigners or animals of two different species emerge from a single person or animal cut in half.
A2290.78%One or two people fall into fire or boiling water and ascend to the sky, turning into the sun and/or the moon.

 See more...

Please log on to view the narratives.



Map of Motif Dispersal

Click here for a clustered map

Drag the map around by clicking and using the mouse, use the wheel to zoom



This motif has been recorded in 10 traditions: Dusun, Murut, Kelabit, Tombonuwo, Bajau, Tidong, Bidayuh (incl. Maloh), Iban (Sea Dayak), Sakarram; Brunei, Palawan (incl Agutaynen), Sauk (Sak, Mesquakie), Fox, Kickapoo, Zapotec, Chatino, Napo (Quijo), Kanelo (“Jungle Kechua”), Shuar, Achuar (Shiwiar), Aguaruna, Huambiza, Witoto, Ocaina, Xipaya


Please log on to view the narratives.