Berezkin Analytical Catalogue · Motif
J8 — Feathers at the crossroads.
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
OverviewA woman or girl sets out in search of a husband (fiancé, etc.). Bird feathers left on the trail, at a crossroads or near a dwelling mark the right or wrong path. See motif J7.
Berezkin category: Avenger heroes: The amerinday cycle
This is of motif type Adventures and tricks and is part of group 10, Adventures.
Top 10 motifs with similar dispersal patterns
Phylogeny| Motif | Similarity | Motif summary |
|---|---|---|
| K6 | 99.11% | A vine or rope emerges from tears, snot, urine, saliva, and chewed substance. See motif K1A. |
| C13 | 98.69% | During or before the onset of a global catastrophe (flood, darkness) or (surui) at night, household items and/or stones, trees, domestic animals, and cultivated plants turn into wild birds and animals or come to life. |
| I54 | 98.30% | Inside a snake or other aquatic creature are aquatic animals or live fish; an aquatic monster gives birth to fish, is the master of fish; turns into many fish. |
| L11 | 97.98% | Everyday objects take the form of fish, invertebrates, reptiles, dangerous predators, or objects that transform into these animals under special circumstances. |
| F19 | 97.44% | After copulating with a frog, a man's penis is crippled (unless otherwise stated: it becomes long, see motif F18A). |
| M9A | 97.44% | A character who eagerly sucks honey from a hollow and/or gets stuck in a hollow turns into a tree frog. See M9 motif. |
| F37 | 97.41% | To summon her lover, the character taps on a calabash placed on the water. |
| B56 | 97.34% | The crocodile/caiman is left without a tongue after swallowing or losing the fire (which it previously possessed); something associated with heavenly fire (lightning, sunbeams, etc.) emerges from the crocodile's severed tongue. |
| K13B | 97.27% | A man crosses a body of water on the back of a caiman. The caiman bites off his leg. The cripple undergoes a metamorphosis, turning into a constellation or an animal. |
| M2 | 97.27% | The hero descends from a tree or rock on the back of an animal or on the backs of animals. |
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
Cite this map
Distribution of the traditions attesting motif J8, ‘Feathers at the crossroads.’, as recorded in the Berezkin–Duvakin Analytical Catalogue of Folklore Motifs (20 traditions mapped). Geolocation and cartography by Jonathan Fielder-White, Folklore Database, release 1.26206.1 (25 July 2026), https://www.folkloredatabase.com/motif/J8 (accessed 8 August 2026). Basemap © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Traditions
20 recordedThis motif has been recorded in 20 traditions: Thompson (Nlaka'pamux), Lower Chehalis, Upper Chehalis, (Lower) Cowlitz, Quinault, Tewa (San Juan, Santa Clara, San Ildefonso, Tesuque, Nambe; Hano), Tiwa (Taos, Picuris; Sandia, Isleta), Towa (Jemez), Sicuani, Yanomamo (Yanoama): Yanomam, Yanomami, Napo (Quijo), Kanelo (“Jungle Kechua”), Kandoshi (Murato, Maina); Iquito, Shuar, Achuar (Shiwiar), Aguaruna, Huambiza, Chayahuita , Barasana, Taibano, Macuna, Desana, Siriano; Tatuyo, Bara, Tuyuca, Baniwa (incl. Wakuenai), Bare, Piapoco, Curripaco, Siusi, Guarikena , Tariana, Suruí, Gaviâo, Zoro, Arua, Cinta Larga, Mehinaku, Waura, Yaulapiti, Iranxe, Paresi, Caraja
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, Jonathan (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 Jonathan Fielder-White.
© 2024–2026 Crecganford / Jonathan Fielder-White. All rights reserved.