Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Debate Which Country Has The Best Mythology

There is so much overlap once you start reading the myths from different cultures and times. Myths were originally a way to explain life and nature around us.

How these stories traveled around the world is pretty fascinating. Each culture has their own take! I recently chose to delve into Greek mythology again and it's been a blast. The Greek gods are as capricious as the average human, which is probably the point.

People shared their thoughts after Redditor Basalt420 asked the online community,

"What country has the best mythology?"

"If you do enough research..."

"Celtic mythology around The Fae is a pretty interesting rabbit hole to go down. If you do enough research, you start to realize that a lot of ancient civilizations with no connection to one another have similar versions."

drbrdrbrdrbr

It's so interesting to me how many separate countries have stories of similar creatures. Obviously some stories just traveled from place to place, but some are totally separate and developed independently.

"As a small child..."

" Japan. They terrify the s*it out of you."

"As a small child (maybe 3-4), I lived in Japan. One day, the preschool teacher told us that these two demons were going to come down from the mountains to try and kidnap us and eat our belly buttons."

AccurateFroyo3769

Maybe that's why crime rates in Japan or so low. They instill the fear of mountain demons in you as a child.

"The Norse Gods..."

"The Norse gods have parallels in the other Germanic countries but the myths weren't preserved (sadly). 19th century folklorists did a lot of research on this. Also, Celtic and Slavic cultures have a similarly rich god/goddess/mythical creature cosmology."

"They share a common Indo-European heritage. The various different hunter gatherer tribes (eg, beaker culture) swept across Europe 8,000 years ago creating the tapestry we know today. I'm still reading up on this and studying it so my understanding is still a bit vague."

kai_wulf_dug

Norse myths are fascinating – it's very easy to fall down a rabbit hole reading about them.

"It's so good..."

"Greek mythology is absolutely the winner. It’s so good that I think people aren’t voting it just because it’s so ingrained in us and we’ve seen it to death."

TheRavenSayeth

Greek mythology is undoubtedly unparalleled.

"If asked..."

"Egypt needs to be higher on the list. If asked, most people will recognize the names of a lot of Egyptian gods."

vskizzle

Egyptian mythology fascinated me as a child and has held a special place in my heart since.

"I had a book..."

"I had a book called The Rainbow Serpent about Aboriginal creation myths when I was a kid, and the stories have always stayed with me."

LeChiotChattetique

Dreamtime is the foundation of Aboriginal religion and culture. It dates back some 65,000 years.

"There's a great series..."

"There's a great series on Netflix called Cracow Monsters which is based around Slavic mythologies."

beccapenny

Glad you like it, but calling it great is... a stretch.

"Haven't they got..."

"Hindu mythology. Haven't they got mythology about gods flying over the world in flying machines, waging war and dropping nukes on each other? Amazing stuff."

sfxpaladin

Hindu mythology has some masterpiece anime level plot twists.

"I've been reading..."

"I've been reading into the mythologies of a few Native American tribes recently. While not my favorite, the Aztec mythos is so absurdly brutal that it's really worth checking out."

Hrparsely

You should check out South American mythology. Peru, Bolivia, Brazil and Colombia have some great stuff!

"I've extensively read..."

"I’ve extensively read Greek, Roman, and Egyptian mythology while I growing up. I’ve got to say Greek mythology has been my favorite. The origin stories to how callous (and not above changing fates on a whim) the gods/goddesses are is just such entertaining reading."

Platinumfish53

The Greek gods are the definition of petty and we love it.

Down the rabbit hole you go! Every culture has its own myths and you don't have to look too closely to come across a multitude of similarities.

Have some suggestions of your own? Feel free to tell us more in the comments below!

Want to "know" more?

Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Melania Tump at event with Israeli hostages
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Melania Ripped After Using Event With Freed Israeli Hostages To Promote Her New Documentary

First Lady Melania Trump was criticized after she used an event at the White House with freed Israeli hostages to promote her new documentary Melania, which follows her in the 20 days leading up to President Donald Trump’s second inauguration following the 2024 presidential election.

Amazon MGM paid $40 million for the distribution rights and reportedly poured another $35 million into marketing. The film beat box office predictions to earn more than $7 million over the weekend but will need to generate much more box office to break even.

Keep ReadingShow less
A woman staring out into the ocean
a woman standing on a beach looking out at the ocean
Photo by Cosiela Borta on Unsplash

People Divulge Which Things Scream 'This Person Is Insecure' Without Them Saying A Word

Be it our bodies, our clothes, our jobs, or our personalities, everyone has some insecurity.

Of course, some people's insecurities are easier to notice than others.

Keep ReadingShow less
Tianna Graham stands beside her ice-encased 2016 Honda Civic on North Front Street in Philadelphia’s Fishtown neighborhood.
@tiannag444/TikTok; @NBCPhiladelphia/TikTok

Philly Woman Goes Viral With Her Totally Chill Reaction To Her Car Being Completely Frozen In Ice

While the Northeast battled winter weather, the internet was captivated by a Philly-based TikToker documenting how her car turned into what she jokingly described as a Snowmaggedon popsicle.

Last week, Tianna Graham shoveled out her 2016 Honda Civic and drove out after a snowstorm, took it to work, and parked it in the same spot she’d left it before: next to a water main. By the time she returned, her vehicle was completely encased in ice on the 1000 block of North Front Street in Philadelphia’s Fishtown neighborhood.

Keep ReadingShow less
Letter from Redditor Fit_Bowl_7313
u/Fit_Bowl_7313/Reddit

Dad Sparks Heated Debate After 'Nice Note' He Left For Wife And Kids Before Work Trip Sets Her Off

When a person becomes a parent, much more will change in their life than they anticipated.

But that transition can be especially hard when a person feels like they're losing themselves to their role as a mom or dad—and that feeling is made even worse when their partner hyper-fixates on their new role.

Keep ReadingShow less
Luke Granger; memorial for Renée Good
C-SPAN; Scott Olson/Getty Images

Renée Good's Brother Shares Emotional Testimony On Capitol Hill To Condemn ICE In Viral Clip

On Tuesday, House and Senate Democrats listened to testimony from United States citizens who were assaulted, injured, shot, or otherwise adversely affected by the administration of MAGA Republican President Donald Trump through Kristi Noem's Department of Homeland Security (DHS) via employees of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Their Republican colleagues were invited, but none chose to attend.

Keep ReadingShow less