Vampires, fairies, mythological creatures, and monsters co-exist in tales and stories. Overcome by sadness, he walked through every room in search of the room where he was born. Often, these accounts are accompanied by the imagery of one or several World Pillars, which sustain the earth from below and are usually placed beneath mountains. So, the Romanian Vasilisc is just like the Basilisk from Harry Potter? What is the difference between a Moroi and a Strigoi in Romanian folklore? With immense dark forests, mysterious mountains, and, in many periods of history, enemies on all sides, its no wonder the stories are often quite dark. The Transylvanian Folklore has a lot of legends, myths and haunting creatures: from the well-known vampires to werewolves, Moroi, Strigoi, iele, and all kinds of monsters! The Romanian folklore is a big happy family. Folklore has been an integral part of Romanian culture for many centuries. Rozalinda agreed to be turned into a human and so the two lived happily ever after. When great floods came, Jidovii took care of people and their animals without asking for any reward. Not to mention great and powerful heroes without age and giants who keep guard over the earth! And this is my "build" which is inspired by Slavic mythological folk tale creatures such as Baba Yaga or maybe Swamp Kikimora. Traditional folk arts include wood carving, ceramics, weaving and embroidery of costumes, household decorations, dance, and richly varied folk music. Other rare natural phenomena such as Eclipses or Comets were seen as a sign of impending doom. Long considered a venomous monstrosity, the Basilisk surfaced as a folkloric character in Europe in the Middle Ages. There are many stories of men being mutilated or losing their ability to talk after discovering these beautiful but cruel creatures. This is a mythical creature in South Slavic mythology. The Lore Behind Supernatural's Zanna If people refuse to help them while they are in disguise, they bring hail and strong storms to ruin the crops. They lived in caves and thick woods, enjoyed talking and respected the little humans, which they considered their successors, the next owners of all the rivers and mountains. As mentioned in the show, Zanna derive from Romanian folklore. "While Reading Vasmer's Dictionary" In: Learn how and when to remove these template messages, Learn how and when to remove this template message, introducing citations to additional sources, Traditional Popular Civilisation ASTRA Museum, Youth Without Aging and Life Without Death, "Dragobete 's Day - Celebrating love in the Romanian style", De la tipologia folcloristului finlandez Antti Amatus Aarne la universul basmului romnesc vzut de etnologul Adolf Schullerus, n comparatiune cu legendele antice clasice i n legtur cu basmele popoarelor nvecinate i ale tuturor popoarelor romanice: studiu comparativ, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Folklore_of_Romania&oldid=1128627917, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles needing additional references from June 2010, All articles needing additional references, Articles needing additional references from September 2012, Articles with multiple maintenance issues, Articles with unsourced statements from May 2022, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Hora miresei (translated as "Bride's Hora"). Wherever you go, their memory is well preserved and you must not be surprised to hear that there are still many people who believe in their past existence. Romanians generally perceived the earth as a disc, and they imagined what existed on the other side. xx, Talking books (Transylvania's History A to Z and Dreamland) with lovely Andra Craig & Sorina Stallard from DOR Romanian Diaspora on #CarteaDeVineri. Which is much creepier. Moroii and their legends are as old as Dacian times -especially in Orastie area and thus it is believed that they used charms to steal the cattles milk, rendering the cows dry. You might want to try it. The dances are lively and are practiced throughout Romania by a large number of professional and amateur groups, thus keeping the tradition alive; Hora is one of the most famous group dances but men's folk dances such as cluari are extremely complex and have been declared by UNESCO to be "Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritages of Humanity". She forgave him, and they all lived happily ever after. In the latter case, they are equalized with demons and provoke human resentment. The Romanian holiday Patele Blajinilor (Easter of Blajini) is a way to repay them for the benefits they bring. I'm was never really into authentic military units simulation - Reddit In some versions, a vrcolac is a wolf demon. Romanians, Hungarians, Saxons, Ottomans, Jews, and Roma Gypsies inhabited the whimsical territory of "the land behind the forests" ( trans silvae), shaping the local folklore and giving birth to fantastic creatures, magic legends, and a fascinating tradition of storytelling. A fascinating post. It goes without saying, human heroes with supernatural powers are always there to save the day. El Basilico Chilote. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. What are the Different Kinds of Vampires in Folklore? - WiseGEEK The water soon foamed, perhaps under a gust of wind, and from that foam grew a flower. However, the dragon wolf mythology does not end here. In the modern folklore of Puerto Rico and Mexico, the chupacabra (goat-sucker) is said to be a creature that feeds upon the flesh or drinks the blood of domesticated animals, leading some to consider it a kind of vampire. The Jidovi are said to have considered humans the successors of their earth, and so they treated us well and taught us what they knew. Finally, his father desperately promised him youth without age and life without death. The creature himself appears as a beautiful young man. These stories appear not only in Romanian folklore, but also in those of Aromanian, Slavic Macedonian and Bulgarian folklore. Customs related to certain times of year are the colinde - Romanian Christmas carols, sorcova on New Year's Eve or the Mrior custom on the 1st of March marking the spring. The princess journeyed far, distraught. Extremely Rare Roman Cavalry Parade Mask Discovered In Romania Romania's rich folk traditions have been nourished by many sources, some of which predate the Roman occupation. He is known to kidnap children and young women, and features in multiple Romanian folktales, where he kidnaps the princess and must be defeated. But its said that their burial mounds are filled with treasure, and can be found on Christmas Eve, Easter, and St. Georges Day, lit by magical fires. I'm was never really into authentic military units simulation, so true fans can feel free to throw rocks of shit at me. Others think that they used to live alongside humans on the earth, but Moses, seeing his people oppressed by them, split the waters and, after he and his people had retreated to safety, poured the waters back onto them, sending them to their current abode. DEX, Romanian Academy Publishing House, Bucharest, 1998, Marian Simion Florea, Cultural Romanian Foundation Publishing House, Bucharest 1994, Michael Hitchcock (1998): Tourism, Tam An Mini, and national identity, Indonesia and the Malay World, 26:75, 124-135: 129. And while we do have some pretty funny superstitions, other legends are very meaningful and even a little bit believable. I, too, seem to notice that WP is out of sorts at times. This article is about to introduce you to the heroes and villains of Romanian folklore! Their fate was even crueler with the girls recently married. Another fascinating occurring villain is the Vasilisc. With legends such as those of Baba Dochia, Manole, or the Ballad of Miorita, we can surely say that Romania is pretty creative when it comes to mythology. To preserve traditional houses, many village museums have been created in the last century throughout Romania,[5] such as the Village Museum in Bucharest, the Traditional Popular Civilisation ASTRA Museum in Sibiu or the Oltenian Village Museum in Rmnicu Vlcea. Tall, red-haired, with bulging eyes, dressed in a white long coat, he is always described carrying his Magic Book, the source of all his powers. It is said that Rozalinda, the Giants daughter, discovered some people on the banks of Some river and she took them home, thinking they are tiny dolls. Not at all delightful. They were judged like whores, discredited by the community and by their family, blamed to have a weak will and no love or respect for the working, responsible husband. Women also wore a white skirt and a shirt with a vest. Dar l-am inclus intr-un post mai vechi: 4 Romanian Myths between Culture, History and the Sacred, https://alluringcreations.co.za/wp/4-romanian-myths-culture-history-sacred/, Imi amintesc ca, in copilrie, cand am citit pentru coal poezia lui Ion Heliade Rdulescu, tare nspimntat am fost de Zburtorul. Both reside above the infinite ocean called Apa Smbetei. Another prolific editor of folk tales was Petre Ispirescu, who, in the 19th century published an impressive number of volumes containing a large number of short novels and tales from popular mythology. Three saints (usually in the persons of Enoch, John and Elijah) are said to come to earth to unveil the Devil's attempts to destroy the world, whereupon they shall be killed by decapitation. We cant imagine a better way to learn about it than through traveling so thats what were doing. The original story came from Ancient Greek and Roman legend of Strix creature, a bird of ill omen which fed on human blood and flesh. Vampires in popular culture | by Ben Douglass via Flickr. There, he studies the languages of all the beings from Earth, all the magic spells ever created, and then, after many hard tests, he is left alone, to a rock table, to write down all of his knowledge in his own book. Realising her to be his daughter, and finally understanding that he had been a fool, the emperor embraced her, apologising. Others claim that they are descendants of St. Elijah and that this is the reason why they master the storms and the thunders so well. Sometimes compared to other fantastic creatures, such as the balaur or the vrcolac, the zmeu is nevertheless distinct, because it usually has clear anthropomorphic traits: it is humanoid and has legs, arms, the ability to create and use artifacts such as weapons, or the desire to marry young girls. In some Romanian folk tales the uria giants are also called jidovi. The folklore of medieval Europe was a mixture of legends from various sources, such as ancient regional stories mixed with Judeo-Christian religious tales and myths from the Roman Empire and the Near East. Day Fifteen of the Folkloric Fauna of February. Want to find out more about Romanian mythical monsters, besides the ever-present Dracula? Romanian mythology | Legends, Monsters & Mythical Creatures The Devil, however, tried to rebel, and, in response, God opened up the heavens so that he might fall to the earth. Promptly, the baby agreed, and was born. They were left to live in the mountains only if they promised to guard with their life the great Dacian gold treasures. In various regions of the country, the Solomonars are divided into two categories: good and evil. 13 Bizarre Mythical Monsters to Haunt Your Halloween Even in modern Romania, certain wolf attacks are attributed to Pricolici. Strigoi is a character from Romanian mythology. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. His solution was to flood the entire earth, leaving only Noah and his Ark (you can see here how old myths have been intermingled with Christianity, rather than being simply replaced by it). Nobody knew if he was handsome or not, for he was the very first one. In legends Capcaunul has his own land, usually dark, arid and populated with strange creatures. It was a combination snake, rooster, bat, and sometimes other animals, that was born from an . anything that can shape shift scares me! Some legends say it is a ghost or vampire (Strigoi) while others say it is a werewolf (in some versions, a werewolf that emerges from the corpses of . She was so skilled and so kind, that she quickly became handmaiden to the empress. First, the rural character of the Romanian communities resulted in an exceptionally vital and creative traditional culture. is the Slavonian blan meaning 'kind, well-minding person'. As a matter of fact, the author of this incredibly popular novel never traveled to Romania in his life. , Sa stii ca nu te contrazic aici Folklore of Romania - Wikipedia Side by side. It is said that they used magic words that asked to Zburator to leave, to hide and never to return. These are a few of Romanias most widely-known folktales and legends! Some people believe that Solomonars are successors of the Dacian High Priests known as Kapnobatai, but received their name after King Solomon, famous for his wisdom and great knowledge. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. But he asked those sitting next to him, and they said it was the best meal theyd ever enjoyed. The founding father of vampire literature, Bram Stoker, introduced the cruelest Wallachian ruler of XVth century Romania to the world. RavenInTheSky. The folklore of Romania is the collection of traditions of the Romanians. Likewise, the wolf is still present as a symbol in Romanian culture. Varcolac | Encyclopedia of Monsters Wiki | Fandom Gugalanna (Sumerian Mythology) This article has multiple issues. In Romanian culture, as in many others, the house represents the spiritual center of human life, the place where profane meets sacred and around which gravitates many of the intriguing creatures populating myths (stories and beliefs rooted in human's origin, often involving gods) and folklore (fictional tales and superstitions, legends . A Viking's Quest, the Lost Continent on Steam The princess stood up, and said that since he did not like salt, she had cooked his food with only sugar and honey. It took some convincing, as this was not a prudent match for a prince to make (at least, as far as they knew). In Romanian mythology, the Iele are mythical creatures similar to the Nymphs and Dryads found in Greek mythology. Patricia Furstenberg writes historical fiction, contemporary and children's book. Of course, redheads are also considered very suspicious. Dare we assume Balaur sound familiar? From this clay he would make the earth. There are quite a variety of Romanian monsters. A legend in his home country, Vlad was incredibly impressive in inspiring fear and horror into his Turkish enemies, demoralising their troops. Romanian Folklore | Fascinating Stories and Rituals This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Some people claim to even have seen them, especially in the region of Bukovina. Also, people who claim to have seen him say that along with his book, he also carries a piece of wood for calling the winds and an iron axe which he uses to create hail. From the little sand Frtat gathered he created a stretch of of earth where both of them went to rest, glad it felt solid, although their fingers were still dipped into Apa Smbetei, for it was narrow. Jidovii are described in Romanian legends as kind and patient, walking with huge steps from one hill to another. Also, the poet Vasile Alecsandri published the most successful version of the ballad Mioria (The Little Ewe), a sad, philosophical poem, centered on a simple action: the plot by two shepherds to kill a third shepherd because they envied his wealth. They met and consume their love in the world of dreams but everything is so intense, almost real that the young woman becomes exhausted and obsessively in love. This is a welcome development, on the whole, as the American public's . [1]:33. Happy to be here. They wore either boots or a simple shoe made of leather and tied around the foot called opinc and they wore a hat which differs in design from region to region.