Creation Stories and Myths
Introduction. As our early ancestors studied the world around them they began to tell stories to try to explain the natural phenomena they observed, and to make sense to such things as life and death, the changing seasons, natural disasters etc.. The stories differed greatly from place to place and from time to time, and were largely influenced by the natural environment that people found themselves in, the animals they hunted, and so on. As part of our study of ancient peoples, our class is writing their own creation myths and legends. Below are some sites from Ms Hos-McGrane's Grade 6 Social Studies Class Internet project. |
Native American Stories
Several excellent stories including Apache creation story and from the Iroquois people "How Fire Came To The Six Nations" .
The Creation of the World
Norse tale of creation of the world from part of large site on Norse Mythology.
The Creation of the Night
Here is a legend from Brazil about why the "night" was first created.
Encyclopedia Mythica
This is an encyclopedia on mythology, folklore, and legend. It contains numerous definitions of gods and goddesses, supernatural beings and legendary creatures from all over the world.
Creation Myths in Art
Many of the images in this collection from the Minneapolis Institute of Arts represent myths that explain a practice, belief, institution, or natural phenomenon. The Yoruba king's crown, the Roman furniture decoration, and the abstract designs on the Navajo ketoh and the Lakota dress refer to creation stories.
Ancient Chinese: The story of Pangu
A Myth of one of the Australian Aboriginal Peoples: Creation of the sun.
American Cherokee Indians: Myth explaining the creation of the world.
Christian/Jewish: Book of Genesis, explaining how God created the world.