Mythology Database Wiki:About

All About .
'Mythology can be referred to the collected myths of a group of people—their body of stories which they tell to explain nature, history, and customs or to the study of such myths. As a collection of such stories, mythology is a vital feature of every culture. Various origins for myths have been proposed, ranging from personification of nature, personification of natural phenomena to truthful or hyperbolic accounts of historical events, to explanations of existing ritual. A legend (Latin, legenda, "things to be read") is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude. Legend, for its active and passive participants includes no happenings that are outside the realm of "possibility" but which may include miracles. Legends may be transformed over time, in order to keep it fresh and vital, and realistic. Many legends operate within the realm of uncertainty, never being entirely believed by the participants, but also never being resolutely doubted. In cryptozoology and sometimes in cryptobotany, both pseudosciences, a cryptid (from the Greek κρύπτω, krypto, meaning "hide") is an animal or plant whose existence has been suggested but has not been discovered or documented by the scientific community. Cryptids often appear in folklore and mythology, leading to stories and unfounded belief about their existence. Well-known examples include the Yeti in the Himalayas, the Loch Ness Monster in Scotland, Sasquatch in North America and the Chupacabra in Latin America.'

Some Terms for Cryptids:

 * Unconfirmed – cryptids whose existence is alleged but not demonstrated.
 * Disputed – cryptids that have a body of evidence against their existence.
 * Proposed [animal name] – cryptids with an alternative explanation accepted by the general scientific community.
 * Extinct – animals that are generally believed to be extinct, but which cryptozoologists believe may have an extant relict population.
 * Confirmed [animal name or cause] – animals once classified as cryptids but whose existence has now been confirmed.
 * Hoax – cryptids once thought to be real but later conclusively proven to be hoaxes.