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Berezkin/Duvakin Catalogue of Motifs

English translation, enhancements and additional metadata by Jonathan Fielder-White

Source: Berezkin and Duvakin's Analytical Catalogue · Original catalogue (Russian)

About the catalogue and its sources

Unless otherwise stated, narrative and tradition data comes from Berezkin and Duvakin's Thematic classification and distribution of folklore and mythological motifs by area (Analytical catalogue).

Original Berezkin/Duvakin catalogue (Russian)

The English translation uses AI assistance alongside manual verification. Errors may occur; consult the original source when in doubt.

B - Origins of the environment

Showing 251–300 of 313 · Page 6 of 7

Ref ▲ Title Summary Traditions Narratives
B87b In B87 family Harnessed wolf. The Great Bear – a cart harnessed by a wolf or bear. Usually, the shape of the handle of the dipper is explained by the fact that a wolf or bear attacked an ox harnessed to the cart and took its place. In this case, it is associated with Alcor or the last star of the handle of the dipper – η. 10 14
B87c In B87 family Rider. Alcor (the faint star next to the second star of the Big Dipper's handle) – rider, driver, coachman. 14 26
b87d In b87 family Alcor - infant. Alcor (a faint star next to the second star of the Big Dipper's handle) – infant. 9 10
B88 Job. A man's children all die. He turns to God with a request to explain why he is suffering so much. 6 7
B89 The eagle owl – king of birds. The eagle owl (owl) was the chief among birds, claimed this position or behaved badly when choosing the head of the birds; now he avoids other birds and/or other birds chase him. 28 26
B90 Master of wolves. There is an anthropomorphic patron, master or mistress of wolves; he usually gives instructions to the wolves on a certain day of the year. 32 47
B91 The sharp-eyed snail. The snail had (the most keen-eyed) eyes. Another character borrows them and does not return them. 9 14
B91a In B91 family Eyes: took and did not return. A blind character asks another to lend him his eyes or to swap eyes, keeping his own eyes. 16 27
B92 Flint turns into flints. A character whose body is hard and has broken into small pieces, or (rarely) a small object, turns into flint or other hard stones (the origin of flint). 27 35
B93 Meeting in the sky once a year. Once a year or once every few years, celestial beings or messengers of the gods meet among the stars. 11 16
B93a In B93 family Bird bridge over the heavenly river. Once a year, birds form a bridge across the heavenly river with their bodies. Usually, the feathers on their heads are worn away as a result. 5 9
B94 Trees lose the gift of speech. Trees (and animals) used to talk, asking people not to cut them down or kill them. 15 25
B95 Burnt sphincter. The appearance of the sphincter or buttocks is explained by the fact that a certain character burned his backside. 5 4
B95A In B95 family The trickster punishes his own backside. To punish his own backside for misbehaviour, the trickster burns it. 5 4
B96 The enemy turns into a sturgeon. The heroes' enemy turns into a large commercial fish (usually a sturgeon) or (rarely) a commercial aquatic mammal. 13 10
B97 The character rewards the bird. The character rewards (rarely punishes) a bird living by the water, determining its current appearance (crest, beak, feather colouring). 28 27
B97a In B97 family Bird or animal necklace. A strip of light or dark feathers (rarely: wool) on the neck of a bird (animal) is its necklace (scarf). 23 27
B98 The bat between beasts and birds, ATU 222A. The bat (rarely: ostrich) tries to join either the beasts or the birds, or finds itself excluded from both. 73 74
B98a In B98 family The bat becomes an outcast, ATU 222A. The bat becomes an outcast among other creatures (usually after trying to join either the animals or the birds). 70 73
B98b In B98 family The Bat and funerals. The Bat comes into conflict with other creatures in connection with someone's death or funeral. 11 11
B98c In B98 family The bat is deceived by a deity. The heavenly deity could have healed the bat's mother or child, but did not do so, and they died. 4 4
B99 Termite nest. A person or their head left on a tree turns into an insect nest. 14 20
B100 Obtaining sleep. In the past or in a distant land, sleep was unknown; a certain character embodies sleep, possesses it or teaches how to sleep; sleep is a special substance. 16 16
B101 Stripes on a birch tree. Angry at the birch tree, the character beats or cuts it, leaving stripes on the bark that remain to this day. 11 15
B102 Clouds – smoke. Clouds are formed from smoke rising from the ground. 15 14
B102a In B102 family Clouds – cows. Clouds are associated with horned cattle, especially cows (and rain is their milk). 17 21
B103 Cornelian cherry. The character thinks that since the cornel blooms earlier than other fruit trees, its fruits will ripen earlier than others. The character is mistaken and is left without fruit. 19 25
B104 The chicken turns into a turtle. A guest arrived, the host hid the chicken, and when he wanted to eat it, it turned out that it had turned into a turtle. 10 10
B104a In B104 family Meat turns into a toad, ATU 980D. The son was about to eat some meat (chicken). At that moment, his father came in, and the son hid the meat so as not to share it with him. When his father left and the son took out what he had hidden, the meat turned into a toad (snake) and jumped on his face. 9 5
B104b In B104 family A woman turns into a woodpecker. A woman refuses to share bread with Jesus, who has come to her, and he turns her into a woodpecker. 7 8
B105 The transformation of a shy daughter-in-law. The father-in-law or mother-in-law catches the daughter-in-law in a situation she is ashamed of (with her hair down, bathing, etc.). Out of shame, she turns into a bird (usually a hoopoe) or a turtle. 9 13
B106 The heavenly rooster. First, the heavenly rooster crows (or the underground roosters crow), and only then do the earthly roosters crow. 12 11
B107 Black oyster. During the (world) fire, the oyster burns, which is why oyster shells are black. 2 3
B108 The remains of the deceased turn into snow. An anthropomorphic character that has fallen apart into pieces turns into snow. 3 6
B109 Man became a bear. A man grows fur and becomes a bear (the origin of bears). 55 96
B109a In B109 family Bear from the sky. Originally, the (human) bear lived in the sky, then descended to earth (and became a bear). 3 7
B110 Where the back is – swamps, where the head is – red poppies. A character who is dragged along the ground or who runs, falls apart or hits the ground with different parts of his body. This determines the characteristics of the landscape and flora. 23 31
B110a In B110 family The falling one turns into snow and wind. A character who is dragged along the ground or who falls from the sky turns into atmospheric phenomena. 4 6
B111 Bees from the body of an animal. Bees or wasps fly out of the carcass or body of a large animal (lion, bull) (usually the episode explains the origin of bees). 7 8
B112 The one who returned the stolen goods decorated. The character is called upon to help perform a task (usually to transport property or provisions across a river) and takes away what has been entrusted to him. A woodpecker or titmouse returns the stolen goods. The owner of the property paints or dresses the bird, hence the colour of its plumage 11 5
B113 Women's backsides and men's knees. Due to certain events during the time of creation, women have cold backsides (and men have cold knees, or vice versa). 9 9
B114 Old men-anteaters. A woman or a man (usually old people) turn into anteaters (the origin of anteaters). 10 18
B115 Evergreen trees. Conifers and some other trees and shrubs (small shrubs) became evergreen after the elixir of immortality was accidentally spilled on them. Cf. motif H6b. 20 31
B115a In B115 family Knots in wood, ATU 774H. Angry at the carpenters, the character (St. Peter) asks another (Christ) to make the knots in the wood or branches iron. The latter only makes them very hard. 8 9
B115B In B115 family The slain person turns into a viburnum. One brother kills another, or one sister kills another, or a brother kills a sister. A viburnum or other shrub with red berries grows in this place. 7 12
B116 The eaten book. The first book (writing, important document) is eaten by an animal or a person. (In some European traditions, the eating of the book is not described, but is implied from the context). Cf. ATU 200. Cf. Thompson 1955-1958. †A2219.2. Cow swallows book; cause of maniplies in stomach. 66 128
B116a In B116 family Knowledge is stored in the stomach. A person or animal eats a sacred book or its remains. During the ritual, this knowledge is actualised in oral speech, in the sounds of a musical instrument made from part of an animal's body, or in parts of an animal's body used for divination. 17 23
B116b In B116 family The wet book. A book containing sacred knowledge falls into the water at a crossing or gets wet in some other way. After that, the book disappears or the text becomes unreadable. Either the book is ruined (damaged) when it is dried. Or it is ruined while left unattended on the shore while the people who kept it are swimming; or it burns, although traces remain. 18 20
B116c In B116 family The Lost Book. In the past, the people possessed writing and knowledge, but these were lost, or the people missed the opportunity to acquire them. 54 98
B116d In B116 family The "book" as part of the stomach. Part of the stomach of ruminants is called a "book". 17 22

Showing 251–300 of 313 · Page 6 of 7

Tradition and narrative counts are the stored catalogue totals for each entry.