THE WEREWOLF
For centuries, werewolves have been part of the human culture and have been the subject of many horror stories. Whether it is the iconic "Thriller" by Michael Jackson or the magical Professor Lupin from Harry Potter, werewolves have been in myths and legends from across the globe. We all know the similarities, but what differences keep them away from the rest of the "pack"? How do the portrayals of the werewolf differ from different cultures?
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GENERAL INFORMATION
A werewolf is thought to be a mythical human that is believed to change into a wolf-like creature or hybrid during full moons. Werewolves have been in myths from the Ancient Greeks to today. The original legend comes from a story from 440 BC about a tribe of werewolves. Following that, 500 years later, Ovid wrote a story of a King Lycaeon who tried to feed human flesh to his guest to see if his guest was a mortal human or Zeus himself. The guest was really Zeus. Zeus saw through his trick and turned Lycaeon into a werewolf.
The first "werewolf" was recorded in 1591 in the German town of Bedburg. Peter Stubbe was a farmer in the German town. He had a pretty good reputation outside, but his inner self was thought to be different. Over years and years, he terrorized the town by killing cattle, women, men, and children in the most gruesome ways. When he was finally cornered by some village men and their hounds, they found the creature whom they thought to be a wolf to be Peter Stubbe! When he was put on trial, he confessed that "the Devil gave him a magical fur belt" when he was a child so that Peter could transform into a wolf when wearing it. He was brutally executed (the details of which cannot be shared.)
Werewolves are thought to have special powers that make them physically better than humans. Besides physically looking like a wolf, they also thought to have better agility, reflexes, and jumping. They also are believed to have better senses like hearing, sight, and smell. Some other traits are thought to be better strength, stamina and speed. These traits show in many European myths, and they make the werewolf in the myths physically better.
Peter Stubbe was thought to be a werewolf in the town of Bedburg.
Zeus turned King Lycaeon into a werewolf in a story shared by Ovid.
The wendigo is a half-man half-beast creature from the myths of the Algonquian tribe in Canada and America. The creature in the legend is thought to be from the Atlantic Coast and Great Lakes region (where the tribes live). When missionaries and explorers recounted tales of the Wendigo, they used general terms like werewolf. This is how the Wendigo became known to the whole world as a variation of the werewolf. How is the myth different from the original werewolf? Click to find out more.
The Wendigo graphic here is a Marvel character. This is a modern view of the Wendigo that is different from the original view.
The Wendigo
The varulv is also a half-man half-beast creature from myths in Scandinavia (Norway and Sweden). This creature is thought to turn into a wolf whenever it feels like it using clothing with fur on it. This is similar to werewolf lore. The varulv shows in myths of the Sami people in Sweden. They were thought to be werewolves or have similar characteristics. Much of Europe (with the exception of England) had myths of werewolves. The varulv was just one of those examples. How was it different from the werewolf? Click to find out more.
The Varulv
The varulvs here are drawings for a comic called Varulv. This is a modern view of the varulv in Nordic mythology.
The Lobisomem
The lobisomem is also a half-man half-beast creature from myths in Brazil (originally from Portugal).It spread from Portugal to Brazil when Portugal colonized Brazil. In fact, lobisomem directly translates to "werewolf" in English. There are many theories as to how they change between man and wolf and how one is thought to become a werewolf. How is a lobisomem thought to change from a man to a wolf? Click to find out more.
This is a modern depiction of a lobisomem. The sharper features make it look more attractive than the original depiction of the lobisomem.
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