Therianthropy (mythology)
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For other uses of the term, see Therianthropy (disambiguation).
Therianthropy is a generic term for any transformation of a human into another animal form, or for a being which displays both human and animal characteristics, either as a part of mythology or as a spiritual concept. The word is derived from Greek therion, meaning "wild animal", and anthrōpos, meaning "man".
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[edit] Scholarly use of the term
Therianthropy can be used to label a character that shares some traits of humans and some of non-human animals. Egyptian gods which display the heads of animals, such as Ra, are an example of therianthropes. Shapeshifters such as werewolves and werecats are also examples, through they are usually referred to by more precise terms. Rarely, zoanthropy is used instead of therianthropy (Guiley, 192).
[edit] Varieties
Terms referring to specific varieties of therianthropy are based on Greek words for specific animals combined with anthropos. A nearly endless number of types of therianthropy could thus be referred to by their own individual terms, though most of these would be neologisms. Rare alternate derivations based on Latin are considered nonstandard at best, incorrect at worst, because they both break precedent and mix a Latin prefix with a Greek suffix.
[edit] Lycanthropy
The most commonly known form of therianthropy is lycanthropy, from the Greek word lycos ("wolf"), the technical term for man-wolf transformations (Rose, 230). Although the precise definition of lycanthropy specifically refers only to werewolves, the term is often used to refer to the process of shapeshifting to any non-human animal form. For further information on this concept, see the article on Lycanthropy.
When people believe they change into an animal form (theriomorphosis), or possess supernatural non-human animal traits, the term clinical lycanthropy is often used. This classification is a form of mental illness, though many anthropologists would point out that the belief has extensive religious precedent in shamanic cultures. Likewise, people who call themselves shapechangers as a form of social identification or as part of membership in the therianthrope subculture are generally not considered ill by mental health professionals unless their beliefs interfere with the normal functioning of their lives. This can be a controversial issue, as the line between what the Western mind passes off as a strange or alternative belief and what is considered a mental illness is indistinct.
[edit] Cynanthropy
Cynanthropy, sometimes spelled kynanthropy, is applied to shapeshifters who alternate between dog form and human form, or to beings that do not shapeshift but possess combined dog and human anatomical features (Hamel, 76). It is also used for real persons suffering from the delusion that they are dogs (Ashley, 37). The term existed by at least 1901, when it was applied to myths from China about humans turning into dogs, dogs becoming people, and sexual relations between humans and canines (De Groot, 184). After lycanthropy, cynanthropy is the best known term for a specific variety of therianthropy.
Anthropologist David Gordon White called Central Asia the "vortex of cynanthropy" because races of dog-men were habitually placed there by ancient writers. Hindu mythology puts races of "Dog Cookers" to the far north of India, the Chinese placed the "Dog Jung" and other human/canine barbarians to the extreme west, and European legends frequently put the dog men called Cynocephali in unmapped regions to the east. Some of these races were described as humans with dog heads, others as canine shapeshifters (White, 114-15).
The weredog or cynanthrope is also known in Timor. It is described as a human/canine shapeshifter who is also capable of transforming other people into animals against their wills. These transformations are usually into prey animals such as goats, so that the cynanthrope can devour them without discovery of the crime (Rose, 390).
[edit] Ailuranthropy
Ailuranthropy refers to human/feline transformations, or to other beings that combine feline and human characteristics (Greene, 229). Its root word is also used in ailurophobia, the most common term for a phobia of cats. Ailuros is also a Greek name for Bast. See the main articles at werecat and ailuranthrope.
[edit] Causes
Much of the time, therianthropy is not given any specific explanation in legends, other than being generally attributed to magic, which may be voluntary (a supernatural power) or involuntary (a curse). When a more detailed explanation is assigned, it generally has something to do with souls or ancestry.
[edit] Animal ancestors
Stories of humans descending from animals are common explanations for tribal and clan origins. Sometimes the animals assumed human form in order to ensure their descendants retained human shape, other times the origin story is of a normal human marrying an animal.
North American indigeneous traditions particularly mingle the idea of bear ancestors and ursine shapeshifters, with bears often being able to shed their skins to assume human form, marrying human women in this guise. The offspring may be monsters with combined anatomy, they might be very beautiful children with uncanny strength, or they could be shapeshifters themselves (Pijoan, 79).
P'an Hu is represented in various Chinese legends as a supernatural dog, a dog-headed man, or a canine shapeshifter that married an emperor's daughter and founded at least one race. When he is depicted as a shapeshifter, all of him can become human except for his head. The race(s) descended from P'an Hu were often characterized by Chinese writers as monsters who combined human and dog anatomy (White, 150).
[edit] Transmigration of souls
Also called metempsychosis, the transmigration of souls refers to a number of closely related beliefs based on the idea that humans and animals are highly similar and interchangable, especially on a spiritual level. This can refer to a belief in reincarnation, a belief in the sharing of souls between living humans and beasts (also called the "bush-soul") or a belief in human ghosts appearing as non-human animals after death. A characteristic of metempsychosis is a blurring of the boundaries between the intangible and the corporeal, so that souls are often conceived of as solid, visible forms that need to eat and can do physical harm (Hamel, 15).
In Melanesia there is a belief in the tamaniu or atai which is an animal counterpart to a person. It can be an eel, a shark, a lizard, or some other creature. This creature is corporeal, can understand human speech, and shares the same soul as its master, leading to legends which have many characteristics typical of shapeshifter tales, such as any death or injury affecting both forms at once (Hamel, 21).
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- OED (1933) Vol XI p 288
- Encyclopaedia Britannica (1886) Vol XX p 367 (C.P.Teile)
- Ashley, L.R.N. (2001) The Complete Book of Werewolves. Fort Lee, NJ: Barricade Books.
- De Groot, J.J.M. (1901) The Religious System of China: Volume IV Leiden: Brill.
- Greene, R. (2000) The Magic of Shapeshifting. York Beach, ME: Weiser.
- Guiley, R.E. (2005) The Encyclopedia of Vampires, Werewolves & Other Monsters. New York: Facts on File.
- Hall, J. (2003) Half Human, Half Animal: Tales of Werewolves & Related Creatures. Bloomington, IN: Authorhouse.
- Hamel, F. (1969) Human Animals, Werewolves & Other Transformations. New Hyde Park, NY: University Books.
- Pijoan, T. (1992) White Wolf Woman & Other Native American Transformation Myths. Little Rock: August House.
- Rose, C. (2000) Giants, Monsters & Dragons: An Encyclopedia of Folklore, Legend and Myth. New York: Norton.
- White, D.G. (1991) Myths of the Dog-Man. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
