List of avian humanoids
Avian humanoids (people with the characteristics of birds) are a common motif in mythology, folklore and popular fiction.
In myth and legend
Myth
- Alkonost, Gamayun and Sirin from Russian mythology
- The winged gods Anzu/Zu, Siris, Lammasu/Shedu from Mesopotamian mythology
- Angels in Judeo Christian mythology are often portrayed as winged humans
- The Faravahar of Zoroastrianism
- The Garuda, eagle-man mount of Vishnu in Hindu mythology, was pluralized into a class of bird-like beings in Buddhist mythology
- The gods Horus and Thoth from Ancient Egyptian mythology were often depicted as humans with the heads of a falcon and an ibis, respectively.
- Huitzilopochtli, the "left-handed hummingbird"; god of the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan
- Karura in Japanese folklore
- Lei Gong, a Chinese thunder god, often depicted as a Garuda-like bird man
- The second people of the world in Southern Sierra Miwok mythology, as reported by Barrett[1]
- Nike, Boreas, Eros and the Gorgon sisters from Greek mythology are all depicted with birdlike wings. Also the Sirens and Harpies were often represented as half-human half-bird.[2]
- Tangata manu of Easter Island, often depicted as a Frigate bird/Human hybrid
Folklore
Cryptozoology
In fiction
Examples of avian humanoids in science fiction and fantasy fiction include:
Literature
Comics
- Angel/Archangel, a winged mutant from the X-Men series
- Bird-Man, from the Marvel Comics universe
- Flyer, a winged hero from the NEW-GEN series
- Howard the Duck hails from Duckworld, an alternate Earth where ducks evolved instead of apes.
- Northwind (another DC hero) comes from the hidden city of Feithera, a lost nation of avian humanoids.
- Red Raven is the last of the Marvel Comics Bird-people.
- Scrooge McDuck, uncle of Donald Duck, lives in Duckburg along with many anthropomorphized characters, mostly ducks and birds.
- Starhaven, colonized in the 23rd century DC Comics Universe and homeworld of Dawnstar in the 31st century.
- Swift, A fictional superheroine in the Wildstorm universe, member of superhero team known as The Authority
Film and television
Games
See also
References
- ^ S. A. Barrett (1919-03-27). "Myths of the Southern Sierra Miwok". University of California Publications in American Archeology and Ethnology 16 (1): 1–28. http://www.yosemite.ca.us/history/myths_of_the_southern_sierra_miwok/.
- ^ Bestia Mortale (1999). "Death Is In the Air: Egyptian Sirens Came to Ancient Greece to Ease Souls' Path to Persephone". Widdershins 5 (5). http://www.widdershins.org/vol5iss5/02.htm.
External links