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A creation myth (or creation story) is a cultural, religious or traditional myth which describes the earliest beginnings of the present world. Creation myths are the most common form of myth, usually developing first in oral traditions, and are found throughout human culture. A creation myth is usually regarded by those who subscribe to it as conveying profound truths, though not necessarily in a historical or literal sense. They are commonly, though not always, considered cosmogonical myths, that is, they describe the ordering of the cosmos from a state of chaos or amorphousness.
Basic type
Creation from chaos
Main article: Chaos (cosmogony)- Enûma Eliš (Babylonian creation myth)
- Eridu Genesis
- Greek cosmogonical myth
- Jamshid
- Korean creation narratives
- Kumulipo
- Mandé creation myth
- Pangu
- Raven in Creation
- Serer creation myth
- Tungusic creation myth
- Unkulunkulu
- Väinämöinen
- Viracocha
Earth diver
Main article: Earth-diver- Ainu creation myth
- Cherokee creation myth
- Iroquois creation myth
- Väinämöinen
- Yoruba creation myth (Nigeria, Africa)
- Ob-Ugric creation myth
Emergence
Main article: EmergenceEx nihilo (out of nothing)
Main article: Ex nihilo- Debate between sheep and grain
- Barton cylinder
- Ancient Egyptian creation myths
- Genesis creation (Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and Rastafari)
- Kabezya-Mpungu
- Māori myths
- Mbombo
- Ngai
- Popol Vuh
Raven Tales
Main article: Raven TalesWorld parent
Main article: World parent- Coatlicue
- Enûma Eliš
- Greek cosmogonical myth
- Heliopolis creation myth
- Hiranyagarbha creation myth
- Kumulipo
- Rangi and Papa
- Völuspá
Divine twins
Main article: Divine twinsRegional
Africa
- Ancient Egyptian creation myths
- Fon creation myth
- Kaang creation myth (Bushmen)
- Kintu myth (Bugandan)
- Mandé creation myth
- Mbombo (Kuba, Bakuba or Bushongo/Boshongo)
- Ngai (Kamba, Kikuyu and Maasai )
- Serer creation myth (cosmogony of the Serer people of Senegal, the Gambia and Mauritania)
- Unkulunkulu (Zulu)
- Yoruba creation (Nigeria, Africa)
Americas
Caribbean
Mesoamerica
- Coatlicue (Aztec)
- Maya creation of the world myth
- Popol Vuh (Quiché Mayan)
Mid North America
- Anishinaabeg creation stories
- Cherokee creation myth
- Choctaw creation myth
- Creek creation myth
- Hopi creation myth
- Iroquois creation myth
- Kuterastan (Plains Apache)
- Diné Bahaneʼ (Navajo)
- Raven in Creation (Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian)
- Zuni creation myth
South America
- Legend of Trentren Vilu and Caicai Vilu (Chilean)
- Viracocha (Incan)
- Xolas (Chilean)
Asia
Central Asia
East Asia
- Ainu creation myth (Japan)
- Au Co (Vietnamese)
- Chinese creation myth
- Japanese creation myth
- Korean creation narratives
- Vietnamese creation myth
- Nüwa (Chinese)
- Pangu (Chinese)
Indian subcontinent
- Ajativada
- Buddhist cosmology
- Folk Hindu creation myth
- Hiranyagarbha creation (India)
- Jainism and non-creationism (India)
- Meitei mythology (India)
- Mimamsa eternalism (India)
- Nyaya-Vaisheshika atomic theory (India)
- Samkhya-yoga theory (India)
- Sanamahi creation myth (India)
Europe
- Slavic creation myth
- Theogony (Classical Greco-Roman)
- Book of Invasions (Celtic, specifically Irish)
- Väinämöinen (Finnish)
- Völuspá (Norse)
Middle East
- Debate between sheep and grain
- Enûma Eliš (Babylonian)
- Eridu Genesis (Sumerian)
- Genesis creation (Hebrew)
- Islamic creation myth (Arabic)
- Leviathan (Book of Job 38-41 creation myth)
- Mashya and Mashyana (Persian)
Pacific Islands/Oceanic
- Areop-Enap (Nauruan)
- Kumulipo (Hawaiian)
- Māori myths (Māori)
- Rangi and Papa (Māori)
- Sureq Galigo (Buginese)
Australian
The Australian Aboriginal concepts of "The Dreaming" or "Dreamtime".
In mythopoeia
See also: Category:Fictional creation storiesIn mythopoeia, an artificial mythology created by writers of prose or other fiction, traditional mythological themes and archetypes are integrated into fiction. Some works of mythopoeia also feature creation myths:
- Ainulindalë from Tolkien's The Silmarillion
References
- Leeming, David Adams; Leeming, Margaret Adams (1994). Encyclopedia of Creation Myths (2nd ed.). ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0-87436-739-3.
- Leeming, David Adams; Leeming, Margaret Adams (2009). A Dictionary of Creation Myths (Oxford Reference Online ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-510275-8.