Celtic , AD 75 – 175 The Celtic dragon may have developed from a horned and poisonous or fire-breathing snake. It is mostly a snake that is transformed into a monster. The dragon motif is known in
Celtic art in diverse styles, and is presumed to have derived from a serpent-like creature in ancient folklore of the Middle East and Greece. Both the Greeks and the Romans considered the serpent to be a guardian spirit, represented on their altars. Western Celtic peoples were familiar with dragons in the pre-Christian age, and
native people of Britain are said to have worn Celtic decorations with motifs of dragons on them during the Roman invasion. There is also archaeological evidence that the continental Celts used brooches and pins in the form of a dragon during the
La Téne period from to 1 AD. Some suggest that the native Britons of Europe may have brought the dragon with them when they migrated to Britain before the Roman age. Two other swords and scabbards (also from the bottom of the river Thames) are thought to include a dragon pair from the La Tène or
Hallstatt cultures. Discovery of Celtic dragon-pairs in the Thames suggests that links existed between Britain and the rest of the Celtic world in the decades around 300 BC. Evidence in coins also shows Celticised dragons in 50–45 BC.
Germanic Dragons, or worms, are prevalent in early Germanic folklore and art, with notable examples being the
killer of Beowulf, the central figure of the
Völsung Cycle Fáfnir and
Jǫrmungandr. In this cultural context, the distinction between snakes and dragons is blurred with both being referred to by the same terms, including and . Other terms often used are the cognates and meaning "dragon, sea serpent or sea monster" which are derived from
Proto-Germanic *drakō, an early borrowing from
Latin draco "huge serpent or dragon". These terms are sometimes used interchangeably with and , although sometimes they are treated as different beings. While in later accounts many dragons are portrayed in these cultures as being winged, this is likely under influence from
Southern Europe. In later
Northern European folklore, many worms are found that are flightless and resemble large snakes such as the
Lambton Worm and the
Stoor worm. While depictions are diverse, several traits are shared amongst many worms, including hoarding gold, and spitting
atter and later fire. Depictions of worms are prevalent in early medieval art, notably on
runestones, where they often form the band on which the runes are written. Specific worms are also depicted, such as Jǫrmungandr on the
Altuna stone and Fáfnir on the
Jurby cross, the
Hylestad stave church and the
Ramsund carving.
Welsh and
White Dragons from
Geoffrey of Monmouth's
History of the Kings of Britain The red dragon features on, and is the name of, the national flag of Wales (
Y Ddraig Goch, "the red dragon"). Early Welsh writing associates dragons with war leaders, and in legend, Nennius, in Historia Birttonum, tells of a vision of the red dragon (representing the
Britons) and the white dragon (representing the invading
Saxons) fighting beneath
Dinas Emrys. A version of this particular legend also features in the
Mabinogion in the story of
Lludd and Llefelys.
Slavic Alas It is said that a very old snake can transform into an ala. Some depictions of alas are confusingly said to have the bodies of women. Other alas look like dragons. The number of heads on an ala may vary. Alas are enemies of the zmeys and it is sometimes said in south Slavic folklore that thunder is a product of alas and zmeys fighting. Alas are considered evil or malevolent, while zmeys are usually considered good or benevolent.
Zmeys , by
Victor Vasnetsov Dragon-like creatures of
Slavic mythology hold mixed temperaments towards humans. For example, Drakons (дракон, змей, ламя, (х)ала; dracon, zmey, lamya, ala) in
Bulgarian mythology are either male or female, and each gender has a different view of mankind. The female dragon and male dragon, often seen as sister and brother, represent different forces of
agriculture. The female dragon represents harsh weather and is the destroyer of crops, the hater of mankind, and is locked in a never-ending battle with her brother. The male dragon protects the humans' crops from destruction and is generally benevolent to humanity. Fire and water play major roles in Bulgarian dragon lore: the female has water characteristics, while the male is usually a fiery creature. In Bulgarian legend, The drakons are three-headed, winged beings with snake's bodies. In
Bulgarian,
Russian,
Belarusian,
Ukrainian,
Bosnian,
Serbian, and
Macedonian lore, the dragon-like creature, or "змей" (),
zmey (),
smok (),
zmiy (), (
Bosnian zmaj), (),
zmej (), is generally an evil, four-legged beast with few, if any, redeeming qualities.
Zmeys are intelligent, but not greatly so, often demanding tribute from villages or small towns in the form of
maidens (for food), or
gold. Their number of heads ranges from one to seven or sometimes even more, with three- and seven-headed Zmeys being most commonly cited. The heads also regrow if cut off, unless the neck is "treated" with fire (similar to the hydra in Greek mythology).
Zmey blood is so poisonous that Earth itself will refuse to absorb it. In Bulgarian mythology these "dragons" are sometimes good, opposing the evil Lamya /ламя/, a beast similar to the
zmey.
Smok The most famous
Polish dragon () is the
Wawel Dragon or
Smok Wawelski, the Dragon of Wawel Hill. It supposedly terrorized ancient
Kraków and lived in caves on the
Vistula river bank below the
Wawel castle. According to lore based on the
Book of Daniel, it was killed by a boy who offered it a
sheepskin filled with sulphur and tar. After devouring it, the dragon became so thirsty that it finally exploded after drinking too much water. In the oldest, 12th-century version of this fantasy tale, written by
Wincenty Kadłubek, the dragon was defeated by two sons of a
King Krak,
Krakus II and
Lech II. A metal sculpture of the Wawel Dragon is a well-known tourist sight in Kraków. The Wawel Dragon appears in the coat of arms of the Polish princes, the Piasts of Czersk. Other dragon-like creatures in Polish folklore include the
basilisk, living in cellars of
Warsaw, and the Snake King from folk legends, though neither are explicitly dragons.
Armenian Վիշապ (
Vishap) is the Armenian word for "dragon".
Iberian Iberian dragons are almost always evil, such as the
Cuélebre, or Cuelebre, a giant winged serpent in the mythology of
Asturias and
Cantabria in the north of Spain. It usually lives in a cave, guards treasures and keeps nymph-like beings called
xanas or
anjanas as prisoners. There is a legend that a dragon dwelled in the Peña Uruel mountain near
Jaca and claimed that it could mesmerise people with its glance, so the young man who decided to kill the beast equipped himself with a shiny shield, so that the dragon's glance would be reflected. When the young man arrived at the cave where the dragon lived, he could kill it easily because the dragon mesmerised itself. This legend is very similar to the Greek myth of
Medusa. 's to
St. Leander (Bibl. Municipale, MS 2,
Dijon)
Herensuge is the name given to the dragon in
Basque mythology, meaning "last serpent". The most famous legend has
St. Michael descend from
Heaven to kill it, but only once did God agree to accompany him in person.
Sugaar, the Basque male god, is often associated with the serpent or dragon but can take other forms as well. His name can be read as "male serpent". Dragons are well known in
Catalan myths and legends, in no small part because
St. George (Catalan
Sant Jordi) is the patron saint of
Catalonia. Like most mythical reptiles, the Catalan dragon (Catalan
drac) is an enormous serpent-like creature with four legs and a pair of wings, or rarely, a two-legged creature with a pair of wings, called a wyvern. As in many other parts of the world, the dragon's face may be like that of some other animal, such as a lion or a bull. As is common elsewhere, Catalan dragons are fire-breathers, and the dragon-fire is all-consuming. Catalan dragons also can emit a fetid odor, which can rot away anything it touches. The Catalans also distinguish a
víbria or
vibra (cognate with English
viper and
wyvern), a female dragon-like creature with two prominent breasts, two claws, two wings and an
eagle's beak. Dracs, Víbries and other mythological figures used to participate in
correfocs during popular celebrations. In Portuguese mythology,
Coca is a female wyvern that battles Saint George on the
Corpus Christi holiday. The fighting has a symbolic meaning: when the coca defeats Saint George the crops will be bad and there will be famine and death; when Saint George defeats the coca and cuts off her tongue and ears, the crops will have a good year and it announces prosperity. Still, she is called "saint" coca just as George is called saint, and the people cheer for her. Another dragon called
drago is also represented in Portuguese mythology and used to take part in celebrations during the Middle Ages. File:Galician dragon (Medieval Age).jpg|Dragon in a granite Relief (14th century). San Anton Museum (
A Coruña,
Galicia). File:Coca21.jpg|"Festa da Coca" during the
Corpus Christi celebration, in
Monção, Portugal File:Vibriadereus.JPG|Vibria in a parade in
Reus (Spain) File:Cucaferadetarragona.JPG|Cucafera during the "Festa Major de Santa Tecla" in
Tarragona (Spain) File:Drac vilafrancapenedes.JPG|Drac de
Vilafranca del Penedès (Spain) (1600) dancing during a
correfoc Italian ) Wyverns are usually evil in Italy, and there are many stories of wyverns being slain. Dragons also trick demons in Italian legends. The legend of Saint George and the wyvern is well known in Italy, but other saints are also depicted fighting wyverns. For instance, the first bishop of
Forlì,
Saint Mercurialis, was said to have killed a wyvern to save the city, so he is often depicted in the act of slaying a wyvern. Likewise, the first patron saint of
Venice,
Saint Theodore of Tyro, was a wyvern-slayer, and a statue representing his slaying of the wyvern still tops one of the two columns in
St Mark's Square.
St. Michael, the patron saint of
paratroopers, is also frequently depicted slaying a wyvern. According to the Golden Legend, compiled by the Italian
Jacobus de Voragine,
Saint Margaret the Virgin was swallowed by
Satan in the shape of a hydra, but she escaped alive when the
cross she carried irritated the hydra's innards. The Golden Legend, in an atypical moment of scepticism, describes this last incident as "apocryphal and not to be taken seriously" (trans. Ryan, 1.369), which did not prevent the legend from being popular and getting artistic treatments. More prevalent are the legends about dragons in Italy, particularly in
Umbria. One of the most famous wyverns of Italian folklore is
Thyrus, a wyvern that besieged
Terni in the Middle Ages. One day, a young and brave knight of the noble House of Cittadini, tired of witnessing the death of his fellow citizens and the depopulation of Terni, faced the wyvern and killed it. From that day, the town assumed the creature in its coat of arms, accompanied by a Latin inscription: "Thyrus et amnis dederunt signa Teramnis" ("Thyrus and the river gave their insignia to [the city of] Terni"), that stands under the banner of the town of Terni, honoring this legend. Another poem tells of another dragon that lived near the village of Fornole, near
Amelia, Umbria. Pope
Sylvester I arrived in Umbria and freed the population of Fornole from the ferocity of the dragon, pacifying the dragon. Grateful for his deed, the population built a small church dedicated to the saint on the top of the mountain near the dragon's lair in the 13th century. In the apse of the church there is a fresco representing the iconography of the saint. == Heraldry ==