Огнедишащият дракон (Опит за сравнение на образите на змея противник в българския юнашки епос и скандинавските епически сказания
The Fire-Spitting Dragon (An Attempt to Compare the Image of the Dragon-Antagonist in Bulgarian Heroic Songs and in Scandinavian Epic Sagas)

Summary/Abstract: The image of the dragon-antagonist is very popular in the epics of many peoples, and therefore it is an extremely propitious object for comparative and historical studies at a typological level. The exiting comparative studies on South-Slavic and Scandinavian epic texts don’t treat the problem separately nor thoroughly. The author uses examples from Bulgarian epic songs and the Scandinavian epic cycle of the hero Sigurd to illustrate the role of the dragon-antagonist in the creation of numerous folk plots and themes (goods given and restored, heroic matchmaking etc.). The comparative analysis of the image and its close context proves that the type of epic character is more ancient in Bulgarian heroic songs than in Scandinavian epos, in spite of the fact that as a whole the legends of Sigurd are more archaic than Bulgarian heroic songs. That is due to the vitality of the Bulgarian folk tradition and especially to the vitality of epic songs and rites where the image of the dragon-antagonist is still actively functioning, as well as to the influence of the Balkan folk community. The conclusions suggested as a result of the comparison support the thesis suggesting the folk origin of epic poetry.

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