A mitikus előidők teremtményei
The Creatures of Mythical Prehistoric Times

Legends about Giants in Hungarian Folklore

Summary/Abstract: Ancient historical legends that reflect on prehistoric times make one of the special thematic groups of the historical legends in many aspects. Their importance is indicated also by the fact that the authors of 20th-century international legend catalogue drafts included these traditions into separate chapters. This is a special group of texts within Hungarian folklore, bordering on historical legends and folk belief legends, which includes primarily the traditions on giants and fairies showing these mythical beings as the former inhabitants of the earth (and the country in question). This study surveys the Hungarian folk tradition on giants: all those legends that have become fabulates today, which detail these beings’ features, actions and the circumstances of their extinction, mainly based on topographical and archaeological elements. In Hungarian folklore, especially in Transylvania, the tradition about giants is particularly expanded. In the 19–20th century most historical castles, ruins, or prehistoric fortresses were said to have been built and inhabited by these mythical creatures for a long time.

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