Anime Mythological Creatures: Origins of Anime's Favorite Mythical Beings

Fantastic Creatures Unraveled: The Origins of Some of Anime's Favorite Creatures

Throughout history, many concepts have enlightened different civilizations, none more so than the many fantastic beasts people have contrived over time. Whether invented to explain natural phenomena, created due to supposed sightings, or crafted to keep children out of dangerous areas, these beings have not only transcended time, but they've also become an integral part of modern society. Flags bear their symbols, philosophers use them as metaphors, and entertainment franchises extensively use them to enhance plot arcs and create stories audiences can effortlessly enjoy.

It's a trend anime has not only embraced, but helped evolve to an extent the original storytellers could only have dreamed of. Even better, many writers have dug far deeper than most realize, often unearthing mysterious and little-known creatures that most have never heard of for their work. To better understand this, let's look at some of the more prominent creatures across a selection of different franchises, more specifically their origins and how they compare with their modern counterparts. For the record, I'll be citing Brenda Rosen's amazing compilation The Mythical Creatures Bible throughout.

Monster Girl Doctor

Greco-Roman Origins:

Lamia (Sapphee)

Protagonist Glenn's childhood BFF/love interest Sapphee is a Lamia, a human/snake hybrid with a kind, albeit highly jealous nature. Its name is that of a beautiful queen who was one of the many lovers of the ever-philandering ruler of Olympus, Zeus. His jealous, vengeful wife, Hera, punished Lamia by kidnapping and murdering her children, sending the distraught queen fleeing to a cave. Her sadness and rage drove her mad, turning her into a demon that seduced men and ate children.

Centaur (Tisalia Scythia)

Potential love interest #2, Tisalia Scythia, is a centaur, a human/horse hybrid with a noble, generous nature, a massive 180 from this creature's crazed past. In classic tales, centaurs were known for their wild, often lusty nature, especially when drunk. There were exceptions, like Chiron, who famously tutored many heroes, and even taught the famed doctor Asclepius medicine.

Cyclops (Meme)

Potential interest #3, Meme, is a cyclopes, a creature with one giant eye, known for her self-deprecating nature. It's another giant pivot from the past, since cyclopes were originally giants known for their violent nature, especially in the Odyssey, when one named Polyphemus trapped the title character and his men in a cave and began eating them as punishment for intruding. He was ultimately tricked and blinded, allowing the prisoners to escape.

Harpy (Illy)

Potential love interest #4, Illy, is a harpy, a creature with the body of a woman and the wings/legs of a bird, with a mischievous nature and short temper. Once again, it's a giant about-face: originally, they were monsters with the bodies of birds and heads of women, known to fly into different feasts, steal the food, and foul the tables before flying off.

Arachne (Aranhia)

Potential love interest #5, Aranhia, is an Arachne, a half-human/spider hybrid known for her teasing nature… a term that's yet another stark turn from its origin story. Originally, Arachne was a talented weaver who famously criticized the Olympians' shortcomings. She was confronted by Athena, who challenged her to a weaving contest, the latter's creation showing her virtue while Arachne's showed Zeus' indiscretions. Angered, Athena tore Arachne's creation then touched her to make her feel her guilt, after which the weaver hung herself. Out of sympathy, Athena transformed her into a spider.

Multi-Origin Creatures:

Mermaid (Lulala)

Potential love interest #6, Lulala, is a mermaid, a human/fish hybrid, who's equally spunky but very sweet. Variations of this creature can be found around the world, where they're alternatively portrayed as trying to seduce sailors, causing storms and shipwrecks, or divine symbols of femininity.

Dragon (Skadi)

Potential love interest #7, Skadi, is a dragon, a creature requiring no introduction. It's one of the most common characters throughout fiction—but its original portrayal depends on the source. For example, western dragons tend to be malevolent monsters, either slaughtering the innocent or protecting treasure hordes; in contrast, eastern dragons are benevolent beings that assist people and grant wisdom and guidance.

Giant (Dione)

Adorable side character Dione is a giant, another creature with countless incarnations around the world, although they're much more uniform. Most cultures portray them as either malicious monsters or rather dim-witted, the Titans being among the more infamous such, although the Irish also mention the evil Balor, a giant whose gaze could kill any it touched. The Norse also used them to portray chaos conflicting with the order of their gods, the Asgardians.

Phoenix

There's a reference to Illy's relation to the Phoenix, arguably the most famous flying creature of all. In the west, it originated in Egypt, where it was associated with the sun, then evolved in Greece, where it earned its reputation for building a nest, then consuming itself in fire before rising reborn from its own ashes. As for the east, it's also associated with fire, but was now immortal, part of the origin story of Yin and Yang, and the second most revered creature in existence after the dragon.

Horizon on the Middle of Nowhere

European Origins:

Fairies

London is portrayed in the series as a city of fairies, beings with great power often associated with Celtic and British mythology. Their appearance differs depending on the source, with some claiming they're tall and radiant whereas others say they're tiny. Either way, they're very magical, clever, and often known to be mischievous.

Changelings

Queen Elizabeth and her sister Mary are changelings, a side term from the same lore where fairies would swap human children with their own; it led to many coming up with countermeasures and even tests to determine if a child was swapped.

Kobolds

Some of Mary's closest friends are kobolds, grumpy little lemming-like creatures in England. It's another stark change because kobolds are originally house elves from Germany, known to take care of most household chores provided they're left a fair share of meals.

Far Eastern Origins:

Yatagarasu (Milton)

Side character Milton is a Yatagarasu, a three-legged crow with a mischievous nature. In truth, the Yatagarasu is originally a three-legged raven which acts as a messenger for the Shinto sun goddess, Amaterasu.

Suppose a Kid From the Last Dungeon Boonies Moved to a Starter Town

American Origins:

Jackalope

The creature that pummels Lloyd in the beginning is a jackalope, a creature from American folklore that's a combination of a killer rabbit and pygmy deer. According to legend, its blood was medicinal, it could imitate a human voice to throw off pursuit, and could only breed during thunderstorms with hail.

European Origins:

Kraken

One of the dishes Merthophan cooks contains kraken, one of the most feared creatures from Norse mythology: a giant squid so powerful it could smash and pull under entire ships with ease.

Multi-Origin:

Basilisk

Another creature Merthophan cooks is basilisk, a nasty creature from medieval European and Middle Eastern lore. Usually said to have a snake-like appearance, it had an extremely toxic bite and could turn others to stone with just a glance. Its potency eventually evolved to where it could summon snakes at will.

Golem

At the end, Eug famously unleashes a Golem, a creature from both Jewish and European folklore which is essentially an artificial man crafted from the earth. Supposedly, it's animated by magic and will follow its creator's will, although there are tales where said creators have lost control of them, leading to disastrous consequences.

Aesthetica of a Rogue Hero

European Origins:

Cockatrice

A common beast Babel has students face is the cockatrice, a creature combining elements of a snake and a rooster. It's a medieval Europe creation which first appeared in The Canterbury Tales and is an evolved form of the previously mentioned Basilisk, bearing similar powers and the ability to rot fruit off trees with a look.

Sleipnir

Protagonist Akatsuki famously rides a magical motorcycle called Sleipnir, a term rooted in Norse mythology. More specifically, it's the name of the horse ridden by Odin, the Norse equivalent of Zeus. It was famous for two things: being the fastest horse in existence, and having eight legs.

Banished From the Hero's Party, I Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Countryside

European Origins:

Elves

This series contains numerous elves, a creature found throughout European folklore. They vary in terms of size and behavior, depending on the source, but the type most anime (including this one) use is the Norse variety, which is split between Light and Dark classes. This series uses the former which, like in the original tales, are very noble, have potent magic, are mostly benevolent, and often form relationships with humans.

Undine

One amazing creature protagonist Gideon/Red meets is an undine, a water spirit from European folklore which belongs to a class of creatures called elementals AKA beings that embody the four base elements (earth, air, fire, and water). They live in pools of water, can assume human form, and are known to form relationships with humans…although they can be vengeful if betrayed.

Conclusion

Bear in mind, this is only a small taste of the many amazing creatures embraced by anime. Within many other franchises (Danmachi in particular) are countless others, all of which are more than worth checking out. After all, anime also has a history of teaching while entertaining, and there's plenty more avenues to travel down in the future.