Myths and Legends

Secondary Research

North American Culture:

'When it flaps its wings, it creates the wind, the lightning and the thunder'

There is a story of how there was no light in the world, as it was kept in a box and kept safe by the chief of the tribe. Having a reputation as a trickster the Raven stole the box - 'The Raven changed into its bird shape and carried the box through the sky. However, he dropped it, and the light broke into tiny fragments giving rise to the stars, the moon, and the sun'

Other references in folklore:

'A popular superstition arose declaring that if the ravens ever fled the Tower of London, the monarchy would fall'

'If someone died earlier than he/she was supposed to, they would come back after death to complete their interrupted fate' - as a Raven.

'Celtic war goddesses often took the form of a raven' - they would hover above battlefields e.g. Tethra

Ravens in Pagan legends have been 'demonised' and 'depicted as familiars of witches'

The origin of a ravens black feathers is told through a number of different stories. In Christian and North American mythology it is said:

In the Biblical story of the Great Flood, Noah originally 'sent a white raven to explore the sea and look for a dry piece of land. Instead of coming back to inform Noah the bird "kept going to and fro until the waters had dried up from the earth". So Noah sent a white dove which came back with an olive brand. The raven was summoned to come back by force and was blackened and condemned to feed on carrion as a punishment'

<http://www.avesnoir.com/ravens-in-celtic-mythology/>

<http://www.perspectivesmagazine.sk/news/ravens-and-crows-in-mythology-folklore-and-religion/>