Rainbow Serpent
Also called The Rainbow Snake, Ngalyod, Yurlunggur, Wonambi.
In Australian Aboriginal mythology, the Rainbow Serpent is a paramount creator-being of the Dreaming who shaped rivers, waterholes, and mountains as it moved across the land and remains bound to fresh water and the rainbow itself.
At a glance
- Tradition
- Australian Aboriginal folklore
- Region
- Australia (place of origin)Rivers and Lakes (unspecified) (habitat)
- Trait family
- The Land-Shapers
- Symbols
- Snake
Near this figure
and 8 more
Symbols
Judged against the description by a model. Meanings are our own paraphrase.
- Snake is Snake is a broad serpent symbol of creation and guardianship; South American traditions name Snake a primordial earth-maker and giver of hunting arts.
why
Descriptions of its form vary by region and language group, ranging from an immense serpent to composite forms that blend snake, crocodile, and other features, and it is generally depicted as dwelling permanently in deep, permanent waterholes, from which it is said to emerge in wet-season storms.
Traits
Read from the figure's description, which a model wrote. Open "why" for the sentence a trait came from.
Form
- Serpentine elongated body
why
an immense serpent
- Hybrid of multiple animals
why
composite forms that blend snake, crocodile, and other features
- Colossal terrain shaping giant
why
its huge body carved out the winding courses of rivers, gouged waterholes, and pushed up mountains and ridges in its wake
Behaviour
- Tunnels through earth creating rivers and valleys
why
moving across an undifferentiated earth, its huge body carved out the winding courses of rivers, gouged waterholes, and pushed up mountains and ridges in its wake.
- Bound to specific body of water
why
it is generally depicted as dwelling permanently in deep, permanent waterholes, from which it is said to emerge in wet-season storms.
- Punishes those who pollute or overharvest water
why
in many tellings it is also dangerous, capable of causing floods, drowning trespassers who disturb its waterholes, or punishing breaches of law and ceremony.
Offensive powers
- Weather manipulation
why
capable of causing floods, drowning trespassers who disturb its waterholes
- Storm summoning
why
in other tellings it is linked to the arrival of the monsoon rains and the cycle of wet and dry seasons.
Utility powers
- Terrain shaping
why
its huge body carved out the winding courses of rivers, gouged waterholes, and pushed up mountains and ridges in its wake.
Roles
Judged from the works' own entries, not from the description. Carries: the figure holds the role. Meets: the role is in its stories, held by something it meets.
- Father carries both readings
3 citations
- Carol Rose, Giants, Monsters, and Dragons, s.v. "Rainbow Serpent."
- George M. Eberhart, Mysterious Creatures: A Guide to Cryptozoology, s.v. "Rainbow Serpent."
- Theresa Bane, Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore, s.v. "Rainbow Serpent."
- Serpent carries both readings
3 citations
- Carol Rose, Giants, Monsters, and Dragons, s.v. "Rainbow Serpent."
- George M. Eberhart, Mysterious Creatures: A Guide to Cryptozoology, s.v. "Rainbow Serpent."
- Theresa Bane, Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore, s.v. "Rainbow Serpent."
- Water carries both readings
3 citations
- Carol Rose, Giants, Monsters, and Dragons, s.v. "Rainbow Serpent."
- George M. Eberhart, Mysterious Creatures: A Guide to Cryptozoology, s.v. "Rainbow Serpent."
- Theresa Bane, Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore, s.v. "Rainbow Serpent."