Crow
The crow denotes oracle, messenger, creator, or helpful guide, but also carrion, blackening, and misfortune; solar readings may reflect confusion with ravens or cocks.
Our paraphrase of what the sources say it carries.
At a glance
- Type
- Symbol
- Borne by
- 2 figures
- Traditions
- Irish folklore (1)Native American folklore (1)
Figures that bear it
A model judged each figure against its own description, one term at a time. Is: the figure is a kind of this thing. Bears: it carries the thing or is marked by it. What a figure does is filed under motifs and powers. Open "why" for the sentence the judgement rests on.
- Badb is Irish folklore
why
Badb is an Irish battle goddess who appears in crow form over battlefields, inciting warriors to frenzy and foretelling slaughter, closely associated with and sometimes merged into the Morrígan.
- Skinwalker is Native American folklore
why
A skinwalker is understood to be a person, usually described as a witch or medicine person who has turned to evil, who has gained the ability to transform into, possess, or take on the appearance and abilities of an animal, most commonly a coyote, wolf, fox, owl, or crow.