The origin of the legends dates from the prehistoric period, when emerging civilizations began to show concern in preserving traditions, morality, ethics or celebrations, ultimately their culture.
Legends are defined as a form of narrative that speaks of the development of characters and historical events related to popular traditions. For the most part, the legends narrate facts that cannot be corroborated by science or history.
The legend of King Arthur is one of the best known
These facts represent a symbolism of great importance for the culture where they originate, since legends often mix historical elements and mythical qualities to explain origin and meaning.
Origin and evolution of the legend
The word legend was used for the first time in the 17th century. It comes from Latin legere, defined as reading, and legend, or things to read. During this time, English-speaking Christian Protestants used the word to describe the history of the saints in the Catholic Church.
They would refer to these stories as legends, since they considered them fictitious, in order to deny their sanctity. However, the legends began a long time ago.
Linguist Michael Witzel claimed that the legends originated on African Eve more than 100,000 years ago. During this historical period, the first modern humans emerged and with them the origin of the legends.
Wanting to preserve their culture, they recreated anecdotes of heroes and events that marked society.
These primitive legends mostly narrated the origin of natural phenomena unknown to humans and were transmitted from teacher to student and shaman to the tribe to preserve their history.
According to this theory, some legends have prevailed for three thousand years, narrated from generation to generation.
As social and technological advancement, the legends lost credibility, but they prevailed as fictitious and mythical events of the ancestors.
Its purpose evolved to transmit generational stories and traditions, not necessarily true, but part of the folklore of a society.
The storytellers were characterized by telling stories with expressive language and exaggerated body movements to bring the legends to life. Generally, these storytellers were advanced adults considered to be the wisest.
In this way, the legends were transmitted by the wise men to children, where adults also participated, especially before the appearance of radio and television.
The legends fulfilled transmitting memories, memories, and the collective feeling of a population. These spoke of the primitive perception of the first narrators, and with time, they underwent changes or modifications of the narrators who succeeded them.
That is why legends do not have a definitive form, since their content varies between generations and localities.
After the invention of the printing press, the legends were recorded in writing to protect the popular narratives from continuing to undergo generational changes.
The legends are considered anonymous, since it is a difficult task to identify their origin. Those in charge of collecting and writing captions are known as compilers.
However, narrating legends orally is still considered a common practice, as it preserves the tradition from storyteller to listener. Today, legends are considered a cultural heritage that help to forge identity in different societies.
References
- Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Definition of Legends. 2017.
- E2BN: Myths and Legends. (2017). East of England Broadband Network. About Myths and Legends.
- Oxford English Dictionary. 2017. Legend: Origin.
- Witzel, Michael. (2013). The origins of the world's mythologies. ISBN: 9780199812851
- MacDonald, Margareth. (2013). Traditional Storytelling Today. Routledge Taylor and Francis Group.
- González, Alejandra. (2002). The leyends. Government of the province of San Luis.