Mythologien

Mythologien is the study of mythologies—the belief narratives, legends, and symbolic systems that various human societies use to explain origins, explain cultural norms, and frame the sacred. In German-language scholarship, Mythologien often denotes both the collection of myths from different cultures and the academic study thereof.

The field analyzes how myths arise, circulate, and function within communities. Topics include cosmogonies and the origin of the world, the deeds of deities and heroes, etiologies for customs, rites and taboos, and the transmission of stories through oral and written channels. Myths are examined as texts embedded in ritual, religion, and social identity, not merely as entertainment.

Methodology combines philology, archaeology, anthropology, and literary analysis. Comparative methods seek correspondences across cultures; theories such as structuralism or functionalism seek to explain the role of myth in organizing knowledge and social life. Distinctions are often drawn between myth, legend, and folktale, though these categories overlap in practice.

Major traditions discussed within Mythologien include Greek and Roman, Norse and other Germanic traditions, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, Hindu, Buddhist, Chinese, and diverse Indigenous mythologies. In contemporary contexts, mythologies influence literature, film, video games, and popular culture, while also informing scholarly debates about religion and history.

See also Mythology; Folklore; Comparative mythology; World mythologies.