lore

Lore refers to the body of traditional knowledge, beliefs, and practices that are transmitted within a community across generations. It is closely related to folklore and encompasses myths, legends, folktales, ceremonial rites, customs, craft techniques, medicinal beliefs, foodways, and other practical know‑how. Lore is typically learned through everyday life, storytelling, and participation in shared activities, though written records can also preserve it. It is embedded in social context and place, and it often evolves as communities encounter new experiences.

Components of lore include explanations of origins and the world, heroic or legendary narratives, superstitions, ritual practices, and tacit skills that sustain daily life. It plays a role in shaping group identity, guiding social behavior, and providing meaning or coherence in uncertain situations. Because lore is living and dynamic, it can be contested, revised, or reinterpreted as social norms shift, populations move, or cultures interact.

In scholarly study, lore is examined as folklore, with attention to how knowledge is produced, transmitted, and transformed, as well as issues of ethics, ownership, and consent when researchers work with communities that preserve sensitive or sacred materials. In modern usage, the term lore is also widely applied to fictional universes, where creators develop backstories, histories, and world-building elements to enrich narrative depth. Such fictional lore imitates the function of traditional lore by organizing a setting’s rules, characters, and lore-based causality.