A legend (Latin, legenda, "things to be read") is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude. Legend, for its active and passive participants, includes no happenings that are outside the realm of "possibility", defined by a highly flexible set of parameters, which may include miracles that are perceived as actually having happened, within the specific tradition of indoctrination where the legend arises, and within which it may be transformed over time, in order to keep it fresh and vital, and realistic.
Etymology and origin
The word "legend" appeared in the English language circa 1340, transmitted from medieval Latin language through French. Its first blurred extended (and essentially Protestant) sense of a non-historical narrative or myth was first recorded in 1613. By emphasizing the unrealistic character of "legends" of the saints, English-speaking Protestants were able to introduce a note of contrast to the "real" saints and martyrs of the Reformation, whose authentic narratives could be found in Foxe's Book of Martyrs. Thus "legend" gained its modern connotations of "undocumented" and "spurious".
More on [ Legend ]
Looking Back on Jesse Helms' Life Fri, 04 Jul 2008 18:14:00 -0400 Sen. No, as he was often called, "was a real throwback," says Merle Black, a professor of southern politics at Emory University. One of a select group of politicians who helped solidify Republican control in the South, he had a loyal constituency of working-class whites in North Carolina. Financial Aid Woes Make Community College More Appealing Fri, 04 Jul 2008 16:05:00 -0400 Despite efforts by the Bush Administration and Congress to quell turmoil in the student loan market, some students are still struggling to find money for college. We examine the case of two recent high school graduates who have been promised financial aid, but don't know how much they can count on. When Did Flag Pins Become So Important? Fri, 04 Jul 2008 16:00:00 -0400 Sen. Barack Obama Obama was questioned about why he doesn't always wear a flag pin during a Democratic debate in April. His critics say his lack of pin casts doubt on Obama's patriotism, and recently the Democratic candidate has been wearing one.
The Talk of the Town
The Chill Nick Paumgarten Mon, 30 Jun 2008 04:00:00 -0000 If you had stumbled into Banjo Jim’s, in the East Village, on a recent Wednesday night and encountered a sixty-something guy leading a band through a fervent rendition of “Wild Thing,” for an audience of two dozen or so, you might have concluded, “This is lame,” and slipped back . . . Oily Speculations James Surowiecki Mon, 30 Jun 2008 04:00:00 -0000 When bad things happen, it’s always nice to have a scapegoat. So, with Americans furious about soaring oil prices, Congress has gone in search of someone to blame. There are a number of usual suspects to choose from, depending on your politics--OPEC, greedy oil companies, lily-livered environmentalists opposed . . . Obama’s Iraq Problem George Packer Mon, 30 Jun 2008 04:00:00 -0000 In February, 2007, when Barack Obama declared that he was running for President, violence in Iraq had reached apocalyptic levels, and he based his candidacy, in part, on a bold promise to begin a rapid withdrawal of American forces upon taking office. At the time, this pledge represented conventional thinking . . .
404Legends - Exploring legend in history, folklore, literature, fiction, and the arts.
Meta Description: [ Legends Site Map. Exploring Legends in History,
Folklore,
Literature, Fiction, and the Arts. ]
Christ Legends - Eleven legends retold by Selma Lagerlöf (1908); e-text at the Baldwin Project.
Meta Description: [ Christ Legends by Selma Lagerlöf ]
Gunpowder Gertie - Pirate Queen of the Kootenays - Kootenay mountain legend of piracy on British Columbia's waterways.
Meta Description: [ Is there treasure buried on the shores of the Kootenay river system? Read this Kootenay mountain legend of piracy on BC, Canada's waterways. Who knows... maybe you can find the lost shipments of silver & gold. ]
Heroic Legends - European legends from the Middle Ages, by Agnes Grozier Herbertson (1908), e-text from Kellscraft Studio.
500Legend of Semiramis - On the legendary queen of Assyria, said to have built Babylon with its hanging gardens.
Meta Description: [ Earth's ancient history from the earliest times untill 1000 BCE, Gods of Sumer, Akkad, Babylonia,, Nibiru ]
Legends of Florence - Collected and retold by Charles Godfrey Leland (1895), e-text from Making of America.
Legends of the Rhine - By Wilhelm Ruland (1906) with illustrations; e-text at Kellscraft Studio.
Luxembourg Legends - Five legends of Luxembourg presented by the Luxembourg Tourist Office in London.
Meta Description: [ Legends of Luxembourg presented by the Luxembourg Tourist Office in London ]
Mysteries of Rennes-le-Chateau - Manuscript images and details of the research of Gay Roberts on the mysterious treasure of Rennes-le-Chateau.
Project Sheba - Discussion of the source texts, legends, and theories on the Queen of Sheba, by Miri Hunter Haruach.
Shine: The Concept of the World in Macedonian Folk Legends - Essay by Ermis Lafazanovski discussing pre-Christian and Christian ideas on the concept of the world as present in Macedonian legends.
Meta Description: [ macedonian literature, e-magazine, poetry, prose, essays, blesok, macedonia, skopje, literature in translation ]
The Book of Legends - Popular legends retold by Horace E. Scudder (1900); e-text at the Baldwin Project.
The Wise Men of Gotham - Humorous tales about the men of Gotham, who pretended to be madmen during the reign of King John of England.
Meta Description: [ Humorous Tales about the Men of Gotham. ]
WPBF's Lisa Hayward takes you inside the world of Motley Crue's frontman, who has opened a new nightclub in West Palm ...