Cryptids

[MissJatti]

As we all know that there are cryptids all over the world.

But to me it seems like North American countries harbor the most crptids, and them cryptids are more scary, frighting, terrifying, more elusive, and to some more than real.

Some examples of North American crypids are the sasquatch, mothman, jearsy devil, thunderbirds, godzila (ops thats Japanese)

Could there be a connection between the North American cryptids and native Americans/red Indians spirits/myths

Could the natives summoned their spirits/myth to drive away the Europeans during or after the trust between the two sides was lost.

Are these spirits/myth still loom and we have come to call them cryptids???

[Q-C]

I don't doubt the myths of Native Peoples of any area served purposes: Warnings, entertainment, explanations of the unknown, etc.

But also, lumberjacks all over North America had their beasty tall tales as well. Meant to scare and entertain and help them cope with the unknown.

Imo, one logger, who stamped some big feet around his equipment in the 50's, helped birth the idea of another more modern (logger) beasty= bigfoot.

The mythical beasts of logger tales were often kind of silly, with odd physical descriptions and behaviors that grew as the tales were told. So, who knows what went through the mind of Ray Wallace? Who knows what the large feet were to represent, if any particular looking creature.

But another logger joke, sure blew up into a more descript creature! Our bigfoot.

Anyway, that is where I put the birth of some mythical critters. Not Native American myths come to life to protect or scare the Europeans.

http://www.lumberwoods.com/index.htm

Edited January 21, 2013 by QuiteContrary

[Clobhair-cean]

It's more like that North America is where 90% of the world's cryptozoologists are. It is the cryptozoologists who declare mythical creatures to be cryptids, aka. a kind of real biological animals that haven't been discovered yet. Without their interference no-one would actually think of them as something that's "out there" to find. While all cultures have mythical/folkloric monsters, they don't try to apply a pseudoscientific frame of reference to these creatures without the "help" of the cryptozoologists.

As for your question, while some North American cryptids, like bigfoot and certain lake monsters have their origins in Native American folklore and religion, they were all distorted and sensationalised by the late 19th early 20th century media, and it was these reports that gave rise to cryptozoology. Many others, like Mothman, lizardmen (they do seem to be out of vogue these days, no?), chupacabras, etc. are thoroughly modern inventions.

[Q-C]

Outside America has it's fair share, SkeptcByMind

http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=139978

[AsteroidX]

you forgot chupacabra

[rashore]

I think there are so many cryptids in North America because they have moved in with us from all around the world. The native peoples had their legends of course, and a lot of those remain intact or have influenced modern cryptid lore. But I think every group of people that immigrated in brought their own stories and legends, and those took root here.

For instance, the European werewolves have settled in here right along with Native American wolf legends that are rather different. European vampires came over too, and Native American bloodsuckers and such are way different. And so on.

And there are wee folk of all sorts that have been brought over from all over the place.

[orangepeaceful79]

I think that there are more reports of crypids in NA because even though we started off with a few fantasy creatures which were part of Native American folklore we are a people with a long tradition of storytelling. Paul Bunyan, Pecos Bill, and the like. Our modern mythology is rich with memorable characters.

In short we are a society here in NA that are veritable connisseurs of bull-$hit, and have been for hundreds of years. Add to this more modern elements like goth kids, video games, and other elements of current counter culture and you have a fertile field ready to be sewn with the seeds of many of our modern myths. Not to mention a reliably gullible slice of the populace ready to believe ANY fool thing that they read about on the internet.

We are also a culture that is becoming more and more motivated and informed by the sensational rather than the logical and rational. People are losing their ability to collectively apply critical thinking skills. Look at our political landscape and how negative, salacious advertising rules the airwaves. All of that programming is carefully selected by marketing firms who know exactly what our collective minds respond to.

We are getting more impressionable and less able to use our minds as a society to discern fake from fact and we keep going this way because it feeds our shallow, thrill-based, cultural identity. The explosion which the Cryptozoological and Paranormal world have enjoyed in popularity is directly related to this - NOT because anything new has been added with regards to evidence.

So cheers to those of you who believe every turd that BFRO puts out, and to the followers of the crypto websites. You are on the cutting edge of our society's precipitous decline into stupidity.

[S2F]

I think that there are more reports of crypids in NA because even though we started off with a few fantasy creatures which were part of Native American folklore we are a people with a long tradition of storytelling. Paul Bunyan, Pecos Bill, and the like. Our modern mythology is rich with memorable characters.

In short we are a society here in NA that are veritable connisseurs of bull-$hit, and have been for hundreds of years. Add to this more modern elements like goth kids, video games, and other elements of current counter culture and you have a fertile field ready to be sewn with the seeds of many of our modern myths. Not to mention a reliably gullible slice of the populace ready to believe ANY fool thing that they read about on the internet.

We are also a culture that is becoming more and more motivated and informed by the sensational rather than the logical and rational. People are losing their ability to collectively apply critical thinking skills. Look at our political landscape and how negative, salacious advertising rules the airwaves. All of that programming is carefully selected by marketing firms who know exactly what our collective minds respond to.

We are getting more impressionable and less able to use our minds as a society to discern fake from fact and we keep going this way because it feeds our shallow, thrill-based, cultural identity. The explosion which the Cryptozoological and Paranormal world have enjoyed in popularity is directly related to this - NOT because anything new has been added with regards to evidence.

So cheers to those of you who believe every turd that BFRO puts out, and to the followers of the crypto websites. You are on the cutting edge of our society's precipitous decline into stupidity.

A bit harsh, but probably not too far off the mark.

I liken it to the old adage, 'The empty can rattles the most'.

[Trakkia]

Why are there are more in north american areas?

By the way, moth man is modern and not native american, big foot I believe is mostly in asia, it 'appeared' in america after it was settled by europe. As for the thunderbird, there are more than enough winged european creatures to match it, I believe arab/indian/serbian myths top the list.

Personally I think the amount of cryptids a country has is directly proportionally to how much they stick to tradition or want to be the best at it -as with what someone else said about the cryptozoologists being there.

Bigfoots origin, if anywhere, doesn't lie with loggers though. It's with either the mountains of nepal which have a much longer history with it, or the various other places around there including china and eastern russia which have their own, older links to such stories.

Edited January 23, 2013 by Trakkia

[TroodonMan56]

While many Native American legends tell of creatures that resemble modern-day cryptids, I highly doubt that they were 'spirits' summoned up to scare off the Europeans. I think that cryptozoology should only focus on 'flesh-and-blood' animals, rather than the paranormal.

Also, the large number of cryptids in North America is most-likely just a coincidence. There are cryptids on every continent except Antarctica, and some of them have been seen in the oceans, too. As someone else posted before me, this is probably because there are more cryptozoologists in North America than anywhere else in the world. If there were more people outside of North America studying cryptids, then they would probably hear about a lot more, as well.

[MissJatti]

yes I did say in my original post that cyrptids are everywhere in the world.

Today it seems to me that north america is the alphacenter for the stories, witnesses occuring

[ali smack]

I think that there are more reports of crypids in NA because even though we started off with a few fantasy creatures which were part of Native American folklore we are a people with a long tradition of storytelling. Paul Bunyan, Pecos Bill, and the like. Our modern mythology is rich with memorable characters.

In short we are a society here in NA that are veritable connisseurs of bull-$hit, and have been for hundreds of years. Add to this more modern elements like goth kids, video games, and other elements of current counter culture and you have a fertile field ready to be sewn with the seeds of many of our modern myths. Not to mention a reliably gullible slice of the populace ready to believe ANY fool thing that they read about on the internet.

We are also a culture that is becoming more and more motivated and informed by the sensational rather than the logical and rational. People are losing their ability to collectively apply critical thinking skills. Look at our political landscape and how negative, salacious advertising rules the airwaves. All of that programming is carefully selected by marketing firms who know exactly what our collective minds respond to.

We are getting more impressionable and less able to use our minds as a society to discern fake from fact and we keep going this way because it feeds our shallow, thrill-based, cultural identity. The explosion which the Cryptozoological and Paranormal world have enjoyed in popularity is directly related to this - NOT because anything new has been added with regards to evidence.

So cheers to those of you who believe every turd that BFRO puts out, and to the followers of the crypto websites. You are on the cutting edge of our society's precipitous decline into stupidity.

In due respect not all Cryptids can be regarded as myths.

There have been cases were they've been proven to be real.

I agree that a lot of the more fantastical sounding cryptids are myths.

But not all. there are many undiscovered animals in the world, mostly in south america and africa, and mostly in jungles.

I think that the most popular, anormous cryptids are myths.

I think the most likely ones are smaller more boring sounding creatures.