The Moon is male, the Sun is also male or (much more rare) asexual
Some creature or creatures regularly (sunrise and sunset, summer and winter, lunar phases) or irregularly (solar and lunar eclipses, eschatological events) attack the luminaries or shade their light
During an eclipse or at the sunset the Sun or the Moon are attacked by a reptile (a snake, a lizard, a dragon, a crocodile) or a fish
Two male anthropomorphic creators compete in producing things. One of them is or becomes master of the underworld and/or spirits while another is associated with humans
The earth is a female person (alone or together with a male person); she is female being or associated with a woman
Water is the original element, the dry earth appears later
Original earth was small and later increased in size or the fertile soil grew from a small amount of original substance
From the primeval egg, eggs, or egg-like ball emerge the earth, the sky, sky bodies, different animals (all or part of the items of this list)
Monsters or ghosts try to invade our world. Powerful person or creature is on guard and prevents the invasion
First man (a group of brothers) or first human couple come out from the underworld (a cave) or from a small enclosure on its surface (tussock, reed, tree, rock, gourd)
First people are born by trees or come out of a tree, flower, reed
There are (or were) women who live apart from men in their own village or villages
Woman makes vain overtures to young man and/or falsely accuses him of sexual abuse. Her husband believes that the young man is guilty, kills or tries to kill him
To accuse a man or boy of (sexual) abbuse, a woman tears her clothes, smears or scratches her body pretending to be attacked
A woman revenges on a man who rejected her love but necessary not pretends to be an object of sexual harassment from his part
One of the trees is the principal, original one (emerged before all the other; ancestor of wild or cultivated plants; ocean or rivers inside it; world axis; higher than all the others; overshadows sky)
Person or creature is transformed. Separate parts of its (his, her) body give origin to different objects or creatures (only etiological narratives are considered)
Person or creature is transformed. Separate parts of its (his, her) body give origin to different plants, mostly edible or cultivated
Death (also Old Age, Disease, etc.) is a particular person not identical with the Master of the Dead. He kills people usually carrying away their souls
Killed and destroyed (often burned) person or creature (usually ogre, fierce animal, powerful shaman) turns into a multitude of biting insects or into other small molesting creatures
Dog guards (successfully or unsuccessfully) the (still unfinished) physical body of man or the entrance to paradise
A horse eats people or is associated with antagonist of the God
Giant water-chthonic or sky serpent or dragon has horns or antlers on its head
A dog is the lord, guard or guide of/to the land of the dead; or dogs live on the way to the land of the dead
Souls of the dead dogs have their own towns in the Beyond or their own paths to travel there
Some beings are half-men and half-dogs (usually anthropomorphic with heads of dogs)
Certain person loses his or her freedom, is confined to a far away place (often, to the underworld) and acquires cosmic dimensions: supports the earth or the sky and/or his or her movements produce earthquakes or (rare) storms
There is a source or body of water at the base of a tree which connects layers of the universe and/or has gigantic dimensions and considered to be the main tree of the world
Ursa major is only one anthropomorphic being, not several persons
Baby heroes, embryos or objects from which they emerge are found in a river or lake or come to people out of the water
When person comes to the water body, waters are split apart so the person reaches the other bank walking on the dry ground
Person gets into the belly of water being or into the belly of giant creature which appearance and living place remain vague. He kills the monster from the inside and/or returns to earth by himself (i.e. not extracted by other people)
Women who possess supernatural power and usually come from a non-human world (from sky, from under the water, they are winged beings, bird- or animal-persons) take off their clothes (feather skins and the like) or part of it. Because a man hides the clothes (of one of them), their owner(s) have (has) to marry him or help him
An ordeal: to survive cold (frosty night outdoors, chamber with ice, cold water and snow)
A man must fulfill difficult tasks (to win competition) to receive the permission for a marriage
Maternal uncle or father (or grandfather if he replaces father who is not mentioned) of the young man is his rival or enemy and tries to kill him
To return or to get his or her son, wife, husband, domestic animal or (rare) object, person must recognize her, him or it among several identical persons, animals or objects
Two persons who loved each other (usually a man and a girl) are buried in one grave or not far from each other. After the burial something related to this event takes place (two plants grow up and stretch their branches to each other, smoke of two funeral pyres is merged, two birds flu out from the grave, two stars appear on the sky, etc.)
Many brothers marry or have to marry in such a way that all their wives are (were) sisters
To get rid of a baby child or of the magic cock, they throw him into enclosure for animals, but cows or other animals do not trample the child or cock down
A small creature is reared up by people. When it is grown up, it becomes harmful and dangerous
A small creature (often a worm or a reptile) is brought home and reared up or it becomes to live by itself in an artificial body of water. When big, it goes out of human control or becomes something huge and/or dangerous. Cf. motif L13A (The reared up monster attacks people)
There is a headless anthropomorphic being who has eyes and/or mouth on his or her breast
Acquiring possibility to fly, person ultimately falls to the ground or remains in a faraway place being unable to fly any more
Person or creature who has no wings or is unable to fly on a long distance attempts to ascend to the sky or to fly far away but falls down or, deprived of his wings, remains in a place from which he is unable to return
Person who gives difficult tasks to the hero and/or person who demands the fulfillment of certain conditions from those who want to marry his daughter is a prominent figure in social hierarchy. He is a head of the socio-political unit of community or super-community level and is neither a member of the hero’s household nor a mythical being
Person pretends to eat his own innards or flesh and persuades the other to do the same. Other believes and kills themselves
After certain time a snake or fish turn into a dragon
A bird or birds attack or shade the Sun or the Moon during an eclipse or at the sunrise and sunset
Dogs having spots over the eyes are called the four-eyed and believed to have special properties (e.g. to see ghosts)
Father sends his daughters or sons to carry out a difficult task. At the very beginning their courage is tested. Only the youngest son or the youngest daughter passes the test successfully. Usually father takes guise of a robber or a predator animal and charges but only the youngest son or the youngest daughter is not scared.
Year is described as a tree with the number of branches, twigs, leaves etc. corresponding to the number of seasons, months, days, etc.
Horsemen or horses symbolize luminaries or parts of the day cycle
Heroes avenge the murder or captivity of the male relatives: (grand)father, uncles, or the elder relatives in general, the loss of the males being the most traumatic
Eyelids (eyelashes, eyebrows) of personage hang long down over his eyes. To make the eyes widely opened, the eyelids (eyelashes, eyebrows) should be propped up with poles, folks, sticks, etc. (rare: cut off)
Clouds are associated with cattle (and rain is the milk of the cloud coes)
Rivers of tears exist in the other world. Tears shed on earth fill there big containers
A river (wave, lake, basin) of milk that exists on earth (and not among the stars) is mentioned in narratives (in different context)
Streams of honey and oil (oil and milk, milk and blood) instead of streams of water are mentioned as a sign of generosity and prosperity. Cf. motif K33F
The Sun is associated with a horseman or rides in a cart driven by horses (equids)
Monstrous bird (giant bat) predates on humans. Heroes fight with it
From the mouth of a monstrous creature or person who is the enemy of the hero fire is coming out; its breath is fire
Being (any besides birds) with more than ten heads or with odd (but more than one) number of heads are described in tales or represented in art. If beings with ever more number of heads are named, the row ends with a being that has odd (or more than ten) number of heads
Parts of the body of the primeval person or creature are transformed into different elements of the landscape and parts of the universe
Sky is made of metal. The technique of its creation reminds the work of a smith
Loci or objects of three (rare – four) different materials are mentioned in such a way that all of them have positive connotations though unequal value (copper, silver and gold; silver, gold and diamonds, etc.)
Thanks to activity of a person (usually the old woman who winds or unwinds yarn, threads, etc.), the night and the day alternate with each other
Severed human heads are compared with balls or used as balls
Antagonist names numbers from one to seven or nine, every time asking what it is. The hero gives answers that the antagonist accepts as correct ones.
A man consciously marries a woman related to the non-human world
During or before the world catastrophe (deluge, darkness) wild beasts and monsters attack and destroy people
Persons avenge the death of their father, mother or other relatives who are one (rare two) generations older than they
Animal who has no horns now had them before or missed opportunity to get them
When two foxes (wolves) meet, one of them asks another when their next meeting will be. Another one answers that at the bazaar where pelts are sold (at the fur-dresser, etc.)
Somebody claims that he has been born before present world came into being. His opponent claims the same, and they argue who of them is the older
To lure his potential victim down from a tree, a predator pretends not to be dangerous (usually announces that it has been decreed that all animals are united in piece). The victim is dubious and usually asks the predator to announce the same news to the dogs. The predator runs away