Sayula Popoluca (=Veracruz Mixe), Sierra Popoluca, Veracruz Zoque



Tradition title rus: 
Саюла пополука (=михе Веракруса), сьерра пополука; соке Веракруса
Areal ID: 
14.1.3.3
Tradition analysis result motif count all: 
82.00
Tradition analysis result motif count cosmo: 
56.00
Motifs: 

Motif

a3


Name_eng: 
Male sun and female moon
Description: 

The Moon is female or bisexual, the Sun is male




Motif

a5


Name_eng: 
The Sun and the Moon are males
Description: 

The Moon is male, the Sun is also male or (much more rare) asexual




Motif

a12


Name_eng: 
Eclipses: monster’s attack
Description: 

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




Motif

a14


Name_eng: 
Eclipses: relations between the Sun and the Moon
Description: 

Coming together of the Sun and the Moon is the reason of their eclipses




Motif

a24


Name_eng: 
The first sunrise
Description: 

In the beginning it is dark. When the Sun first appears on the sky, primeval beings or part of them perish or turn into animals, spirits, stones




Motif

a32


Name_eng: 
Figure on lunar disc
Description: 

A figure or an imprint of some being or object are seen in the Moon. (For statistical analysis motifs A32A – A32J are also included into A32)




Motif

a32a


Name_eng: 
The Moon rabbit
Description: 

Rabbit or hare are seen in the moon




Motif

b23


Name_eng: 
Prohibited fire and smoke
Description: 

God prohibits making fire for cooking and punishes breakers of this taboo




Motif

b39


Name_eng: 
Narrow waist of an insect
Description: 

Insect-person knows the source of food (cultivated plants) and water but does not share his knowledge. To make him speak, ancestors tie a rope around his waist and pull it till the waist becomes narrow (origin of narrow place between breast and belly of insects)




Motif

b40


Name_eng: 
Rabbit as deer’s proxy
Description: 

Hare or rabbit is a false deer or it was deer in the past or a close kin of the deer or had horns or antlers or missed opportunity to get them, its ears are the false horns




Motif

b40a


Name_eng: 
Missed opportunity to have horns
Description: 

Animal who has no horns now had them before or missed opportunity to get them




Motif

b41a


Name_eng: 
Animal reveals master’s secrets
Description: 

The dog or other domestic animal speaks aloud about those details of its masters' life that they would prefer to conceal. He is punished by depriving his ability to speak




Motif

c5a


Name_eng: 
Bird-scouts
Description: 

Birds or humans later changed to birds are sent to explore the earth (is it dry, are any survivals, to investigate why smoke rises to the sky, etc.) or to bring some soil to make the land that would be good for living




Motif

c12b


Name_eng: 
People descend from a dog
Description: 

In the beginning of time or after the flood man marries a bitch. Present people descend from them.




Motif

e9


Name_eng: 
The mysterious housekeeper
Description: 

Person observes traces of some activity that takes place in his (rare: her) house in his (her) absence and then takes by surprise the responsible one




Motif

e9d


Name_eng: 
Dog-wife
Description: 

Man marries a girl who initially has guise of a dog




Motif

f40b


Name_eng: 
A man in a village of women
Description: 

A man gets into the village of women. Usually he has to satisfy every woman against his will or every woman claims him for herself




Motif

f45


Name_eng: 
The Amazons
Description: 

There are (or were) women who live apart from men in their own village or villages




Motif

g4


Name_eng: 
A food mountain
Description: 

Cultivated plants are found above or inside a mountain




Motif

g9


Name_eng: 
Restored forest
Description: 

People fell trees to make a garden. In the morning, the forest is intact again




Motif

g9b


Name_eng: 
Abandon your work, flood is coming
Description: 

A man fells trees to clear ground for a garden or breaks ground. Certain person or animal revives vegetation, makes the soil virgin again. He or she explains that the flood is coming, there is no sense to work and advices to prepare a floating device




Motif

g12a


Name_eng: 
Plants from drops of blood
Description: 

Cultivated plants emerge from drops of blood or spill from cuts on the body of a person or animal




Motif

g16


Name_eng: 
Ants find cultivated plants
Description: 

Ants are the first who find cultivated plants (corn or manioc) which are concealed from the others in particular place




Motif

h24


Name_eng: 
Container opened too early
Description: 

Container with valuables or with dangerous creatures is opened (before time). Its content goes out of control or disappear




Motif

h26


Name_eng: 
Mosquitoes had to be drowned
Description: 

The right way to dispose of container with stinging insects would be to throw it into the river or sea or bury in a far away place, but it was not done




Motif

h27


Name_eng: 
Mosquitoes let lose
Description: 

Stinging insects (rare diseases) had been inside a container or some enclosure. They escaped to the world when the container or enclosure was foolishly opened




Motif

h28


Name_eng: 
Plagues from the body of a person or creature
Description: 

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




Motif

h36


Name_eng: 
The muddled message
Description: 

Person is sent by god to bring instructions or certain objects but distorts, forgets or replaces them. This has fatal consequences for humans or for a certain species of animals. (Lithuanian case can be a mistification)




Motif

h47


Name_eng: 
Offended sky or earth
Description: 

The sky (or the earth) is offended by people’s behavior in respect to it and reacts accordingly (e.g. rises higher than it was before)




Motif

i3


Name_eng: 
Weapon of Thunder
Description: 

The lightning (and thunder) is (produced with) an object (axe, sword, mirror, belt, stones, skin, etc.) in hands of anthropomorphic being




Motif

i8e1


Name_eng: 
Four supports of the world
Description: 

The sky or the earth rests upon four or five (cardinal points and the center) supports of any kind (poles, mountains, giants)




Motif

i9


Name_eng: 
Colors of the cardinal directions
Description: 

Four cardinal directions and/or some objects associated with them are associated with different colors




Motif

i13a


Name_eng: 
The horned serpent
Description: 

Giant water-chthonic or sky serpent or dragon has horns or antlers on its head




Motif

i20


Name_eng: 
The undeground dwarfs
Description: 

Race of dwarfs lives under the ground (deep under the earth or in hills and rocks) or at the horizon where the earth and the sky meet




Motif

i28


Name_eng: 
Animals in the underworld
Description: 

Game animals live inside a mountain, in a cave or in the underworld where they often look like humans and have a master




Motif

i41


Name_eng: 
Rainbow serpent
Description: 

Rainbow is a reptile (usually a snake) or (more rare) a fish, or it is related to snake, to its tongue, breath, or to scorpion's tail




Motif

i42


Name_eng: 
Rainbow is a pair of creatures
Description: 

Rainbow is two creatures or persons, usually a male and a female




Motif

i43a


Name_eng: 
The celestial monster
Description: 

Giant reptilian monster (serpent, more rare fish, chain of fish) extends in the sky and/or supports the sky being associated with Milky Way or the rainbow




Motif

i43b


Name_eng: 
Milky Way is a serpent or fish
Description: 

Milky Way is a reptile, fish, or chain of fish




Motif

i45a


Name_eng: 
Not to point at the Moon or a star
Description: 

Person who points at the Moon or a star or looks intently at them will get sick or die or his pointing finger will rot or wither




Motif

i45b


Name_eng: 
Not to point at the rainbow
Description: 

It to point at the rainbow, pointing finger or entire arm will rot, wither or become crooked




Motif

i69


Name_eng: 
Star dung
Description: 

Shining sky objects or atmospheric phenomena are excrements of sky dwellers




Motif

i77


Name_eng: 
The lame thunder
Description: 

Powerful person connected with thunder and rain is lame (usually after falling down from the sky)




Motif

i80


Name_eng: 
Thunder’s apprentice
Description: 

Person who got into the place of a deity responsible for atmospheric phenomena breaks certain taboo or instructions producing excessive thunderstorm, rain, snowfall or wind




Motif

i80a


Name_eng: 
The youngest Thunder
Description: 

Man meets Thunders and becomes one of them




Motif

i82a


Name_eng: 
Venus is male
Description: 

Morning and/or Evening Star is a male personage




Motif

j4


Name_eng: 
Revenge for the death of the male relatives
Description: 

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




Motif

j24


Name_eng: 
Grounded to powder
Description: 

Hero is grounded to powder but resuscitates




Motif

j26


Name_eng: 
Babies come out of the water
Description: 

Baby heroes, embryos or objects from which they emerge are found in a river or lake or come to people out of the water




Motif

j43


Name_eng: 
Bait for antagonists
Description: 

To kill his antagonists, hero lures them with an attractive object which is delicious to eat and is usually on the other side of a body of water or a canyon




Motif

j44


Name_eng: 
The broken bridge
Description: 

Person or his helper draws his enemies on the unstable bridge and destroys it. The enemies fall into water, into a precipice




Motif

j46


Name_eng: 
Enemy drowns
Description: 

Antagonist perishes falling into the water or trying to cross a water body




Motif

j50


Name_eng: 
An attempt to revive the victim
Description: 

Twin heroes' parent dies or is killed, an attempt to revive him or her fails




Motif

k24


Name_eng: 
Stolen clothes of supernatural woman
Description: 

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




Motif

k25


Name_eng: 
Magic wife
Description: 

A man consciously marries a woman related to the non-human world




Motif

k27c


Name_eng: 
Ordeal: knives and thorns
Description: 

An ordeal: to remain alive after contact with sharp points or blades




Motif

k27d


Name_eng: 
Ordeal: chamber with dangerous beings
Description: 

An ordeal: to remain alive in a closed room full of beasts of prey, poisonous or other dangerous creatures




Motif

k34


Name_eng: 
Fatal swing
Description: 

Person kills others inviting them to sit on a swing and launching them into water, on rocks, etc.




Motif

l11


Name_eng: 
Turtle-bench
Description: 

In a non-human world objects of everyday life have appearance of animals and monsters, mainly fish, amphibians and reptiles




Motif

l32


Name_eng: 
Gluttonous stone
Description: 

Stone swallows, bites or transforms people




Motif

l39


Name_eng: 
Hero is compelled to descend from a tree
Description: 

When a person climbs a tree, a demon comes to it and carries the person away, or the person follows the demon to his world by his own will




Motif

l40


Name_eng: 
Reflection and shadow
Description: 

Person discovers (rare:still fails to discover) another getting to see his or her shadow or reflection in water




Motif

l48


Name_eng: 
Demons devour their comrades
Description: 

A man kills (usually in a tree, on a rock, at the edge of a well, of a precipice) and/or throws down one of his enemies. The other enemies do not recognize their comrade and think that their prey is falling down




Motif

l53


Name_eng: 
Stones into the maw
Description: 

A monstrous being is killed or neutralized by (burning hot) stones (pieces of metal, heavy fruits, etc.) thrown into its maw or anus or the being retreats when they menace to throw a stone into its maw




Motif

l55


Name_eng: 
Monster killed with hot liquid
Description: 

To kill a dangerous animal or monster, acrid or hot liquid (boiling water, resin, soup, etc.) is poured into one of his body orifices




Motif

l70


Name_eng: 
Fruit falls and kills
Description: 

Person or animal is killed or injured with a heavy object dropped from a tree (or rock, etc.). The person or the animal knows that the objects will fall but has falls ideas about its character and weight




Motif

m3


Name_eng: 
Chain of animals
Description: 

Person crosses a water or air space along the chain of many animals, birds or fish




Motif

m8b


Name_eng: 
Birds break an obstacle to get water
Description: 

Birds or (rare) animals work hard to break a rock or a cane and get water or honey concealed inside




Motif

m47


Name_eng: 
Head put to bottoms
Description: 

Punishing a person or animal or restoring his or its body after its disin­teg­ration, a powerful being intentionally or by chance puts head to bottoms




Motif

k27 (motif is not in the correlation table)


Name_eng: 
Competitions and difficult tasks
Description: 

Person is suggested to fulfill tasks that are mortally dangerous or cannot be fulfilled without supernatural helpers or capacities. The person fulfills the tasks and remains alive. A contest between persons has form of a competition or game in which the loser is deprived of his status or life




Motif

j21


Name_eng: 
Birth from eggs
Description: 

Gods, first people or founders of the royal lineages are born from eggs




Motif

a47


Name_eng: 
The Sun is born from an egg
Description: 

The Sun is born or created from an egg




Motif

h16


Name_eng: 
Rivers of tears
Description: 

Rivers of tears exist in the other world. Tears shed on earth fill there big containers




Motif

h16a


Name_eng: 
Rivers of blood
Description: 

Rivers (lakes) of blood (also of puss, bones, sweat or water used for washing of corpses) are mentioned in narratives (in different context)




Motif

f35


Name_eng: 
Feeding with the paramour’s meat
Description: 

Person feeds another with the meat of his or her sexual partner who cooks or eats it without knowing whose meat it is




Motif

i20c


Name_eng: 
Dwarfs live in the underworld
Description: 

Dwarfs live in the underworld that somewhat reminds the world of humans. If the dwarfs and the humans meet, it is deep under the earther




Motif

a14a


Name_eng: 
The conflict between the Sun and the Moon
Description: 

The Sun and the Moon are or were enemies, either permanently or in particular situations




Motif

i9a


Name_eng: 
Zenith and nadir
Description: 

The zenith and/or nadir are described together with four cardinal directions as the fifth (and the sixth) ones




Motif

h36a


Name_eng: 
Origin of death from the falsified message
Description: 

Person distorts instructions that he must pass to others, intentionally lies, forgets or replaces certain objects that must be given to others. Because of this human beings become mortal (do not revive after death)




Motif

j1


Name_eng: 
The vengeful heroes
Description: 

Persons avenge the death of their father, mother or other relatives who are one (rare two) generations older than they




Motif

h28a


Name_eng: 
Mosquitoes from sparks and smoke
Description: 

A burned person or creature immediately turns into a multitude of mosquitoes or biting flies




Motif

c9


Name_eng: 
Warning about the coming flood
Description: 

God, animal, some person warns one of the people about the catastrophy (usuallly the flood) that will become soon and in which most of the people must perish





Similar traditions based on Cosmology and Etiology motifs:
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 4 Tradition: Gulf Nahuatl
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 4 Tradition:
Huastec (Teenek)
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 4 Tradition:
Tzeltal
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 4 Tradition:
Nahuan groups of Puebla and Huasteca after AD1900
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition:
Tepehua, Totonac
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition:
Aztec; Aztec and Teotihuacan iconography
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition:
Quiche, Achí, Cakchiquel, Pocomchi, Pocomam
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition:
Tequistlatec
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition:
Tzotzil
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition:
Yucatec, Itza; pre-Columbian Mayan iconography of Yucatan

Similar traditions based on Adventures and Tricks motifs:
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 5 Tradition:
Gulf Nahuatl
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 5 Tradition:
Quiche, Achí, Cakchiquel, Pocomchi, Pocomam
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 4 Tradition:
Tepehua, Totonac
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition:
Warao
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition:
Shuar, Achuar (Shiwiar)
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition:
Chorti
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition:
Barasana, Taibano, Macuna
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition:
Huastec (Teenek)
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 3 Tradition:
Navajo
Shared motifs (from a list of 10 less used): 2 Tradition:
Zuni