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Reptilian humanoids, or
anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...
reptile Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, squamates ( lizards and snakes) and rhynchocephalia ...
s, are fictional creatures that appear in folklore, fiction, and conspiracy theories.


In folklore

In
South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;; ...
n and
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...
n mythology, the
Nāga The Nagas (IAST: ''nāga''; Devanāgarī: नाग) are a divine, or semi-divine, race of half-human, half-serpent beings that reside in the netherworld (Patala), and can occasionally take human or part-human form, or are so depicted in art. ...
are semi-divine creatures which are half-human and half-serpent. Claims of sightings of reptilian creatures occur in
Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...
, where
swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...
s are common. In the late 1980s, there were hundreds of supposed sightings of a " Lizard Man" in Bishopville, South Carolina.Milligan, Stephen (1988-08-07) "Sightings of a monster lizard from the swamp has struck terror into a small community in South Carolina", The Sunday Times.


In fiction

Anthropomorphic reptilian races or beings commonly appear in
fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...
and
science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...
. They can be based on various reptiles, like
lizard Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia altho ...
s,
crocodile Crocodiles (family Crocodylidae) or true crocodiles are large semiaquatic reptiles that live throughout the tropics in Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia. The term crocodile is sometimes used even more loosely to include all extant me ...
s,
alligator An alligator is a large reptile in the Crocodilia order in the genus ''Alligator'' of the family Alligatoridae. The two extant species are the American alligator (''A. mississippiensis'') and the Chinese alligator (''A. sinensis''). Additional ...
s,
snake Snakes are elongated, limbless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more ...
s,
dinosaur Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...
s, and the fictional
dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted a ...
s. They are often depicted as powerful warriors, though their relative intelligence to humans varies – as with other anthropomorphic races, a greater resemblance to humans often denotes more "civilized" behavior.


Fantasy

The
Serpent Men Serpent Men are a fictional race created by Robert E. Howard for his King Kull tales. They first appeared in "The Shadow Kingdom", published in '' Weird Tales'' in August 1929. They were later adapted for the Marvel Comics Conan comics by Roy ...
, reptilian humanoids who can project illusions of human form, appeared as villains throughout Robert E. Howard's
King Kull Kull of Atlantis or Kull the Conqueror is a fictional character created by writer Robert E. Howard. The character was more introspective than Howard's subsequent creation, Conan the Barbarian, whose first appearance was in a re-write of a rejec ...
stories starting in 1929 as well as in the linked
Cthulhu Mythos The Cthulhu Mythos is a mythopoeia and a shared fictional universe, originating in the works of American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft. The term was coined by August Derleth, a contemporary correspondent and protégé of Lovecraft, to identify ...
.
Edgar Rice Burroughs Edgar Rice Burroughs (September 1, 1875 – March 19, 1950) was an American author, best known for his prolific output in the adventure, science fiction, and fantasy genres. Best-known for creating the characters Tarzan and John Carter, ...
'
Pellucidar Pellucidar is a fictional Hollow Earth invented by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs for a series of action adventure stories. In a crossover event, Tarzan, who was also created by Burroughs, visits Pellucidar. The stories initially involv ...
series featured primitive dinosaur-descended humanoids living in the
Hollow Earth The Hollow Earth is a concept proposing that the planet Earth is entirely hollow or contains a substantial interior space. Notably suggested by Edmond Halley in the late 17th century, the notion was disproven, first tentatively by Pierre Bougue ...
called the ''Horibs'' or snake-men in his 1929–1930 crossover ''
Tarzan at the Earth's Core ''Tarzan at the Earth's Core'' is a novel by American writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, serialized in September 1929 to March 1930, the thirteenth in his series of twenty-four books about the title character Tarzan and the fourth in his series set i ...
''. These almost simultaneous inventions originated the modern reptilian humanoid trope. In the 1980s, the animated television series '' Dino-Riders'' feature a race called the Rulons, of which some individuals were reptilian humanoids, that served as the main antagonist to the protagonist Valorians upon which the series is based. Merchandise based on the series included several series of toys, among which they included replicas of the reptilian Rulons.


Science fiction

In works of
science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...
,
aliens Alien primarily refers to: * Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country ** Enemy alien, the above in times of war * Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth ** Specifically, intelligent extrater ...
are often depicted as closely resembling
animal Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals consume organic material, breathe oxygen, are able to move, can reproduce sexually, and go through an ontogenetic stage ...
s, with reptilian aliens being no exception. An early appearance was in the story "
The Lizard-Men of Buh-Lo ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
" (1930) by Francis Flagg. Other examples include the Gorn from ''
Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...
'' and the
Dracs "Enemy Mine" is a science fiction novella by American writer Barry B. Longyear. It was originally published in the September 1979 issue of ''Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine''. The novella's plot concerns two soldiers, one human and one re ...
from the film '' Enemy Mine'' (1985). The television franchise '' V'' features the
Visitors Visitor, in English and Welsh law, is an academic or ecclesiastical title. Visitor or Visitors may also refer to: Geography * Visitor (mountain), a mountain in eastern Montenegro * Lake Visitor, a mountain lake in eastern Montenegro Literature ...
, a lizardlike alien race who
disguise A disguise can be anything which conceals or changes a person's physical appearance, including a wig, glasses, makeup, fake moustache, costume or other items. Camouflage is a type of disguise for people, animals and objects. Hats, glasses, ch ...
themselves as humans. The
Cardassian The Cardassians () are a fictional extraterrestrial species in the American science fiction franchise ''Star Trek''. They were devised in 1991 for the series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' before being used in the subsequent series '' St ...
race featured in multiple ''Star Trek'' series, is another example of reptilian humanoids in that particular science fiction universe. The "Tosk" people, featured on ''
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' (abbreviated as ''DS9'') is an American science fiction television series created by Rick Berman and Michael Piller. The fourth series in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise, it originally aired in syndication from ...
'', is another. The " Distant Origin" episode of '' Star Trek: Voyager'' then features the Voth, a race descended from the
dinosaurs Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is the ...
that had escaped extinction by leaving Earth and relocating to the Delta Quadrant. On the television series ''
Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the ...
'', there are also races or reptilian humanoids, such as the
Silurians The Silurians are a race of reptilian humanoids in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. The species first appeared in ''Doctor Who'' in the 1970 serial '' Doctor Who and the Silurians'', and were created ...
.


Games

Examples of reptilian races in fantasy games are the Lizardmen from
Warhammer Warhammer may refer to: * War hammer, a medieval weapon Warhammer media franchise *''Warhammer'', a series of games and related media: ** ''Warhammer'' (game), a table-top fantasy miniature wargame, and origin of the franchise ** ''Warhammer Fan ...
as well as Lizardfolk, Dragonborn and
Kobolds A kobold (occasionally cobold) is a mythical sprite. Having spread into Europe with various spellings including "goblin" and "hobgoblin", and later taking root and stemming from Germanic mythology, the concept survived into modern times in Ger ...
of the ''
Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (TS ...
''
tabletop role-playing game A tabletop role-playing game (typically abbreviated as TRPG or TTRPG), also known as a pen-and-paper role-playing game, is a form of role-playing game (RPG) in which the participants describe their characters' actions through speech. Participa ...
. The Dragonborn in particular – based on the Draconians of ''
Dragonlance ''Dragonlance'' is a shared universe created by Laura and Tracy Hickman, and expanded by Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis under the direction of TSR, Inc. into a series of fantasy novels. The Hickmans conceived ''Dragonlance'' while driving in t ...
'', which in that game were uniformly evil – were originally introduced in the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' 3.5 supplement book ''
Races of the Dragon ''Races of the Dragon'' is an optional supplemental source book for the 3.5 edition of the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role-playing game. Contents This book contains info on two new races. This book offers a new race that works well with t ...
'', published by
Wizards of the Coast Wizards of the Coast LLC (often referred to as WotC or simply Wizards) is an American publisher of games, primarily based on fantasy and science fiction themes, and formerly an operator of retail stores for games. It is currently a subsidia ...
in 2006. In 4th Edition, dragonborn are available as one of the core player character races in the ''
Player's Handbook The ''Player's Handbook'' (spelled ''Players Handbook'' in first edition ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' (''AD&D'')) is a book of rules for the fantasy role-playing game ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D''). It does not contain the complete set of ru ...
''. The dragonborn were introduced to the core rules in an attempt to reflect contemporary trends in fantasy fiction and appeal to newer players. In addition, it reflected a perception among the game's designers that it should be possible to play dragon-like creatures in a game with "Dragons" in the title. Richard Baker, who helped design 4th Edition, noted that the introduction of dragonborn to the core rules allowed them to "grow the D&D world by allowing the mix of characters to evolve in the new edition." Jonathan Bolding of '' The Escapist'' noted that the inclusion of the dragonborn in the 5th edition ''Player's Handbook'' does "push the 'traditional ''D&D mold a bit, but this is a greatest hits of ''D&D'' player races and powers from the last fifteen years of the game." Anthropomorphic reptilians are also shown in video games, especially in fantasy games. The lizardlike Argonian race takes a prominent role in the fantasy video game franchise ''
The Elder Scrolls ''The Elder Scrolls'' is a series of Action role-playing game, action role-playing video games primarily developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. The series focuses on Nonlinear gameplay, free-form gameplay in an ...
''. Other examples of reptilian humanoids in fantasy games include the Man-Serpents from the game ''
Elden Ring is a 2022 action role-playing game developed by FromSoftware and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. Directed by Hidetaka Miyazaki with worldbuilding provided by fantasy writer George R. R. Martin, it was released for PlayStation 4, PlayS ...
'' and the Naga from ''
World of Warcraft ''World of Warcraft'' (''WoW'') is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) released in 2004 by Blizzard Entertainment. Set in the '' Warcraft'' fantasy universe, ''World of Warcraft'' takes place within the world of Azer ...
''.


Conspiracy theory

The
reptilian conspiracy theory Reptilians (also called reptoids, archons, reptiloids, saurians, draconians, or lizard people) are supposed reptilian humanoids, which play a prominent role in fantasy, science fiction, ufology, and conspiracy theories. The idea of reptilian ...
alleges that shape-shifting reptilian aliens control Earth.


See also

* List of reptilian humanoids


References

{{Reptiles in culture Anthropomorphic animals Legendary reptiles Fantasy creatures Fictional reptilians