Wolves in folklore, religion and mythology

The wolf is a common motif in the foundational mythologies and cosmologies of peoples throughout Eurasia and North America (corresponding to the historical extent of the habitat of the gray wolf). The obvious attribute of the wolf is its nature of a predator, and correspondingly it is strongly associated with ferocity, loyalty, sharp intelligence and appetite for freedom, making it the symbol of the warrior on one hand, and that of the devil on the other. The modern trope of the Big Bad Wolf is a development of this. The wolf holds great importance in the cultures and religions of the nomadic peoples, both of the Eurasian steppe and North American Plains.

Wolves were sometimes associated with witchcraft in both northern European and some Native American cultures: in Norse folklore, the völva Hyndla and the gýgr Hyrrokin are both portrayed as using wolves as mounts, while in Navajo culture, wolves were feared as witches in wolf's clothing. Similarly, the Tsilhqot'in believed that contact with wolves could cause mental illness and death.

Akkadian

One of the earliest written references to black wolves occurs in the Babylonian epic ''Gilgamesh'', in which the titular character rejects the sexual advances of the goddess Ishtar, reminding her that she had transformed a previous lover, a shepherd, into a wolf, thus turning him into the very animal that his flocks must be protected against.

Caucasian

The names of nation of Georgia derives from Old Persian designation of the Georgians ''vrkān'' ( 𐎺𐎼𐎣𐎠𐎴) meaning "the land of the wolves", that would eventually transform into ''gorğān'', term that will be finding its way into most European languages as "Georgia".

The wolf is a national symbol of Chechnya. According to folklore, the Chechens are "born of a she-wolf", as included in the central line in the national myth. The "lone wolf" symbolizes strength, independence and freedom. A proverb about the teips (clans) is "equal and free like wolves".

Finno-Ugric

Finnish

Unlike the fox and the bear, the wolf has been feared and hated in Finland for a long time. The wolf has been the symbol of destruction and desolation to the extent that the very word for wolf in the Finnish language, ''susi'', also means "a useless thing", and the by-name ''hukka'' means perdition and annihilation. While the bear has been the sacred animal of the Finns, wolves have been hunted and killed mercilessly for a long time. The wolf has been represented as an implacable and malicious predator, killing more than it manages to eat.

Indo-European

In Proto-Indo-European mythology, the wolf was presumably associated with the warrior class (''kóryos''), who would "transform into wolves" (or dogs) upon their initiation. This is reflected in Iron Age Europe in the '' Tierkrieger'' depictions from the Germanic sphere, among others. The standard comparative overview of this aspect of Indo-European mythology is McCone (1987)

Baltic

According to legend, the establishment of the Lithuanian capital Vilnius began when the grand duke Gediminas dreamt of an iron wolf howling near the hill. Lithuanian goddess Medeina was described as a single, unwilling to get married, though voluptuous and beautiful huntress. She was depicted as a she-wolf with an escort of wolves.

Dacian

In his book ''From Zalmoxis to Genghis Khan'', Mircea Eliade attempted to give a mythological foundation to an alleged special relation between Dacians and the wolves:
* Dacians might have called themselves "wolves" or "ones the same with wolves", suggesting religious significance.
* Dacians draw their name from a god or a legendary ancestor who appeared as a wolf.
* Dacians had taken their name from a group of fugitive immigrants arrived from other regions or from their own young outlaws, who acted similarly to the wolves circling villages and living from looting. As was the case in other societies, those young members of the community went through an initiation, perhaps up to a year, during which they lived as a "wolf". Comparatively, Hittite laws referred to fugitive outlaws as "wolves".
* The existence of a ritual that provides one with the ability to turn into a wolf. Such a transformation may be related either to lycanthropy itself, a widespread phenomenon, but attested especially in the Balkans-Carpathian region, or a ritual imitation of the behavior and appearance of the wolf. Such a ritual was presumably a military initiation, potentially reserved to a secret brotherhood of warriors (or Männerbünde). To become formidable warriors they would assimilate behavior of the wolf, wearing wolf skins during the ritual. Traces related to wolves as a cult or as totems were found in this area since the Neolithic period, including the Vinča culture artifacts: wolf statues and fairly rudimentary figurines representing dancers with a wolf mask. The items could indicate warrior initiation rites, or ceremonies in which young people put on their seasonal wolf masks. The element of unity of beliefs about werewolves and lycanthropy exists in the magical-religious experience of mystical solidarity with the wolf by whatever means used to obtain it. But all have one original myth, a primary event.

Germanic

Norse mythology prominently includes three malevolent wolves, in particular: the giant Fenrisulfr or Fenrir, eldest child of Loki and Angrboda who was feared and hated by the Æsir, and Fenrisulfr's children, Sköll and Hati. Fenrir is bound by the gods, but is ultimately destined to grow too large for his bonds and devour Odin during the course of Ragnarök. At that time, he will have grown so large that his upper jaw touches the sky while his lower touches the earth when he gapes. He will be slain by Odin's son, Viðarr, who will either stab him in the heart or rip his jaws asunder, according to different accounts. Fenrir's two offspring will, according to legend, devour the sun and moon at Ragnarök. On the other hand, however, the wolves Geri and Freki were the Norse god Odin's faithful pets who were reputed to be "of good omen."

Wolves were seen as both being negative and positive to the Norse people. On one hand, they can represent chaos and destruction (e.g. Fenrir, Skoll, and Hati), while on the other hand, they can also represent bravery, loyalty, protection, and wisdom.

In the Hervarar saga, king Heidrek is asked by Gestumblindi (Odin), "What is that lamp which lights up men, but flame engulfs it, and wargs grasp after it always." Heidrek knows the answer is the Sun, explaining: "She lights up every land and shines over all men, and Skoll and Hatti are called wargs. Those are wolves, one going before the sun, the other after the moon."

But wolves also served as mounts for more or less dangerous humanoid creatures. For instance, ''Gunnr's horse'' was a kenning for "wolf" on the Rök runestone, in the Lay of Hyndla, the völva Hyndla rides a wolf, and to Baldr's funeral, the gýgr Hyrrokin arrived on a wolf.

Wolf or Wulf is used as a surname, given name, and a name among Germanic-speaking peoples. "Wolf" is also a component in other Germanic names:
* Wolfgang (wolf + gang ("path, journey"))
*Adolf, derived from the Old High German ''Athalwolf'', a composition of ''athal'', or ''adal'', meaning ''noble'', and ''wolf''; its Anglo-Saxon cognate is Æthelwulf.
* Rudolf, deriving from two stems: ''Rod'' or ''Hrōð'', meaning "fame", and ''olf'' meaning "wolf" (''see also Hroðulf'').

Greek

The Ancient Greeks associated wolves with the sun god Apollo.

Mount Lykaion () is a mountain in Arcadia where an altar of Zeus was located. ''Zeus Lykaios'' was said to have been born and brought up on it, and was the home of Pelasgus and his son Lycaon, who is said to have founded the ritual of Zeus practiced on its summit. This seems to have involved a human sacrifice, and a feast in which the man who received the portion of a human victim was changed to a wolf, as Lycaon had been after sacrificing a child. The sanctuary of Zeus played host to athletic games held every four years, the ''Lykaia''.

According to Suda the bodyguards of Peisistratos were called wolf-feet (Λυκόποδες), because they always had their feet covered with wolf-skins, to prevent frostbite; alternatively because they had a wolf symbol on their shields.

Indic

In the Rig Veda, Ṛjrāśva is blinded by his father as punishment for having given 101 of his family's sheep to a she-wolf, who in turn prays to the Ashvins to restore his sight.Murthy, K. Krishna''Mythical animals in Indian art'', Abhinav Publications, 1985, Wolves are occasionally mentioned in Hindu mythology. In the Harivamsa, Krishna, to convince the people of Vraja to migrate to Vṛndāvana, creates hundreds of wolves from his hairs, which frighten the inhabitants of Vraja into making the journey. Bhima, the voracious son of the god Vayu, is described as ''Vṛkodara'', meaning "wolf-stomached".

Iranic

According to Zoroastrian legends, Zoroaster as a child was carried by the devs (the gods) to the lair of the she-wolf, in expectation that the savage beast would kill it; but she accepted it among her own cubs, and Vahman brought an ewe to the den which suckled it. (It was impossible in the Zoroastrian legend for the wolf herself to give milk to the infant, since wolves are regarded as daevic creatures.)
According to the Avesta, the sacred text of the Zoroastrians, wolves are a creation from the 'darkness' of the evil spirit Ahriman, and are ranked among the most cruel of animals. and belong to the ''daevas''. The ''Bundahishn'', which is a Middle Persian text on the Zoroastrian creation myth, has a chapter dedicated to the 'nature of wolves' as seen in Zoroastrian mythology and belief.

Wusun

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