A wyvern ( , sometimes spelled wivern) is a
legend
A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess ...
ary winged
dragon that has
two legs.
The wyvern in its various forms is important in
heraldry, frequently appearing as a mascot of schools and athletic teams (chiefly in the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada). It is a popular creature in European literature, mythology, and folklore. Today, it is often used in fantasy literature and video games. The wyvern in heraldry and folklore is rarely fire-breathing, unlike four-legged dragons.
Etymology
According to the ''
Oxford English Dictionary
The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a co ...
'', the word is a development of
Middle English
Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English ...
''wyver'' (attested fourteenth century), from
Anglo-French
Anglo-French (or sometimes Franco-British) may refer to:
*France–United Kingdom relations
*Anglo-Norman language or its decendants, varieties of French used in medieval England
*Anglo-Français and Français (hound), an ancient type of hunting d ...
''wivre'' (cf. French ''guivre'' and ''vouivre''), which originate from
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
''vīpera'', meaning "viper", "adder", or "asp".
The concluding "''–n''" had been added by the beginning of the 17th century, when
John Guillim
John Guillim (c. 1565 – 7 May 1621) of Minsterworth, Gloucestershire, was an antiquarian and officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. He is best remembered for his monumental work on heraldry, ''A Display of Heraldry'', first pub ...
in 1610 describes the "''wiverne''" as a creature that "partake
of a Fowle in the Wings and Legs ... and doth resemble a Serpent in the Taile".
John Gibbon
John Gibbon (April 20, 1827 – February 6, 1896) was a career United States Army officer who fought in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars.
Early life
Gibbon was born in the Holmesburg section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the four ...
in 1682 emphasises that it "hath but two Legs".
Conversely,
medievalist
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star.
Computer scientists and mathematicians often vo ...
William Sayers proposes a more complex origin for the term. He notes that the Anglo-French ''guivre'' and its Middle English derivative ceased to retain the original sense of "venomous snake" after the Latin term was re-introduced into medieval Latin, freeing them up to take an alternate meaning.
Adducing another meaning of ''wiver'' (this time
Old English
Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th c ...
) and ''guivre'', "light
javelin",
and noting partial resemblances between the size and shape of javelins and snakes,
plus the later medieval era's increasing use of heavy armor and decreasing use of light javelins, he proposes that the concepts of "venomous snake" and "light javelin" were melded to produce a new term for a previously unimagined concept of flying snake, a kind of dragon.
History
The concept of
winged snakes, mythical creatures similar to wyverns, is common in cultures around the Mediterranean, with a notable example being the Egyptian goddess
Wadjet
Wadjet (; egy, wꜢḏyt "Green One"), known to the Greek world as Uto (; grc-koi, Οὐτώ) or Buto (; ) among other renderings including Wedjat, Uadjet, and Udjo, was originally the ancient local goddess of the city of Dep. It became part ...
. The oldest creatures outright referred to as "winged dragons" are
Helios's chariot steeds, which aid
Medea
In Greek mythology, Medea (; grc, Μήδεια, ''Mēdeia'', perhaps implying "planner / schemer") is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, a niece of Circe and the granddaughter of the sun god Helios. Medea figures in the myth of Jason an ...
.
Distinction from dragons
Since the sixteenth century, in English, Scottish, and Irish heraldry, the key difference has been that a wyvern has two legs, whereas a dragon has four. This distinction is not commonly observed in the heraldry of other European countries, where two-legged dragon-like creatures are called dragons.
In modern fiction
The wyvern frequently features in modern fantasy fiction, though its first literary appearances may have been in medieval
bestiaries
A bestiary (from ''bestiarum vocabulum'') is a compendium of beasts. Originating in the ancient world, bestiaries were made popular in the Middle Ages in illustrated volumes that described various animals and even rocks. The natural history ...
.
In heraldry
The wyvern is a frequent
charge
Charge or charged may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* '' Charge, Zero Emissions/Maximum Speed'', a 2011 documentary
Music
* ''Charge'' (David Ford album)
* ''Charge'' (Machel Montano album)
* ''Charge!!'', an album by The Aqu ...
in
English heraldry and
vexillology
Vexillology ( ) is the study of the history, symbolism and usage of flags or, by extension, any interest in flags in general.Smith, Whitney. ''Flags Through the Ages and Across the World'' New York: McGraw-Hill, 1975. Print. The word is a synthe ...
, also occasionally appearing as a
supporter or
crest
Crest or CREST may refer to:
Buildings
*The Crest (Huntington, New York), a historic house in Suffolk County, New York
*"The Crest", an alternate name for 63 Wall Street, in Manhattan, New York
*Crest Castle (Château Du Crest), Jussy, Switzerla ...
.
A wyvern is typically depicted resting upon its legs and tail, but may be depicted with its claws in the air and only supported by its tail. On occasion, a wyvern may be depicted as wingless and with its tail
nowed.
A white (''
Argent
In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to ...
'') wyvern formed the crest of the
Borough of Leicester as recorded at the
heraldic visitation
Heraldic visitations were tours of inspection undertaken by Kings of Arms (or alternatively by heralds, or junior officers of arms, acting as their deputies) throughout England, Wales and Ireland. Their purpose was to register and regulate the ...
of Leicestershire in 1619: "A wyvern sans legs argent strewed with wounds gules, wings expanded ermine." The term "sans legs" may not imply that the wyvern was "without legs", rather than its legs are not depicted, being hidden or folded under. This was adopted by the
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It ama ...
in 1845 when it became the crest of its unofficial
coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...
. The company asserted that the "wyvern was the standard of the
Kingdom of Mercia
la, Merciorum regnum
, conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia
, common_name=Mercia
, status=Kingdom
, status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879)Client state of Wessex ()
, life_span=527–918
, era=Heptarchy
, event_start=
, date_start=
, ye ...
", and that it was "a quartering in the town arms of Leicester". However, in 1897 the ''Railway Magazine'' noted that there appeared "to be no foundation that the wyvern was associated with the Kingdom of Mercia".
[''The Railway Magazine'', Vol. 102, 1897] It has been associated with
Leicester since the time of
Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster and Leicester (c. 1278–1322), the most powerful lord in the
Midlands, who used it as his personal crest.
A green Wyvern stands in the emblem of the ancient and historical Umbrian city of Terni, the dragon is called by the citizens with the name of Thyrus. A sable wyvern on a white background with endorsed wings forms the coat of arms of the Tilley family.
The arms of the
Worshipful Society of Apothecaries
The Worshipful Society of Apothecaries of London is one of the livery companies of the City of London. It is one of the largest livery companies (with over 1,600 members in 2012) and ranks 58th in their order of precedence.
The society is a m ...
depict a wyvern, symbolising disease, being overcome by
Apollo
Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label= Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label ...
, symbolising medicine.
Wyvern
Zilant
Zilant ( rus, Зилант; tt-Cyrl, җылан , translit=cılan/jılan, lit=snake) is a legendary creature, something between a dragon and a wyvern. Since 1730, it has been the official symbol of Kazan. This winged snake is mentioned in legends ...
is depicted on the coat of arms of the city of
Kazan
Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering an ...
, the capital of the
Republic of Tatarstan
The Republic of Tatarstan (russian: Республика Татарстан, Respublika Tatarstan, p=rʲɪsˈpublʲɪkə tətɐrˈstan; tt-Cyrl, Татарстан Республикасы), or simply Tatarstan (russian: Татарстан, tt ...
.
As a logo or mascot
The wyvern is a popular commercial
logo
A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name it represents as in a wo ...
or
mascot
A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fi ...
, especially in
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
and what was once the
West Country
The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is a loosely defined area of South West England, usually taken to include all, some, or parts of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and, less commonly, Wiltshire, Glo ...
Kingdom of
Wessex
la, Regnum Occidentalium Saxonum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the West Saxons
, common_name = Wessex
, image_map = Southern British Isles 9th century.svg
, map_caption = S ...
, but also in
Herefordshire
Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthsh ...
and
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...
, as the rivers
Wye and
Severn
, name_etymology =
, image = SevernFromCastleCB.JPG
, image_size = 288
, image_caption = The river seen from Shrewsbury Castle
, map = RiverSevernMap.jpg
, map_size = 288
, map_c ...
run through
Hereford and
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Engla ...
respectively. A local radio station was formerly called
Wyvern FM
Free Radio Herefordshire & Worcestershire (formerly Radio Wyvern) is a local commercial radio station owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to Herefordshire and Worcestershire.
As of September 2022, the ...
.
Vauxhall Motors
Vauxhall Motors LimitedCompany No. 00135767. Incorporated 12 May 1914, name changed from Vauxhall Motors Limited to General Motors UK Limited on 16 April 2008, reverted to Vauxhall Motors Limited on 18 September 2017. () is a British car compa ...
had a model in its range in the 1950s called the
Wyvern
A wyvern ( , sometimes spelled wivern) is a legendary winged dragon that has two legs.
The wyvern in its various forms is important in heraldry, frequently appearing as a mascot of schools and athletic teams (chiefly in the United States, Un ...
. The
Westland Wyvern
The Westland Wyvern was a British single-seat carrier-based multi-role strike aircraft built by Westland Aircraft that served in the 1950s, seeing active service in the 1956 Suez Crisis. Production Wyverns were powered by a turboprop engine dri ...
was a British single-seat carrier-based multi-role strike aircraft built by Westland Aircraft that served in the 1950s, seeing active service in the 1956
Suez Crisis.
*The wyvern is a frequent mascot of athletic teams, colleges and universities, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States, and is the mascot of the
Korea Baseball Organization team
SK Wyverns, established in 2000,
King's College, within the University of Queensland, and the Japanese basketball team, the
Passlab Yamagata Wyverns of the
Japanese B.League.
*The wyvern is also the mascot of the 51st Operations Support Squadron at
Osan Air Base
Hanja:)
, partof =
, location =
, nearest_town = Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province
, country = South Korea
, image = Osan Air Base 51 FW F-16 A-10 Flyby.jpg
, alt = US Air Force F-16C Fighting Falcon and A ...
, with the motto: "breathin' fire!"
*A wyvern is depicted on the unit crest of the
USAF
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...
31st Fighter Wing
The 31st Fighter Wing (31 FW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the United States Air Forces in Europe major command and the Third Air Force. It is stationed at Aviano Air Base, Italy, a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) base r ...
.
*A wyvern is featured on the club crests of both
Leyton Orient F.C.
Leyton Orient Football Club is a professional football club based in Leyton, East London, England, who compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are the second oldest football club in London to play at a profes ...
and
Carlisle United F.C.
Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They have played their home games at Brunton Park s ...
*A wyvern is featured as the team mascot for
Woodbridge College
Woodbridge College is a secondary school in Woodbridge, Ontario, Canada. The school opened its doors in 1958 as Woodbridge High School, and remained a public secondary school until 1991, when it became an alternative school, changing its name t ...
in
Woodbridge,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
, Canada.
*A wyvern is the mascot of
Quinsigamond Community College
Quinsigamond Community College ()('' colloq:'' QCC, Quinsig) is a public community college in Worcester, Massachusetts. It has an enrollment of over 7,000 students. Many students are enrolled in the college's transfer program, MassTransfer, with ...
in
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Engla ...
,
Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...
.
*A wyvern is the logo of
LLVM
LLVM is a set of compiler and toolchain technologies that can be used to develop a front end for any programming language and a back end for any instruction set architecture. LLVM is designed around a language-independent intermediate repre ...
, the compiler infrastructure project.
*A wyvern is the logo of the Swiss chocolate manufacturer
Lindt.
*A wyvern is the emblem of East London Rugby Football Club.
*Wyvern is the a nickname of a fictional aircraft in the
Ace Combat
is an arcade-style combat flight simulation video game franchise published by Bandai Namco Entertainment, formerly Namco. Debuting in 1995 with '' Air Combat'' for the PlayStation, the series includes eight mainline installments, multiple sp ...
series: the X-02 Wyvern.
*A Wyvern is the emblem of
Old Wesley R.F.C.
Examples
File:Coat of Arms of Sophie, Countess of Wessex.svg, Arms of Sophie, Countess of Wessex
Sophie, Countess of Wessex and Forfar, (born Sophie Helen Rhys-Jones, 20 January 1965) is a member of the British royal family. She is married to Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and Forfar, the youngest brother of King Charles III.
She grew u ...
File:Trento-cathedral-relief with wyvern.jpg, A wyvern fighting with a wolf, relief
Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...
, Trento
Trento ( or ; Ladin and lmo, Trent; german: Trient ; cim, Tria; , ), also anglicized as Trent, is a city on the Adige River in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. It is the capital of the autonomous province of Trento. In the 16th ce ...
Cathedral, Italy
File:Midland arms.jpg, Arms of Midland Railway
The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It ama ...
at Derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...
station, bearing in crest a wyvern ''sans legs''
File:Terni-Stemma.png, Municipal arms of Terni
Terni ( , ; lat, Interamna (Nahars)) is a city in the southern portion of the region of Umbria in central Italy. It is near the border with Lazio. The city is the capital of the province of Terni, located in the plain of the Nera river. It is ...
, Italy
File:Brasao-Brigantina.png, Wyverns as supporters in the coat of arms of the Portuguese House of Braganza
File:43 inf div -vector.svg, 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division
The 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division was an infantry division of Britain's Territorial Army (TA). The division was first formed in 1908, as the Wessex Division. During the First World War, it was broken-up and never served as a complete forma ...
insignia (World War II)
File:3rd Infantry Division DUI.svg, US Army 3rd Infantry Division has a wyvern on its emblem. The insignia is worn as a unit badge by members of the division's command.
File:Chorągiew Mazowsza.svg, The flag of the former Duchy of Masovia
Duchy of Masovia was a district principality and a fiefdom of the Kingdom of Poland, existing during the Middle Ages. The state was centered in Mazovia in the northeastern Kingdom of Poland, and during its existence, its capital was located i ...
File:Coat of Arms - Dr Thomas Kingsbury 1742.jpg, Wyvern atop the crest of Dr. Thomas Kingsbury, Fellow of the King and Queen's College of Physicians, Ireland (1742).
File:Banniel Bro Dreger 1998.svg, Flag of Trégor
Trégor (; br, Treger, ), officially the Land of Trégor (french: pays du Trégor, link=no; br, Bro-Dreger, link=no, ) is one of the nine traditional provinces of Brittany, in its northwestern area. It comprises the western part of the Côte ...
, Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...
See also
*
Basilisk
In European bestiaries and legends, a basilisk ( or ) is a legendary reptile reputed to be a serpent king, who causes death to those who look into its eyes. According to the ''Naturalis Historia'' of Pliny the Elder, the basilisk of Cyrene i ...
*
Cockatrice
*
European dragon
The European dragon is a legendary creature in folklore and mythology among the overlapping
cultures of Europe.
The Roman poet Virgil in his poem ''Culex'' lines 163-201, describing a shepherd having a fight with a big constricting snake, ca ...
*
Lindworm
The lindworm (''worm'' meaning snake), also spelled lindwyrm or lindwurm, is a mythical creature in Northern and Central European folklore living deep in the forest that traditionally has the shape of a giant serpent monster. It can be seen as a ...
*
White dragon
The white dragon ( cy, Y Ddraig Wen) is a symbol associated in Welsh mythology with the Anglo-Saxons.
Origin of tradition
The earliest usage of the white dragon as a symbol of the Anglo-Saxons is found in the ''Historia Brittonum''. The releva ...
References
External links
{{Authority control
European dragons
Medieval European legendary creatures
Mythological hybrids