A Myth Explains, a Legend Remembers
A myth is a traditional story, often about gods or origins. It is not the same as a legend.
A myth is a traditional story, usually involving gods or the origin of the world, and in everyday use a widely held false belief. Folklorists separate three kinds of traditional narrative: myths are sacred and set outside ordinary time, legends are told as true and set in the historical past, and folktales are told as fiction. A creation story is a myth, King Arthur is a legend, Cinderella is a folktale. Greek *mythos* simply meant a word, speech or story, with no implication of falsehood.
- A sacred traditional story. *A creation myth.*
- A false belief. *A common myth.*
- Mythology — a body of myths. *Greek mythology.*
- Legend — a related form. *A legend.*
- Greek — *mythos*, a story. *The root.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | myth | A myth. |
| Plural | myths | Myths. |
| Adjective | mythical | Mythical. |
| Noun | mythology | Mythology. |
| Greek | mythos | A story. |
- Every culture has creation myths.Story.
- That is a myth.Falsehood.
- Mythos meant speech.Etymology.
Myth, legend, folktale
- Myth — sacred, set in a time before history
- Legend — told as true, set in the historical past
- Folktale — told as fiction, set nowhere in particular
- Fable — a short tale with an explicit moral
- Everyday speech blurs all of these
Greek *mythos*, a word, speech or story, through Late Latin *mythus*.
What is the difference between a myth and a legend?
A myth is sacred and set outside ordinary time; a legend is told as true and set in the historical past.
Did mythos mean falsehood?
No. In Greek it simply meant a word, speech or story, with no suggestion that it was untrue.