People Confess Which Creatures From Folklore They Actually Believe Exist

People Confess Which Creatures From Folklore They Actually Believe Exist
Photo by aisvri on Unsplash

When I was a child, I wanted so badly for dragons to exist. To be fair, I had a bit of an obsession with stories of man-eating reptiles and serpents after watching The Lair of the White Worm at too young an age. (Thank you for rocking my world, Ken Russell.)

Sadly... they don't. And if they did, I gather they'd probably pose a major national security risk!

People told us all about the mythical creatures they wish actually existed after Redditor Nymeria asked the online community,

"What creature from folklore do you think exists or once existed?"

"The animal..."

"Amphisbaena - two-headed snake, said to have been created from the blood of Medusa's severed head.

The animal is Amphisbaena vermicularis which is a legless type of lizard, and since it digs through earth most of its life, its head and tail look alike to the untrained eye, hence the misconception that it is a two-headed snake."

wuxy95

A likely story from the two-headed snake propaganda team!

"I mean..."

"Nobody mentioned Rocs or Thunderbirds? I mean I'm generally skeptical of cryptid stuff but of all the ones on the list, big ol' bird seems pretty plausible to me. I figure the whole elephant lifting, thunder flapping thing is big fish story stuff but I could see something like Argentavis surviving to the time of stone age man and god knows Quetzalcoatlus gives a pretty good idea how ridiculously large a creature can get and still be capable of flight. Who knows what's sitting in the fossil record with a Neanderthal clutched in its beak."

PangolinChap

"So indeed..."

"The pouakai, a monstrous bird from Maori folklore, is more than likely a memory of the Haast's eagle from southern New Zealand. It's main prey were the also-unbelievably giant moa birds, but I imagine it would have little difficulty carrying off a small human child. So indeed, perhaps there are other long-gone giant raptor birds that posed a threat to early humans and then grew even larger in their imaginations."

Hestiathena

"The family that lived there..."

"The mysterious so-called "flabby egg monster" at Glamis Castle, in Scotland.

I think it existed, but the mysterious and inaccurate folklore around it basically masked what it really was. It's far more likely that this was a highly disabled or otherwise deformed member of the family that was kept hidden from public view, with accounts from the time suggest something that sounds an awful lot like what we now know as Noonan Syndrome. People with Noonan Syndrome can have totally normal lifespans which explains why it went on for so long.

The family that lived there had a long history of genetic abnormalities, including one of the Queen Mother's own relatives who was hidden from public view and died in 2014."

_spookyvision_

"Since we didn't really start..."

"Definitely something in the sea. Since we didn't really start truly exploring underwater or polluting it except for the past 100 years or so. I definitely could've seen some near-extinct rare sea serpent-type thing living well beyond the rest of its race. Hell, even today we find new creatures once thought extinct in the depths."

IWearBones138

I remember how much it blew my mind to learn about the discovery of the coelacanth, which were thought to have become extinct in the Late Cretaceous, around 66 million years ago, but were rediscovered in 1938 off the coast of South Africa!

"The current information..."

"The current information we have on different species of humans before ours won out really makes me believe that stories of dwarves and woodland elves might come from a place of truth."

See_You_En_Tea

This is exactly why I enjoyed watching Trollhunter.

"I think a lot..."

"I think a lot of folklore creatures were probably based on stories of real animals from far-off places, just heavily distorted with time and retelling by generations of people who'd never actually seen it."

notfromvenus42

"I think there was a species..."

"Humans have a fear or natural revulsion to things that look human but not quite human (think uncanny valley). Natural fears help keep us alive, for example, most people don't like spiders because they present a real danger to us and they move in a decidedly unhuman way. I think there was a species that almost looked human but was a predator to humans until we got smart enough to hunt them into extinction. It's probably the source of skinwalker legends."

Da1UHideFrom

Have you read a few skinwalker legends? They're terrifying stuff. Do not recommend reading about them late at night!

"But I certainly doubt..."

"Nessie is probably based off a real aquatic prehistoric animal. But I certainly doubt she actually exists in Loch Ness. If you wanted to take a picture of Nessie you are millions of years too late."

Quit_social_media

Sadly, Nessie continues to evade us. It just wants to be left alone!

"I honestly think..."

"I honestly think there's a solid chance Bigfoot or something extremely similar exists out there."

ThePurpleGuy1987

Where are you, mythical creatures?

If you're hiding out somewhere, I can't say I blame any of you. Humans will just find a way to capitalize off you.

Have some suggestions of your own? Feel free to tell us more in the comments below!

Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

The Craziest Conspiracy Theories People Have Ever Secretly Believed

Reddit user streetancient asked: 'What is the craziest conspiracy theory that you secretly believe in?'

Aluminum foil hat on a chair
Photo by Tom Radetzki on Unsplash

It's hard not to get worn out and dispirited by the seemingly unending conspiracy people continue to promote.

It should be noted that even the people who roll their eyes at those who believe these conspiracies might actually believe a conspiracy theory of their own.

More often than not, these aren't the sort of theories that could bring harm to others, though they still might not share their belief in these theories with others.

Even their closest friends.

Keep reading...Show less

Movies can be one of the most entertaining forms of media, but it has to be good.

Seems simple, right?

Some movies are really good. As an avid reader and huge fan of book-to-movie adaptations, I enjoyed the ones that were made well. This included The Count of Monte Cristo, The Hunger Games series, and even Twilight, despite not actually liking the book series.

However, some book-to-movie adaptations were so bad, I wished I hadn't spent time or money on it. The Maximum Ride movie, the two Percy Jackson movies (I can't believe a second one was even made after the disaster that is "The Lightning Theif"), and of course, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince."

David Yates, who directed the fifth movie, also directed the sixth. Known for directing darker movies, he decided to go in a funnier, lighter direction for the sixth movie and took away all the magic that made Harry Potter so amazing. Luckily, he went back to his talents for the seventh and eigth movie, but I spent a fortune (or what was a fortune for a teenager) getting tickets to the midnight premiere, and I ended up aplogizing to everyone for taking them to see that movie. I will never not be sorry about that.

Redditors are familiar with the experience of paying money to see amovie and wishing they hadn't, and they are eager to share.

Keep reading...Show less

Money can be the root of all evil.

But it can also be the root of all happiness.

What a pendulum.

There are some things that money simply makes easier.

And so many wealthy people try to downplay that truth.

Wouldn't it be nice to vacation whenever and wherever?

Or imagine getting sick and not caring about a co-pay or even a bill?

Keep reading...Show less
Woman in dress suit
Photo by sobhan joodi on Unsplash

We all have things that we enjoy and things that we absolutely can't stand, and that's also totally true of the things that people do around us or do to us.

And women have something to say about men's behavior, how they treat women, and what women would like them to stop doing, effective immediately.

Keep reading...Show less