Werewolf Mythology

Werewolves have been a prominent staple of mythology in many cultures throughout history. This is particularly true in many Native American cultures, who believed that people could often shape-shift into many other animals besides wolves.

A werewolf is usually a creature that is half-man, half-wolf. Each culture's mythology is very different on the specifics. Sometimes the man can change into a wolf voluntarily by wearing a magic belt or drinking water from the footprint of a wolf. Other times, he can be put under a curse by a god or a witch. Sometimes, a man might turn into a werewolf because he fell asleep under a full moon. Often, a scratch or a bite from another werewolf can cause someone to become a werewolf themselves.

A werewolf generally has heightened senses and strength which is beyond that displayed by either a man or a wolf.

Werewolves do usually have vulnerabilities, however. One of the most common is a severe aversion to silver. Often, werewolves can only be killed by shooting them with a silver bullet. Sometimes, silver knives or silver-tipped canes can also be employed to inflict damage upon a werewolf. In some variations, werewolves are so sensitive to silver that even touching it can cause burns, and even the sight of it can cause nausea.

Perhaps the earliest werewolf myth comes from classic Greek Mythology. Lycaon was a cruel king who tried to play a trick on Zeus by serving him food which contained the remains of a small child. When Zeus found out about this, he became extremely angry and turned Lycaon into a wolf. He then proceeded to kill all 50 of Lycaon's sons.

Werewolf stories were even more common throughout medieval Europe, and they were often associated with vampire stories. Serial murders were often explained as being the work of vampires or werewolves. Many cultures believed that werewolves were the forerunners of vampires, and that when a werewolf died; his corpse came back as a vampire. For this reason, most people who were suspected to be werewolves were cremated rather than buried.

Werewolves continue to enjoy popularity even to this day in books and movies. Werewolf in London, The Wolf Man, and Wolf are a few films that achieved widespread success. Teen Wolf was a film from the 80's that took a lighter look at werewolves. The blockbuster Twilight series which is so popular today also features werewolves. In earlier movies, the trend was to make the werewolves appear extremely anthropomorphic, but more recent films portray them as huge wolves.