mythology en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- mĭthôlôjē (Received-Pronunciation)
- /mɪˈθɑ.lə.d͡ʒi/ (US)
- (US) audio
- /mɪˈθɒl.ə.d͡ʒi/ (Received-Pronunciation)
Etymology
First attested as Middle English in 1412. From Middle French mythologie, from Latin mȳthologia, from Ancient Greek μυθολογία (muthología, “legend”) μυθολογέω (muthologéō, “to tell tales”), from μυθολόγος (muthológos, “legend”), from μῦθος (mûthos, “story”) + λέγω (légō, “to say”). By surface analysis, myth + -ology or mytho- + -logy.
Meanings
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(countable, uncountable) The collection of myths of a people, concerning the origin of the people, history, deities, ancestors and heroes.
The solitary, lumbering trolls of Scandinavian mythology would sometimes be turned to stone by exposure to sunlight. Barack Obama is hoping that several measures announced on June 4th will have a similarly paralysing effect on their modern incarnation, the patent troll.
2013 June 8, “Obama goes troll-hunting”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8839, archived from the original on 19 Sep 2020, page 55:Now the great obstacle in tracing the identity of any of the basic forms of worship lies in the vast number of names which appear in the ancient idolatries and mythologies, creating the illusion of a miscellany of gods, whereas many of these different names refer to the same deity. Thus the sun has been personified and worshipped under as many different names as there are nations on the surface of the earth.
1941, George Ryley Scott, Phallic Worship: A History of Sex and Sex Rites in Relation to the Religions of All Races from Antiquity to the Present Day, London: T. Werner Laurie, page 20:
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(countable, uncountable) A similar body of myths concerning an event, person or institution.
This program to distinguish Austria from Germany was important to building a new Austria, but it also indirectly contributed to victim mythology by implying that participation in the Nazi war of conquest was antithetical to Austrian identity.
2003, Peter Utgaard, Remembering & Forgetting Nazism: Education, National Identity, and the Victim Myth in Postwar Austria, Berghahn Books, →ISBN, page x:
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(countable, uncountable) Pervasive elements of a fictional universe that resemble a mythological universe.
This tongue-in-cheek episode is especially fun for people who don’t take their “X-Files” mythology seriously.
2000 April 28, Caryn James (?), As Scheherazade Was Saying . . ., in The New York Times, page E31, reproduced in The New York Times Television Reviews 2000, Routledge (2001), page 198
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(countable, uncountable) The set of misconceptions and false attitudes that are held about something and contribute to its perception.
Straight people who do not know, or do not know that they know, any gays, can accept all the mythology about us that is paramount in the propaganda of our enemies.
1981 April 4, Donald Vining, “Straight Talk”, in Gay Community News, page 5:
- (uncountable) The systematic collection and study of myths.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| mythologies | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
pseudomythology · mythologize · mythologian · mythological · mytharc · xenomythology · mythologist · geomythology · neomythology · countermythology · neuromythology · etymythology · astromythology
Synonyms
Translations (126)
dsb mytologija (myths of a people) · id mitologi (myths concerning an event, person or institution) · cs bájesloví (myths of a people) · az mifologiya (myths of a people) · af mitologie (myths of a people) · ko 신화학 (collection and study of myths) · fi jumalaistarusto (myths of a people) · de Götterlehre (collection and study of myths) · ar مِيثُولُوجِيَا (collection and study of myths) · fr mythologie (myths of a people) · sco meethologie (myths of a people) · id mitologi (collection and study of myths) · pt mitologia (collection and study of myths) · es mitología (collection and study of myths) · az əsatir (myths of a people) · ja 神話 (myths of a people) · ko 신화 (myths of a people) · ms kaji mitos (collection and study of myths) · da mytologi (collection and study of myths) · fi tarina (myths concerning an event, person or institution) · sh mitològija (myths of a people) · de Götterlehre (myths of a people) · de Sagenwelt (collection and study of myths) · ka მითოლოგია (myths of a people) · sv mytologi (myths concerning an event, person or institution) · nl mythologie (myths of a people) · io mitologio (collection and study of myths) · an mitolochía (myths of a people) · ru мифоло́гия (collection and study of myths) · sk mytológia (collection and study of myths) · it mitologia (collection and study of myths) · km ទេវកថាវិទ្យា (collection and study of myths) · bg митология (myths of a people) · fi mytologia (myths of a people) · sv mytologi (collection and study of myths) · sl mitologija (collection and study of myths) · ja 神話学 (collection and study of myths) · pt mitologia (myths of a people) · ka მითოლოგია (collection and study of myths) · tg асотир (myths of a people) · gl mitoloxía (myths of a people) · sh митоло̀гија (myths concerning an event, person or institution) · eo mitologio (collection and study of myths) · nl mythologie (collection and study of myths) · sco meethologie (collection and study of myths) · pl mitologia (myths of a people) · be міфало́гія (collection and study of myths) · tr mitoloji (collection and study of myths) · cmn 神話學 /神话学 (collection and study of myths) · km ទេវកថា (myths of a people) · af mitologie (collection and study of myths) · az mifologiya (collection and study of myths) · uk мітоло́гія (myths of a people) · hu mitológia (collection and study of myths) · fi myytistö (pervasive elements of a fictional universe) · wa mitolodjeye (collection and study of myths) · ru мифоло́гия (myths of a people) · la mythologia (myths of a people) · es mitología (myths of a people) · fi mytologia (collection and study of myths) · lt mitologija (collection and study of myths) · ga déscéalaíocht (myths of a people) · cs mytologie (myths of a people) · uk міфоло́гія (collection and study of myths) · cv халапсем (myths of a people) · ca mitologia (collection and study of myths) · el μυθολογία (collection and study of myths) · kk aŋızdar (myths of a people) · hy դիցաբանություն (collection and study of myths) · pl mitologia (collection and study of myths) · ca mitologia (myths of a people) · lv mitoloģija (collection and study of myths) · sh митоло̀гија (collection and study of myths) · oc mitologia (myths of a people) · cy mytholeg (collection and study of myths) · ro mitologie (collection and study of myths) · fo gudalæra (collection and study of myths) · ar عِلْم اَلْأَسَاطِير (myths of a people) · eu mitologia (myths of a people) · mt mitoloġija (collection and study of myths) · el μυθολογία (myths of a people) · ms mitologi (collection and study of myths) · tr mitoloji (myths of a people) · lb Mythologie (collection and study of myths) · fi tarusto (myths of a people) · tk mifologiýa (collection and study of myths) · fi myyttien tutkimus (collection and study of myths) · pl mitologia (myths concerning an event, person or institution) · cs mythologie (collection and study of myths) · id ilmu mitos (collection and study of myths) · bg митоло́гия (collection and study of myths) · sq mitologjia (collection and study of myths) · ru ми́фы (myths of a people) · de Mythologie (myths of a people) · sv mytologi (myths of a people) · lv mitoloģija (myths of a people) · la mythologia (collection and study of myths) · et mütoloogia (myths of a people) · sw mitholojia (collection and study of myths) · eu mitologia (collection and study of myths) · tk mifologiýa (myths of a people) · fi kertomus (myths concerning an event, person or institution) · cy chwedloniaeth (myths of a people) · cmn 神話 /神话 (myths of a people) · tg ривоятҳо (collection and study of myths) · lv mitoloģija (myths concerning an event, person or institution) · uk міфоло́гія (myths of a people) · de Sagenwelt (myths of a people) · vi thần thoại (myths of a people) · ro mitologie (myths of a people) · it mitologia (myths of a people) · az əsatirlik (myths of a people) · cs mytologie (collection and study of myths) · tr mitoloji (myths concerning an event, person or institution) · ko 신화 (myths concerning an event, person or institution) · fr mythologie (collection and study of myths) · mt mitoloġija (myths of a people) · he מיתולוגיה (collection and study of myths) · gsw Mythologie (collection and study of myths) · ro colecție mitologică (collection and study of myths) · et mütoloogia (collection and study of myths) · sh mitològija (myths concerning an event, person or institution) · hsb mytologija (myths of a people) · de Mythologie (collection and study of myths) · sh mitològija (collection and study of myths) · id mitologi (myths of a people)