Difference between revisions of "Balaur"

Latest revision as of 07:54, 31 July 2008

Balaur as a toy

Balaur is a creature in Romanian folklore, similar to a dragon.

Etymology

Balaur seems to derive from Proto-Indo-European language words *bel-, "strong", or *bhel-, "to swell". It is considered to be a pre-Roman conquest word from the Romanian substratum.

Description

A balaur is quite large, has fins, feet, and is polycephalous (it usually has three, sometimes seven, or even twelve serpent heads).

Stories

Balaur appears in many Rumanian fairy tales. He represents Evil and must be defeated by Fat-Frumos in order to release the Princess

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 [[Image:Balaur.jpg|thumb|Balaur as a toy]]
+'''Balaur''' is a creature in Romanian folklore, similar to a dragon.
-In [[Romanian mythology]] a '''balaur''' is a creature similar to a dragon.
+==Etymology==
+Balaur seems to derive from Proto-Indo-European language words *bel-, "strong", or *bhel-, "to swell". It is considered to be a pre-Roman conquest word from the Romanian substratum.
-A ''balaur'' is quite large, has fins, feet, and multiple serpent heads (usually three, sometimes seven, or even twelve).
-As a traditional character which is found in most Romanian fairy tales, it represents Evil and must be defeated by [[Făt-Frumos]] in order to release the Princess.
+==Description==
+A balaur is quite large, has fins, feet, and is polycephalous (it usually has three, sometimes seven, or even twelve serpent heads).
-''Balaur'' seems to derive from Proto-Indo-European language ''*bel-'', 'strong', or ''*bhel-'', 'to swell'. It is considered to be a pre-Roman word from the Romanian substratum words.
+==Stories==
+Balaur appears in many Rumanian fairy tales. He represents Evil and must be defeated by Fat-Frumos in order to release the Princess
+==See also==
+*[[Zmeu]]
 [[Category:Romanian mythology]]
 [[Category:Dragons]]