Yu.E. Berezkin, E.N. Duvakin

Thematic classification and distribution of folklore and mythological motifs by area

Analytical catalogue

Introduction
Bibliography
Ethnicities and habitats

F43C. Women's husbands are animals.19.20.

The

husbands of first women, Amazons, or single women are small animals-usually flying foxes.

Upper arapesh, porapora, walman, Gudinaf (bwaydoka), Bining, Boigu, Torres Islands, Tikopia, Nukuria, (Tuamotu) Islands.

Melanesia. Upper arapesh [the man began to cook a marsalai pig; it does not cook, the man was carried by the river, he came to women whose husbands are flying foxes; they only scratched their vaginas, they only gave birth to girls, and in old age; one woman found a man, hid it in her bag, was pregnant with him, killed her flying fox; another woman noticed, also copulated, forgot to pour ash on stairs (the first one left ash to see traces); the man copulated with all women and sleeps with his wife at night; when it was time for her to give birth, the women opened her womb with a knife, removed the boy; man regrets that he was not invited; others gave birth to sons normally; began to kill flying foxes, burned their house; one told the birds that they killed a man, his penis was abandoned in the village square; his women buried]: Mead 1940, No. 34:378-380; porapora [the men in the men's home killed one of them, turned them into a flying fox; then they all turned into flying foxes and flew away]: Schwab 1970, No. 11b: 790- 791; walman (north coast of New Guinea) [only women lived on Valis Island, copulating with flying foxes; one day they sailed in dolblenka to the main island, asked for a young man they brought them home; became pregnant by him; when they gave birth to sons, they began to marry them, and killed flying foxes]: Becker 1971, No. 31:430-431; Gudinaf (bwaydoka) [Inelewata, her husband is a flying fox; she has three children; the youngest asks her elders who is giving the voice; the eldest replies that a bird is in the forest (flying foxes are considered birds); the youngest says that the voice is heard inside the house; they killed cooked and ate a flying fox; the brothers offered the same food to the mother; she chased them with a stick; the older brothers fled into the forest and the mother stayed with the youngest]: Young 1970, No. 9:49-50; Boygu [ when hunting dugongs, men led by Bazi and Meibu eat all the meat themselves, bring bones and giblets to women; M.'s wife makes a green tree frog out of coconut bast, revives it, all women wear frog clothes, made by frogs; men find only frogs at the Great Well; then women take off their frog skins and return to their husbands; M. notices clay on his wife's eyelids, realizes that frogs were women; tells other men, they make flying skins out of their bast, all men turn into flying foxes; all men, including babies, fly across the strait to the New Guinea; an old man finds a hollow with foxes, kills them, the dead turn back into men, founds a village]: Laade 1971, No. 51:95-98; Bining (Gazelle Peninsula, New Britain): Meier 1909, No. 1a [ chasing a pigeon that had escaped from his snare, the man sailed to the island, hid in a tree above the pond; the women came for water, one saw its reflection, sent others away, returned for what was supposedly forgotten with an apron (Schirm) brought the man into her house; others satisfied themselves with turtles, considered them husbands; the woman gave birth, then her younger sister; the mystery was revealed, the man had to get along with everyone; when his first son grew up, he found a hidden boat, returned home; his wife said that all the shell money was spent on his wake, and he lived with other women, killed him with an ax, cutting off his penis ( paraphrase in Isis 1998:136; in Dixon 1916:140-141; beginning of the same or similar text in Brown 1910:356)], 1b [as in 1a; woman tells others she forgot the water vessel; when pregnant, all women they gather, welcome the man; he tells them to call turtles to eat them; women eat them; everyone gave birth to sons, and before that there were only women]: 85-89, 89-93; Torres Islands [on Hiw Island, the snake gave birth a girl; a Glavenventar man from Fr. Motalava; the girl said that she has a husband; they turned out to be flying foxes that arrived after dark; G. killed them, married a girl, they have a son; while the couple works in the garden, the wife leaves son under the supervision of a snake grandmother; the husband returns first, sees the snake, kills; a coconut palm grows from the serpent's grave; the husband shook her, a large coconut fell into the water, sailed to Tikopia; so there are coconuts larger than the Torres Islands]: Durrad 1940:197-198.

Micronesia-Polynesia. Tikopia [at first there were only women, conceived babies with bats, only gave birth to girls; a man named Swift Whistlng came; married a Fareautaka woman (a group of families) of the Tafua family); when the bats arrived, the man killed them and began to fry them for food; he went to his land in Motlav, and his descendants remained]: Firth 1967:240-241; Nukuria [recorded Feb 2013; was the island, where only women lived, was conceived from turtles; one person got there, met with the chief; she was pregnant; he found out that local women did not know how to give birth, their bellies were ripped open; he taught, wife gave birth safely]: Davletshin, personal message 02.05.2013; (cf. Tuamotu [Kuru is swallowed by a shark, cuts its belly, ends up on an island of warlike women who satisfy themselves with sea cucumbers; one of the women gives birth to his children; he returns with them, but in part children grow wings, they fly back]: Beckwith 1970:503).