Did the Greek gods really originate in classical Greece—or were they born out of blood, dark-age trade routes, and forgotten Eastern empires?

Gilgamesh was a legendary Sumerian king of Uruk and the central figure in The Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the oldest known works of literature, dating back to ancient Mesopotamia around 2100 BCE. He was likely a historical figure who ruled around 2800–2500...

The twelve signs of the zodiac are not symbols. They are sentences the Greek gods wrote in the sky so no one would forget what happened.

Discover the Greek gods of Mount Olympus, their epic myths, rivalries, powers, and the legends that shaped the ancient world.

Cultures from North America to Australia share legends of a missing star in the Pleiades. Could this global myth preserve a real astronomical event?

Hades is one of the most feared gods of Greek mythology, yet also one of the least understood.

A Mexican ghost story of a woman who, from sadness or madness, does the unthinkable and drowns her two children & then herself. The tale differs from place to place, and from time to time, but one detail is consistent. The Weeping Woman is still out t...

The Rusalka are women who met untimely deaths at the bottom of the river, but return to lure more victims to a watery grave. Are they spirits seeking justice? Or vengeance? We don't advise getting close enough to find out.

Krampus's name is growing popular in the United States, but most of us don't really know what he does OR that he is partners with St. Nicholas himself. He is in fact just one of many Christmas demons...

As the nights grow long and dark and the holidays creep ever closer in the calendar, let's take a look at some of the festive myths from around the world.

Of the many literary works about Christmas, none have ever garnered the legacy of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol". The story of a mean and greedy business man, who learns to treat his fellow man with kindness and compassion and generosity by learning...

Holiday cheer meets historical lore! Explore history’s greatest seasonal myths—Krampus, Grýla & the Yule Lads, Caga Tió de Nadal, the real origins of Santa, and a Dickensian finale with “So You Haven’t Read A Christmas Carol?”

Why isn’t Korea’s most famous monster really all that scary? From mischievous tricksters to modern movie demons, dokkaebi evolved through centuries of folklore, Confucian values, and pop culture—culminating in KPop Demon Hunters.

Before the plastic masks and trick-or-treating, before the pumpkins and candy, there was an ancient and sacred festival known as Samhain. For the Gaelic peoples of Ireland and Scotland, this was the most important night of the year, the moment the world t...

Diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires are most of the classic gemstones adorning royal jewels. But they used to be accompanied by a stone that nowadays is most often found in museum gift shops: Amethyst. Here's the story of amethyst's rise and fall as...