Get 20M+ Full-Text Papers For Less Than $1.50/day. Start a 14-Day Trial for You or Your Team.

Learn More →

Lashed by sharks, pelted by demons, drowned for apostasy: the value of myths that explain geohazards in the Asia-Pacific region

Lashed by sharks, pelted by demons, drowned for apostasy: the value of myths that explain... The critical analysis of myths (traditional oral tales) can lead to an improved understanding of geohazards. This paper examines three groups of myths (volcano, earthquake, and coastal change) from Asia-Pacific cultures and shows how their analysis might contribute to the identification of unrealized geohazards in particular places as well as the magnitudes and recurrence intervals of these hazards. Many volcano myths involve gods within the mountains who are periodically angered and punish the people living nearby; through gifts, volcano gods are appeased, a process that has been widespread in parts of the Asia-Pacific region. Other volcano myths allow people to recognize eruption precursors or identify eruption locations. Earthquake myths often involve an animal within the Earth failing to support it upright. More recently, earthquakes have been interpreted as an expression of divine anger at the state of (local) human affairs. Myths also refer to earthquake precursors and have proved effective in eliciting appropriate community responses following tsunamigenic earthquakes. Coastal-change myths are more likely to be memories of long-term (postglacial) coastal change on which extreme-wave events were superimposed. The latter are the most memorable details in myths but the consequences of these events can be explained only by long-term change. Abrupt changes to Asia-Pacific coasts have also been captured by myths, ranging from local collapses of cliffed coasts to the disappearance of entire islands in the Pacific Ocean. Myths can supply information around the nexus of geological and historical data sources, particularly between 102  and 104 years ago. As such, myths have the potential to contribute “missing” data to long-term geohazard chronologies and thereby improve hazard understanding and preparedness. Myths from Asia-Pacific cultures that refer to community responses to geohazards can also be useful in contemporary strategies for awareness-raising. Geographers are uniquely qualified to identify and interpret myths that refer to geohazards. There is potential for many more such myths to be gathered from the Asia-Pacific region. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Asian Geographer Taylor & Francis

Lashed by sharks, pelted by demons, drowned for apostasy: the value of myths that explain geohazards in the Asia-Pacific region

Nunn, Patrick D.
Asian Geographer , Volume 31 (1): 24 – Jan 2, 2014
Download PDF
24 pages

Lashed by sharks, pelted by demons, drowned for apostasy: the value of myths that explain geohazards in the Asia-Pacific region

Abstract

The critical analysis of myths (traditional oral tales) can lead to an improved understanding of geohazards. This paper examines three groups of myths (volcano, earthquake, and coastal change) from Asia-Pacific cultures and shows how their analysis might contribute to the identification of unrealized geohazards in particular places as well as the magnitudes and recurrence intervals of these hazards. Many volcano myths involve gods within the mountains who are periodically angered and punish...
Loading next page...
 
/lp/taylor-francis/lashed-by-sharks-pelted-by-demons-drowned-for-apostasy-the-value-of-G0I1JQAJwa
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Copyright
© 2014 Hong Kong Geographical Association
ISSN
2158-1762
eISSN
1022-5706
DOI
10.1080/10225706.2013.870080
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

The critical analysis of myths (traditional oral tales) can lead to an improved understanding of geohazards. This paper examines three groups of myths (volcano, earthquake, and coastal change) from Asia-Pacific cultures and shows how their analysis might contribute to the identification of unrealized geohazards in particular places as well as the magnitudes and recurrence intervals of these hazards. Many volcano myths involve gods within the mountains who are periodically angered and punish the people living nearby; through gifts, volcano gods are appeased, a process that has been widespread in parts of the Asia-Pacific region. Other volcano myths allow people to recognize eruption precursors or identify eruption locations. Earthquake myths often involve an animal within the Earth failing to support it upright. More recently, earthquakes have been interpreted as an expression of divine anger at the state of (local) human affairs. Myths also refer to earthquake precursors and have proved effective in eliciting appropriate community responses following tsunamigenic earthquakes. Coastal-change myths are more likely to be memories of long-term (postglacial) coastal change on which extreme-wave events were superimposed. The latter are the most memorable details in myths but the consequences of these events can be explained only by long-term change. Abrupt changes to Asia-Pacific coasts have also been captured by myths, ranging from local collapses of cliffed coasts to the disappearance of entire islands in the Pacific Ocean. Myths can supply information around the nexus of geological and historical data sources, particularly between 102  and 104 years ago. As such, myths have the potential to contribute “missing” data to long-term geohazard chronologies and thereby improve hazard understanding and preparedness. Myths from Asia-Pacific cultures that refer to community responses to geohazards can also be useful in contemporary strategies for awareness-raising. Geographers are uniquely qualified to identify and interpret myths that refer to geohazards. There is potential for many more such myths to be gathered from the Asia-Pacific region.

Journal

Asian Geographer – Taylor & Francis

Published: Jan 2, 2014

Keywords: hazards; myths; volcanism; earthquakes; coastal change; disasters

References

  • IRS Views the Adams Bridge (Bridging India and Sri Lanka)
  • A Ninth Century Earthquake-Induced Landslide and Flood in the Kashmir Valley, and Earthquake Damage to Kashmir's Medieval Temples
  • Woiwurrung, the Melbourne Language.
  • Cosmogenic Mega-Tsunami in the Australia Region: Are They Supported by Aboriginal and Maori Legends?
  • Aboriginal Traditions and the Prehistory of Australia
  • The Land-Pulling Myth and Some Aspects of Historic Reality
  • Integration of Coastal Geomorphology, Mythology, and Archaeological Evidence at Kualoa Beach, Windward O'ahu, Hawaiian Islands
  • Volcanoes on Earth: Our Basis for Understanding Volcanism.
  • Welcoming a Monster to the World: Myths, Oral Tradition, and Modern Societal Response to Volcanic Disasters
  • Geo-mythology of India.
  • The 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake and Earthquake Prediction in China
  • Migration Patterns of Neolithic Settlements on the Abandoned Yellow and Yangtze River Deltas of China
  • Geomythology, Theodicy and the Continuing Relevance of Religious Worldviews on Responses to Volcanic Eruptions.
  • Linguistic Consequences of the Kuwae Eruption.
  • Volcanic Oral Traditions in Hazard Assessment and Mitigation.
  • Nabukelevu Volcano (Mt. Washington), Kadavu – A Source of Hitherto Unknown Volcanic Hazard in Fiji
  • Tsunamis and the Coastal Communities of Papua New Guinea.
  • The Aitape 1998 Tsunami: Reconstructing the Event from Interviews and Field Mapping
  • Volcanology, History and Myths of the Lake Albano Maar (Colli Albani Volcano, Italy)
  • Dynamics of the Coastal North Black Sea Area in Late Pleistocene and Holocene and Early Human Dispersal
  • The Panoptic Gaze in a Non-western Setting: Self-surveillance on Merapi Volcano, Central Java
  • Are Adaptation Studies Effective, and What Can Enhance Their Practical Impact?
  • Planning for the Future: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Reconstructing the Buag Episode of Mt. Pinatubo, Philippines.
  • Under the Volcano: Ni-Vanuatu and Their Environment.
  • Bingi at Tari
  • The Port Royal Earthquake
  • Some Geographical Aspects of the British Solomon Islands in the Western Pacific
  • In the Aftermath of the Qa'yamat: The Kashmir Earthquake Disaster in Northern Pakistan
  • Australian Aboriginal Geomythology: Eyewitness Accounts of Cosmic Impacts?
  • Meteors in Australian Aboriginal Dreamings
  • Review of Seasonal Climate Forecasting for Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa
  • Exploring Cultural Dimensions of Adaptation to Climate Change.
  • Looking to Epi: Further Consequences of the Kuwae Eruption, Central Vanuatu, AD 1452
  • Evolution of the Coastal Depositional Systems of the Changjiang (Yangtze) River in Response to Late Pleistocene–Holocene Sea-level Changes
  • Status of Historical Seismology in Japan
  • Impacts of Climate Change and Sea-level Rise on Cyclonic Storm Surge Floods in Bangladesh
  • Emplacement of the Most Recent Lava Flows on Hualālai Volcano, Hawai'i
  • Holocene Reef Growth in the Maldives: Evidence of a Mid-Holocene Sea-level Highstand in the Central Indian Ocean
  • Māori Environmental Knowledge and Natural Hazards in Aotearoa-New Zealand
  • Between the Profane World and the Spirit World: A Comparison of the Conceptualisation of Uplands and Mountains in Maori and Japanese Folklore
  • Misperceptions of Climate-change Risk as Barriers to Climate-change Adaptation: A Case Study from the Rewa Delta, Fiji
  • Oral Traditions or Situated Practices? Understanding How Indigenous Communities Respond to Environmental Disasters
  • Volcanism and Early Maori Society in New Zealand.
  • Folklore and Earthquakes: Native American Oral Traditions from Cascadia Compared with Written Traditions from Japan.
  • The Celestial Basis of Civilization
  • The Archaeology and Anthropology of Quaternary Period Cosmic Impact.
  • Exploring the Nature of Myth and Its Role in Science.
  • Smong: How an Oral History Saved Thousands on Indonesia's Simeulue Island During the December 2004 and March 2005 Tsunamis
  • Tsunamis in the New Zealand Archaeological Record
  • When the Mountain Dwarfs Danced: Aboriginal Traditions of Paleoseismic Events Along the Cascadia Subduction Zone of Western North America
  • Influence of the Institutional and Socio-economic Context for Responding to Disasters: Case Study of the 1994 and 2006 Eruptions of the Merapi Volcano, Indonesia.
  • Yomba Island: A Real or Mythical Volcano.
  • Culture and Disaster Risk Reduction: Lessons and Opportunities
  • Framework for Integrating Indigenous and Scientific Knowledge for Disaster Risk Reduction
  • Northern Athapaskan Oral Traditions and the White River Volcano
  • The Eruption History of Rangitoto: Reappraisal of a Small New Zealand Myth
  • Pele, Ancient Goddess of Contemporary Hawaii
  • Early Human Settlement and the Possibility of Contemporaneous Volcanism, Western Kadavu, Fiji
  • On the Convergence of Myth and Reality: Examples from the Pacific Islands
  • Fished Up or Thrown Down: The Geography of Pacific Island Origin Myths
  • Myths and the Formation of Niue Island, Central South Pacific
  • Responding to the Challenges of Climate Change in the Pacific Islands: Management and Technological Imperatives
  • Of Giant Fish and Shaken Islands: Geological Interpretations of Euhemeristic Myths Concerning Underwater Eruptions and Abrupt Land Movements in the Pacific Islands
  • Vanished Islands in Vanuatu: New Research and a Preliminary Geohazard Assessment
  • Geohazards Revealed by Myths in the Pacific: A Study of Islands that Have Disappeared in Solomon Islands
  • Geological Histories and Geohazard Potential of Pacific Islands Illuminated by Myths.
  • Holocene Coastal Uplift in the Western Pacific Rim in the Context of Late Quaternary Uplift
  • The Eruptive History and Volcanic Hazards of Savo, Solomon Islands
  • A New Iguanid Lizard (Squamata, Iguanidae) from the Late Quaternary of Fiji, Southwest Pacific
  • Sea-level Changes and Its Impact on Coastal Archaeological Monuments: Seven Pagodas of Mahabalipuram, a Case Study
  • History at Land's End: Lemuria in Tamil Spatial Fables
  • Enemy Spirits, Allied Spirits: The Political Cosmology of Arunachal Pradesh Societies
  • Formation of the Mid-Fifteenth Century Kuwae Caldera (Vanuatu) by an Initial Hydroclastic and Subsequent Ignimbritic Eruption
  • A Prehistoric Lahar-dammed Lake and Eruption of Mount Pinatubo Described in a Philippine Aborigine Legend
  • Holocene Sea-level Change and the Emergence of Neolithic Seafaring in the Fuzhou Basin (Fujian, China)
  • Temporal Scaling of Volcanic Eruptions
  • A Catastrophe Remembered: A Meteorite Impact of the Fifth Century AD in the Abruzzo, Central Italy
  • Cultural Politics of Natural Disasters: Discourses on Volcanic Eruptions in Indonesia.
  • Anthropology of Religion: Disasters and the Representations of Tradition and Modernity
  • Shugendo: Japanese Mountain Religion – State of the Field and Bibliographic Review
  • Understanding Earthquakes: From Myth to Science
  • Traditions of Extinct Animals, Changing Sea-levels and Volcanoes Among Australian Aboriginals: Evidence from Linguistic and Ethnographic Research.
  • Volcanic Disasters and Archaeological Sites in Southern Kyushu, Japan.
  • Volcanic Threat in Developing Countries of the Asia-Pacific Region: Probabilistic Hazard Assessment, Population Risks, and Information Gaps
  • Conduits of Power: What the Origins of Japan's Earthquake Catfish Reveal about Religious Geography
  • Long Term Shoreline Oscillation and Changes of Cauvery Delta Coastline Inferred from Satellite Imageries
  • Jottings on the Mythology and Spirit-Lore of Old Samoa
  • Myths, Legends and Volcanic Activity – an Example from Northern Tonga
  • Myth and Geophysics
  • The Special Vulnerability of Asia-Pacific Islands to Natural Hazards.
  • Marine Archaeological Explorations in the Kaveripoompattinam Regions: Fresh Light on the Structural Remains
  • Catastrophic Early Holocene Sea Level Rise, Human Migration and the Neolithic Transition in Europe
  • The Flood Myth and the Origin of Ethnic Groups in Southeast Asia
  • Squatters, Priests and Professors: A Brief History of Vertebrate Palaeontology in Terra Australis.
  • Integration of Indigenous Knowledge and Disaster Risk Reduction: A Case Study from Baie Martelli, Pentecost Island, Vanuatu
  • Estimating the Likelihood of an Eruption from a Volcano with Missing Onsets in its Record
  • Three Active Volcanoes in China and Their Hazards
  • Archaeology and Oral Tradition: The Scientific Importance of Dialogue
  • The Kuwae (Vanuatu) Eruption of AD 1452: Potential Magnitude and Volatile Release
  • Palynological Evidence for Late Holocene Environmental Change on the Gimhae Fluvial Plain, Southern Korean Peninsula: Reconstructing the Rise and Fall of Golden Crown Gaya State