Tradition / Region: Albanian Mythology
Alternative names: Mother Eagle
Category: Bird
The Myth
A Giant Eagle appears in the Albanian tale of The Scurfhead after the hero is betrayed by his brothers and trapped in the underworld. Wandering in despair, he discovers a nest of young eagles threatened by a great serpent. Taking pity on them, he slays the snake and saves the eaglets before resting beneath their tree.
When the mother eagle returns, she first believes the sleeping stranger has harmed her young. The eaglets quickly reveal that he is their savior, and the grateful bird promises to repay his kindness. At the hero’s request, she agrees to carry him back to the world above, but only after he gathers enough bread, roasted meat, and water to sustain the long journey through the skies.
The Giant Eagle bears the hero out of the underworld on her back, returning him safely to the surface. Thanks to the eagle’s aid, the Scurfhead survives his brothers’ betrayal, completes his adventures, and is ultimately reunited with the maiden who had remained faithful to him.
Sources
Jarník, J. U. (1883). For the Love of a Dove. In Příspěvky ku poznání nářečí albánských (Rada VI, díl 12). Abhandlungen der Königlich-Böhmischen Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften zu Prag. Tiskem Dra. Edvarda Grégra. English translation by Robert Elsie. Retrieved June 29, 2026, from http://www.albanianliterature.net/folktales/tale_02.html