Albanian Bird Mythology Archives

Tradition / Region: Albanian Mythology
Alternate Names: —
Category: Giant bird, Supernatural helper

The Myth

The Giant Falcon is an enormous and ancient bird encountered during a hero’s journey. It serves as a guide and means of transport to a distant, unreachable realm, but demands sustenance and assistance in return.

A young man searching for the half iron being was told by the south wind that he would find a falcon so large it could no longer fly. When he found it, he seized it and demanded information. The falcon agreed to help, but only after being fed and restored, as its wings had weakened with age.

The young man remained with the falcon and provided it with large amounts of meat until its strength returned. Once recovered, the falcon allowed him to climb onto its back and carried him across vast distances to a mountain in another world where the half iron being lived.

During the journey, the falcon required constant feeding. When the meat ran out, it demanded more, threatening to drop him. The young man cut flesh from his own body to sustain the bird until they reached their destination. Afterward, the falcon restored him by returning what it had taken, bringing him back to health.

The falcon later recognized the hero again after his death and revived him using swallow’s milk, restoring him to life and allowing him to continue his quest.

Sources

Albanian Literature contributors. (n.d.). Folktale 4. In Albanian Literature, from http://www.albanianliterature.net/folktales/tale_04.html

Dozon, A. (1879). Manuel de la langue chkipe ou albanaise: Grammaire, vocabulaire, chrestomathie. In Paris: Ernest Leroux (reprinted in Folklor shqiptar 1, Proza popullore, 1963). Translated by Elsie, R.

The Myth

The Eagle Maidens are beings who take the form of eagles and transform into maidens by bathing in water. They are encountered by a traveler during his search for Gjizar the nightingale and possess knowledge of its location.

A youth traveling through a wilderness came upon a house where an old woman lived. She warned him that her daughters would return and devour him, then hid him in a closet with a hole through which he could see. After some time, three eagles arrived, each one wounded. They entered through the window, bathed in a bowl of water, and became maidens. They spoke with their mother and then ate.

The old woman asked what they would do if a man were present, and each maiden swore not to harm the one who had wounded her. The youth was then revealed, and he told them he was the one who had injured them. The maidens did him no harm and asked his purpose. He told them he was searching for Gjizar the nightingale. They said they knew where it was and that he could not reach it on foot.

They told him to remain with them for three months. After this time, they took him to the place where the nightingale was and left him there.

Sources

Albanian Literature contributors. (n.d.). Folktale 14. In Albanian Literature, from http://www.albanianliterature.net/folktales/tale_14.html

Pedersen, H. (1895). Albanesische Texte mit Glossar. In Abhandlungen der philologisch-historischen Classe der Königl. Sächsischen Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften, Vol. 15 (reprinted in Folklor shqiptar 1, Proza popullore, 1963). Translated by Elsie, R.