Since ancient times, peoples have tried to understand earthquakes, why they occur, how.

Many legends arose to tell and explain what was instead unexplained. Thus combining real elements with fantastic ones, here is a series of tales where catfish, frogs, jaguars and underground giants try to find meaning and make sense of seismic events.

Namazu – In Japanese mythology the originator of earthquakes was a huge catfish called Namazu. The big catfish was hiding under the surface of Japan. Only the God Kashima kept him in check, but when Kashima left him alone, that’s when the catfish went wild and caused violent earthquakes.

Eight elephants – The Hindus believed that the world rested on the backs of eight elephants balanced on the back of a turtle swimming in the sea, which in turn was supported by a snake; when an elephant got tired, it shook its head, causing an earthquake.

The Frog – According to some Central Asian peoples, earthquakes were produced by a huge frog that lived in the depths of our planet and occasionally shook.

Sea turtles – A Mexican myth says that long ago, when the world was made only of water, the Great Spirit decided to create a beautiful earth by having some sea turtles carry it on their backs; one day they began to quarrel with each other and, swimming in different directions, pulled the earth until it broke into many pieces. Since then, whenever the turtles quarrel again, the earth on their backs whispers and shakes.

L’Orcolat (the orcaccio) is a monstrous being that popular tradition points to as the cause of earthquakes in Friuli, Italy. The Orcolat is a recurring figure especially in tales of folk tradition. He would live locked up in the mountains of Carnia: any abrupt stirring of him would cause an earthquake.