The dragon is a legendary creature with serpentine or otherwise reptilian traits that features in the myths of many cultures.

The two most familiar interpretations of dragons are European dragons, derived from various European folk traditions, and the unrelated Oriental dragons, derived from the Chinese dragon (lóng,龍,龙). The word “dragon” derives from Greek δράκων (drakōn), “a serpent of huge size, a python, a dragon” and that from δρακεῖν (drakein) aorist infinitive active of the verb δέρκομαι (derkomai) “I see clearly”.

Dragons in world mythology

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Zmey Gorynych, the dragon of the Slavic mythology. Its name is translated as “Snake son-of-mountain”, it has three heads, wings, and it spits fire (20th century painting).

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The ancient Mesopotamian god Marduk and his dragon, from a Babylonian cylinder seal

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Saint George slaying the dragon, as depicted by Paolo Uccello, c. 1470

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The Ljubljana dragon, the protector dragon of Ljubljana, capital of Slovenia

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An illustration of a wyvern on an early French armorial shield

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Dragon at the Hopperstad stave church near Vikøyri in Vik municipality, Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway.

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Close-up section of an unpainted, carved head of a Viking ship, in the Oslo Viking museum, showing dragon with dog nostrils, canine teeth, rounded ears, and circular blank eyes (unpainted)

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A dragon on the flag of China’s Qing Dynasty

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The Chinese dragon, is a mythical Chinese creature that also appears in other Asian cultures, and is sometimes called the Oriental (or Eastern) dragon. Depicted as a long, snake-like creature with four claws, it has long been a potent symbol of auspicious power in Chinese folklore and art.

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Similar to Chinese dragons, with three claws instead of four. They are usually benevolent, bumociated with water, and may grant wishes.

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In Welsh mythology, after a long battle (which the Welsh King Vortigern witnesses) a red dragon defeats a white dragon; Merlin explains to the Vortigern that the red dragon symbolizes the Welsh, and the white dragon symbolizes the Saxons — thus foretelling the ultimate defeat of the English by the Welsh. The draig goch appears on the Welsh national flag.

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Similar to the conventional European dragon, but multi-headed. They breathe fire and/or leave fiery wakes as they fly. In Slavic and related tradition, dragons symbolize evil. Specific dragons are often given Turkic names (see Zilant, below), symbolizing the long-standing conflict between the Slavs and Turks. However, in Serbian and Bulgarian folklore, dragons are defenders of the crops in their home regions, fighting against a destructive demon Ala, whom they shoot with lightning.

I have a strong feeling that dragons existed and once dominated the world.

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