Many people do not actually know the difference between a myth, legend and folktale. Assuming they are all the same thing, just different names, is incorrect.

-Myth. A myth is a story that explains a piece of the history of a society. Many times these stories have to do with Gods/Goddesses and how they interacted with humans. Other stories about these divine beings were told as a way of explaining why things happened to people. For example if there was a long dry spell with little or no rain and the farmers crops died, it was explained as punishment from the Gods. These stories have no real historical fact but are still regarded as a part of a society’s past.  

Another example is the Greek myth about Persephone (daughter of Zeus and Demeter) being abducted by Hades, the God of the Underworld. In the story, Demeter (Persephone’s Mother) the Goddess of harvest, wandered the earth in search of her daughter and all the trees and plants died during this time. When Persephone returned to the land of the living for six months, the earth came back to life. This is an elaborate explanation of the seasons. While Persephone was in the Underworld for six months, the earth went into hibernation which is known as fall and winter. When she came back for six months, the earth celebrated with spring and summer.   

-Legend. A legend is a story that has been passed down through the years as historical fact but is generally not verifiable. Most legends have to do with a hero or heroic actions of a person from the local area of a society. 

An example of a legend is the “Lost City of Atlantis”. The story basically goes that the Atlanteans were a highly evolved society and lived on the island of Atlantis. Through a series of bad luck events, the island fell into the ocean in a single day and night. The Greek philosopher, Plato, first wrote about Atlantis in his dialogues, “Timaeus” and “Critias”. There is no concrete evidence that Atlantis ever really existed, but the story is romantic enough to endure. 

Another enduring legend is the “Fountain of Youth”. The story goes that anyone who drinks from this magical fountain, will remain young forever. In reality, thus far, no such wondrous fountain has ever been found. Since it is such a romantic and wistful idea, the legend has endured. People today still talk about it and even go as far as to search for it.

-Folktale. These stories are timeless, nameless and placeless. Folktales are handed down orally from generation to generation in a society. Most of these stories contain a moral, or lesson to be learned. 

One example of a folktale is from Japan: “A Woman and the Bell from Miidera”. The story goes that in an ancient monastery, there was a beautiful bronze bell. The sound from it was rich and it was very shiny. Women were not permitted to strike this bell because they believed that it would cause the bell to become dull and pollute the metal. A very pretty young woman heard of this bell and the restriction of women from it. She decided she would strike the bell as well as paint and powder her face and dress her hair in its shiny surface. When she did touch the bell, the metal turned dull. The moral here is about vanity.

Another example of a folktale is “La Llorona” (The Wailing Woman). This is a Mexican tale about a woman who drowns her children and then ends up dead herself. She is forced to search for children for eternity in vain. It is said that she can be heard crying for her drowned children. In some versions, she is said to have burned to death for her crimes and will steal children who are naughty, from their rooms late at night. The story varies slightly from area to area, but the moral is the same. Some parents tell this story to their children to discourage them from playing by lakes, rivers, canals and irrigation ditches.

The differences between myths, legends and folktales really comes down to the subject matter such as morality, explaining life events and creating a hero. Any way you look at them, they all can be very interesting stories.