Curupira
Encyclopedia
Curupira is also a genus of tree in South America (Curupira tefeensis, Ximeniaceae or Olacaceae s. lat.).
The Curupira or Curupura, or even Caipora is a male supernatural being who guards the forest in the Tupi mythology
in Brazil
.
He usually takes the form of a boy with (literally) flaming hair and green teeth. His most startling characteristic, however, is that his feet are turned to face backwards.
Its raison d'être is to protect the forest from the destructive habits of man. It happily tolerates those who hunt for food but is infuriated by those who hunt for the pleasure of it and will lay traps and confuse them so that they become eternally lost in the forest. His backward feet, for example, have the effect of confusing hunters who may try to follow his tracks.
The Curupira blends many features of West-African and European fairies but was usually regarded as a demon
ic figure.
- The term curupira can also refer to a type of MaricoxiMaricoxiThe Maricoxi is a general term for several large apelike creatures that have been reported in many parts of the jungle regions of South America. These may be cryptids or merely an undiscovered tribe....
.
The Curupira or Curupura, or even Caipora is a male supernatural being who guards the forest in the Tupi mythology
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
.
He usually takes the form of a boy with (literally) flaming hair and green teeth. His most startling characteristic, however, is that his feet are turned to face backwards.
Its raison d'être is to protect the forest from the destructive habits of man. It happily tolerates those who hunt for food but is infuriated by those who hunt for the pleasure of it and will lay traps and confuse them so that they become eternally lost in the forest. His backward feet, for example, have the effect of confusing hunters who may try to follow his tracks.
The Curupira blends many features of West-African and European fairies but was usually regarded as a demon
Demon
call - 1347 531 7769 for more infoIn Ancient Near Eastern religions as well as in the Abrahamic traditions, including ancient and medieval Christian demonology, a demon is considered an "unclean spirit" which may cause demonic possession, to be addressed with an act of exorcism...
ic figure.
Pop culture references
- The TVTelevisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
series BeastMasterBeastMaster (TV series)BeastMaster is a Canadian television series that aired from 1999 to 2002. It was loosely based on a 1982 MGM movie The Beastmaster. The series aired for three complete seasons...
features a female version of Curupira played by Emilie de RavinEmilie de RavinEmilie de Ravin born 27 December 1981)is an Australian actress. She is commonly associated with her roles as Tess Harding on Roswell and Claire Littleton on the ABC drama Lost....
. Aside from gender and hair color (blonde), the representation is faithful to the description above, including the backward feet and the fierce protectiveness toward the forest and forest creatures. - There is a Colombian fusion band named Curupira. Their style is a mix of folk Colombian music with jazz, rock, funk, and other popular genres.
- In the telenovelaTelenovelaA telenovela is a limited-run serial dramatic programming popular in Latin American, Portuguese, and Spanish television programming. The word combines tele, short for televisión or televisão , and novela, a Spanish or Portuguese word for "novel"...
Os Mutantes - Caminhos do Coração of Brazilian origin, a mutant called Curupira appears in the series. He is a mutant with red hairRed hairRed hair occurs on approximately 1–2% of the human population. It occurs more frequently in people of northern or western European ancestry, and less frequently in other populations...
and superhuman speed and strengthSuperhuman strengthSuperhuman strength, also called superstrength, super-strength, or super strength, is an ability commonly employed in fiction. It is the ability for a character to be stronger than humanly possible...
. Unlike the myth, he doesn't appear to have backward feet at all and he is much more a villain figure being prone to kidnapping children and killing any human at his sight. He is the enemy of the vampire Rosana and the telekinetic Tati. - In Trivial PursuitTrivial PursuitTrivial Pursuit is a board game in which progress is determined by a player's ability to answer general knowledge and popular culture questions. The game was created in 1979 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, by Canadian Chris Haney, a photo editor for Montreal's The Gazette and Scott Abbott, a sports...
, Curupura appears on one of the cards with the following definition:
- "Mythical, bald, one-eyed dwarf with enormous ears and hairy body, always seen riding a pig."
See also
- CaiporaCaiporaCaipora is an entity of the Tupi-Guarani mythology in Brazil. It is represented as a dark-skinned, small Indian, naked with a very long black mane, smoking a cigar and very mischievous. Other depictions are as a stout hairy anthropomorphic being with the head of a fox. Sometimes it is said that is...
- CipitioCipitioCipitio is a legendary character found in salvadoran folklore. He is generally portrayed as a 10 year old boy with a big hat and a large belly. His name is taken from the Nawat word for child: "Cipit" or "Cipote"...
- SaciSaci (Brazilian folklore)The Saci is considered the most popular character in Brazilian folklore. He is a one-legged black or mulatto youngster with holes in the palms of his hands, who smokes a pipe and wears a magical red cap that enables him to disappear and reappear wherever he wishes...
- Headless MuleHeadless MuleThe Headless Mule is a character in Brazilian folklore. In most tales, it is the ghost of a woman that has been cursed by God for her sins and condemned to turn into a fire-spewing headless mule, galloping through the countryside from Thursday's sundown to Friday's sunrise...
- PuckPuck (mythology)In English folklore, Puck is a mythological fairy or mischievous nature sprite. Puck is also a generalised personification of land spirits. In more recent times, the figure of Robin Goodfellow is identified as a puck.-Etymology:...
- Mohan (legendary)Mohan (legendary)The Muan, Moan or Mohan , sometimes also known as Poira is a name applied to several mythological or otherwise supernatural creatures in South and Central American folklore. The most common and widespread use of the term is to refer to the souls of the dead and the indigenous ancestors of old...
- Leshy, a similar forest-dwelling being from Slavic mythologySlavic mythologySlavic mythology is the mythological aspect of the polytheistic religion that was practised by the Slavs before Christianisation.The religion possesses many common traits with other religions descended from the Proto-Indo-European religion....
- UaicaUaicaUaica is a hunter in the story "The Sleep Tree" of the Karajá and Apinaye people of the rain forests in the central and northern Amazonian plateau.-External links:**...