Origins of Mythology
The Ancients2 Okt 2025

Origins of Mythology

From Cinderella to Beauty and the Beast, the roots of fairy tales stretch back thousands of years — to the dawn of Indo-European languages and beyond.


In this episode of The Ancients, Tristan Hughes is joined by author and journalist Laura Spinney to explore the origins of mythology. From the tales compiles by the Brothers Grimm to cutting-edge linguistic studies, they explore how ancient myths endure across cultures, and what they reveal about human societies stretching back tens of thousands of years.


MORE

The Birth of Indo-European


With thanks to the authors of the Proto-Indo European reconstructions Riccardo Ginevra (Assistant Professor of Historical and General Linguistics, Catholic University of Milan) and Andrew Byrd (Associate Professor of Linguistics, University of Kentucky). Reconstructions performed by Phil Barnett (MA in Linguistics, University of Kentucky).


Click on the following links to listen to the full reconstructions on Youtube:

Creation Myth

Dragon-Slaying Myth


Presented by Tristan Hughes. Audio editor is Tim Astall and the producer is Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds

The Ancients is a History Hit podcast.


Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


You can take part in our listener survey here

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episoder(606)

What if the Ides of March Failed?

What if the Ides of March Failed?

What if Julius Caesar had survived the Ides of March? This episode explores his last known plans — vast eastern campaigns, sweeping reforms, and his visions for Rome’s future. Could he have rivalled A...

19 Mar 1h 3min

Herodotus: The Father of History

Herodotus: The Father of History

What drove Herodotus to write the first great story of history? Tristan Hughes speaks with Dr. Roel Konijnendijk to uncover the world of Herodotus of Halicarnassus - the traveler, investigator, and st...

15 Mar 48min

The Phoenicians

The Phoenicians

Three thousand years ago, Phoenician ships sailed west across the Mediterranean, their holds packed with pottery, wine and enslaved people to trade. Passing beyond the fabled Pillars of Heracles, they...

12 Mar 1h 3min

Bronze Age Star Map: The Nebra Sky Disk

Bronze Age Star Map: The Nebra Sky Disk

In 1999, a mysterious bronze disc buried for millennia in central Europe transformed how we see the prehistoric world. The Nebra Sky Disk - forged 3,600 years ago - is the oldest known depiction of th...

8 Mar 50min

The Age of Dinosaurs with Henry Gee

The Age of Dinosaurs with Henry Gee

Before Tyrannosaurus and Triceratops, Earth was rebuilding from catastrophe. Out of the ashes of the Great Dying rose a new prehistoric world and with it came the age of the dinosaurs.In this episode ...

5 Mar 1h 17min

Ramesses the Great: Death of a Dynasty

Ramesses the Great: Death of a Dynasty

“Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair.” Ramesses II reigned as Egypt's unchallenged champion for more than sixty years. But within decades the dynasty of Egypt’s greatest pharaoh had fallen apart....

1 Mar 56min

Alexander the Great | Lord of Asia

Alexander the Great | Lord of Asia

As friendships fracture and old alliances break, Tristan Hughes and Dr Adrian Goldsworthy chronicle the epic downfall of Alexander the Great. Alexander’s relentless campaigns from Bactria to Babylon p...

26 Feb 1h 16min

The House of Ramesses II: Egypt's Greatest Pharaoh?

The House of Ramesses II: Egypt's Greatest Pharaoh?

The name of Ramesses the Great is etched deeper into Egypt than almost any other ruler. Colossal statues moulded in his image tower over the Nile. Reliefs of his victories are carved into countless te...

22 Feb 58min

Populært innen Historie

rss-dette-ma-aldri-skje-igjen
rss-katastrofe
henrettelsespodden
historier-som-endret-norge
historier-som-endret-verden
aftenposten-historie
rss-nadelose-nordmenn-gestapo
med-egne-oyne
rss-benadet
sektledere
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
historiepodden
rss-frontkjemperne
rss-gamle-greier
rss-historiske-romanser-svik-drap-og-kjarlighet
taakeprat
liberal-halvtime
vare-historier
virkelig-grusomt
historiepodden-ww2