Across cultures and throughout history, eagles have been seen as symbols of strength, freedom, and divine power. They appear as messengers of the gods, emblems of kings and warriors, and guardians of the skies – both revered and feared for their soaring flight and fierce hunting prowess. In some stories, they embody wisdom and protection; in others, they represent danger, pride, and even vengeance.
In this article, we will explore some of the most striking eagle myths and folktales from around the world, revealing the deep symbolism attached to these magnificent birds. Then, we will dive deeper into the themes that connect these stories, examining how cultures have interpreted the eagle’s role in religion, power, and folklore. Finally, we will reflect on how the eagle’s true behavior in the natural world compares to the legendary bird of myth.
Stories of the eagle
The Selfish Eagle Who Lost a Friend
It was not often that the tortoise and the eagle met, for one spent his days in the clouds and the other under a bush. However, when the eagle heard what a warm-hearted little fellow the tortoise was, he went to pay him a visit.
The tortoise’s family showed great pleasure in his company and fed him so lavishly that the eagle returned again and again. Each time, as he flew away, he laughed to himself, “Ha ha! I can enjoy the hospitality of the tortoise on the ground, but he can never reach my eyrie in the tree-tops!” Soon, the eagle’s frequent visits, along with his selfishness and ingratitude, became the talk of the forest.
The eagle and the frog were never on speaking terms, for the eagle was accustomed to swooping down and carrying frogs home for supper. One day, the frog called out from the stream bank, “Friend tortoise, give me beans and I will give you wisdom.” After enjoying a hearty bowl of beans, the frog advised, “Friend tortoise, the eagle is abusing your kindness. After every visit, he flies away laughing, ‘Ha ha! I can enjoy the tortoise’s food, but he can never enjoy mine.’ Next time the eagle visits you, say to him, ‘Give me a gourd, and I will send food to your wife and children too.'”
The eagle brought a gourd, enjoyed another feast, and as he left, he called back, “I will return later for the present for my wife.” As usual, he laughed to himself, “Ha ha! I have enjoyed the tortoise’s food, but he can never come to my eyrie.”
The frog then returned and said, “Now, tortoise, climb into the gourd. Your wife will cover you with food, and the eagle will carry you to his home in the treetops.” Soon the eagle returned. The tortoise’s wife told him, “My husband is away, but he left this gourd filled with food for your family.” The eagle flew off with the gourd, unaware that the tortoise was hidden inside. As they flew, the eagle laughed again, “Ha ha! I can enjoy the tortoise’s food, but he will never visit my eyrie.”
When the gourd was emptied onto the eagle’s nest, out crawled the tortoise. “Friend eagle,” he said, “you have so often visited my home that I thought it only fair to visit yours.”
The eagle was furious. “I will peck the flesh from your bones!” he cried, but all he managed was to hurt his beak against the tortoise’s hard shell.
“I see what kind of friendship you offer,” said the tortoise calmly. “Since you threaten me, I think it’s best if you take me home. Our friendship is clearly at an end.”
“Take you home? Never!” shrieked the eagle. “I will fling you to the ground, and you’ll be smashed to pieces!” But the tortoise bit down hard on the eagle’s leg.
“Let go of my leg! Let go of my leg!” groaned the eagle.
“I will gladly let go,” replied the tortoise, “once you set me down safely at my home.” He tightened his grip even more.
The eagle soared high into the clouds, then dove down like an arrow. He twisted, turned, and shook his leg, but it was no use. He could not rid himself of the tortoise until he landed and set him down at his home.
As the eagle flew away in frustration, the tortoise called after him, “Friendship requires the efforts of both parties. I welcomed you, and you should have welcomed me. But since you mocked my hospitality, do not visit me again!”
How the Turtle Got Revenge on the Eagle
This story happened somewhere in Cameroon. Tawny Eagle and Turtle had built a village together. One day, Turtle went walking in the forest, leaving Eagle at home alone. As soon as Turtle had disappeared into the forest, Eagle seized Turtle’s child and killed it.
When Turtle returned, he found his child dead. He asked Eagle, “What killed my child?” But Eagle said nothing – his guilty heart betrayed him. Then, fearing revenge, Eagle gathered all his belongings and flew to a faraway land where Turtle could not follow him. Turtle didn’t even know where this distant place was.
One day, as Turtle was sitting by the door of his hut, he saw Parrot flying by. He called out, “Ah, Parrot! Do you know where Eagle is living these days?”
Parrot replied, “He has gone to a place where you cannot easily reach him.”
After hearing this, Turtle began to plan how to reach Eagle’s new home. He said to Parrot, “When you come by again, you’ll find a package outside my door. Take it to Eagle and tell him that Turtle sent it. Say also that Turtle plans to visit him soon.”
When Parrot returned, he found a package lying by Turtle’s door and flew off with it to Eagle’s village.
When Eagle opened the package – out came Turtle! Great fear filled Eagle’s heart, knowing what he had done. But Turtle looked around calmly and asked, “What’s the matter with your wives and children? Why do they look so thin and sickly?”
Hearing this, Eagle believed that Turtle suspected nothing of the murder. Turtle continued, “If you want your wives and children to recover, I can make medicine for them by the stream tomorrow.”
Eagle, afraid that his family’s sickness might lead to their death, quickly agreed.
The next day, they all went to the stream – Eagle stayed home. There, Turtle had built a small hut of branches. One by one, he called Eagle’s wives and children inside, killing each as they entered.
Thus it happens, the story says, when one friend deceives another and turns him into a bitter enemy.
The Story of the Bewitched Brothers and the Eagle
Once upon a time, there was such a famine in the land that people survived on grass and even sawdust, and many died of hunger. At that time, there lived a widow who had carefully saved a little flour. When she found nothing else left, she mixed the flour with water to make dough. Then she lit the furnace and prepared to bake it.
The widow had two sons and one daughter. Just as she was about to put the dough in the oven, the two boys rushed in, starving. Without waiting for the bread to bake, they seized the raw dough and devoured it completely, leaving nothing for their mother or sister. In her anger and despair, the mother cursed them: “May you be cursed by God! May you be turned into birds of prey, haunting the highest peaks, never able to eat bread even if you see it – because today you showed no mercy to your family.”
As soon as the boys left the house, they transformed into two huge eagles. Spreading their wings, they flew away to the ends of the earth, and no one knew where they had gone.
Later, their sister returned home and asked about her brothers. The mother, too ashamed to reveal the truth, said they had left to seek their fortunes elsewhere. Hearing this, the girl wept and declared, “Then I will go out into the world and find them.” She ignored her mother’s pleas and set off.
She traveled far, to lands where the sun and moon no longer shone and the days were always dark. She prayed, “O God, help me find my brothers.” As she prayed, she suddenly noticed a forest of towering trees that she hadn’t seen before. She entered the forest, hoping no harm would come to her.
In the heart of the forest, she found a beautiful meadow full of singing birds, and there stood a castle surrounded by thick walls and a gate with six locks. Two huge monsters guarded the entrance. Terrified, she waited until they fell asleep, then slipped inside.
There, a fox met her and warned, “What brings you here from the world of men? Beware – our master will surely eat you!” But she pressed on and met the mistress of the house, who listened kindly as the girl told her tale. Moved by her bravery, the mistress hid her and awaited the master’s return.
At midday, the house shook as the master arrived – a huge lion. At dinner, the mistress pleaded with him: “You have always been kind to me. Grant me one favor.” He agreed, and she told him about the girl seeking her brothers. The lion summoned all his subjects from near and far to ask whether they had seen the bewitched brothers – but none had.
The lion advised the girl to keep traveling, and she journeyed on to another dark forest. After some time, she reached a meadow filled with singing birds, and there she found a house deep underground with a thatched roof. An old woman sat by the oven. The girl greeted her, and the old woman replied, “Welcome, child. Why have you come to this place where no human has ever set foot?”
The girl told her story, and the old woman revealed, “Your brothers are alive, but under a spell. They have been turned into great birds and live in a castle atop yonder mountain. If you reach it, you will find them.”
Filled with hope, the girl climbed the steep, barren cliff. After much toil, she reached the summit and saw a great palace behind iron walls. Inside, she found a table set with food. Starving, she tasted a little from every dish, then hid to see what would happen.
Soon, two enormous eagles flew in from the heavens. They sat at the table to eat. One said, “Someone has been here – my food has been touched.” The other replied, “Impossible! No one could reach this place.”
This happened again on the second and third days. On the third day, they searched the house thoroughly and found the girl hiding. Recognizing their sister at once, they joyfully welcomed her and asked how she had found them. She told them everything.
The brothers then revealed their fate: “Our mother cursed us into these forms. We are now birds of prey, doomed to roam the skies. But you can save us. If you stay here for six years without speaking a single word, the curse will be broken, and we will be human again.”
The girl agreed and remained in the palace, silent, while her brothers flew away. Five years passed with no sign of them. Finally, she thought to herself, “Why do I remain silent here? Perhaps my brothers are dead.” She spoke aloud – and at that moment, her brothers returned.
Sadly, they told her, “You have broken your vow. Had you remained silent for just one more year, we would have been freed. Now we are cursed forever. We must remain eagles, preying on birds and beasts, living on raw meat, unable to eat bread. We even take children under six – the same number of years you had to wait.”
How Mullyan, the Eaglehawk, Became Mullyangah the Morning Star
Mullyan, the eaglehawk, built himself a home high in a yaraan tree. He lived apart from his tribe with Moodai the opossum, his wife, and Moodai, her mother. Also living with them was Buttergah, a daughter of the Buggoo, or flying squirrel tribe, who was a friend to Moodai and a distant cousin.
Mullyan the eaglehawk was a cannibal. That was why he lived apart from the other people. To satisfy his craving for human flesh, he would go out with a huge spear – four times as large as a normal one. If he found someone hunting alone, he would kill them and take the body back to his home in the tree. There, Moodai, her mother, and Buttergah would cook and eat the flesh alongside him, for the women were cannibals too.
This went on for some time, until so many people were missing that their friends decided to find out what was happening. They tracked the last missing man to where he had been slain and followed the footprints of the killer right to the foot of the yaraan tree where Mullyan lived. They tried to climb the tree, but it was too high and straight, and after many failed attempts, they gave up.
In their despair, they thought of the Bibbees – a tribe famous for their climbing skills. They summoned two young Bibbees for help, one of whom brought his friend Murrawondah of the climbing rat tribe. When they heard the story, the climbers agreed to help.
That night, by the dim light, Bibbee and Murrawondah climbed halfway up the tree and rested in a fork until morning. They watched Mullyan leave the house, then climbed higher and reached the humpy. Carefully sneaking inside, they hid a smouldering firestick in one corner of the house, taking care not to be seen by the women. Then they climbed down again, unnoticed.
Throughout the day, the women heard occasional crackling noises but, seeing their own fire was safe, they ignored it, thinking stray grass had fallen in. Meanwhile, Bibbee and Murrawondah told the others what they had done. Fearing the tree might fall when the fire took hold, the people moved back to watch from a distance. They were overjoyed at the thought of finally defeating their enemy, and Bibbee and Murrawondah were praised for their bravery.
Later that day, Mullyan returned home. As he entered the house, he placed his great spear outside and lay down to rest. Soon he heard the spear fall. He got up and placed it back outside but, just as he lay down again, it fell once more. Again, he replaced it, but this time, flames suddenly burst from the back of the humpy.
Mullyan shouted to the women for help. They rushed to extinguish the fire, but the flames only grew fiercer. Mullyan’s arm was burned off. Moodai and her mother had their feet burned, and Buttergah was badly burned as well.
Seeing they were powerless against the fire, they tried to escape, but it was too late. As they turned to climb down, the roof of the humpy collapsed on them. When the flames died, all that remained were their charred bones.
The people found only the ashes and bones of their enemies, but their legend says that Mullyan the eaglehawk still lives in the sky as Mullyangah, the morning star. On one side of this star is a smaller star – his lost arm, and on the other a larger star, representing Moodai the opossum, his wife.
Deep dive into eagle meaning and symbolism
Eagle as a sacred messenger and divine symbol
Throughout many cultures, the eagle has been revered as a messenger of the divine and a bridge between earth and sky.
In ancient Sumerian mythology, the king Etana was said to have been carried into the heavens by an eagle, symbolizing the bird’s role as a carrier of souls and spiritual ascent. In Greek mythology, the eagle was sacred to Zeus, often depicted carrying the god’s messages or abducting Ganymede.
In biblical traditions, the eagle appears as a symbol of divine swiftness and protection. Verses speak of God carrying Israel on “eagles’ wings,” while other passages describe the eagle’s strength and rejuvenation. These ideas influenced Christian iconography, where the eagle represents the Gospel of John for its spiritual insight and soaring perspective.
Roman mythology similarly portrays the eagle as the symbol and messenger of Jupiter, and an eagle was often released during the funeral rites of emperors to carry their souls to the heavens. In Norse myths, the eagle appears atop the world tree, Yggdrasil, watching the realms below, and in Celtic stories, it represents ancient wisdom and transformation.
In many Native American cultures, the eagle is still seen as a sacred being. The Zuni people of New Mexico, for example, incorporate eagle feathers in religious ceremonies, plucking them carefully in elaborate rituals that involve offerings of corn and kaolin to ensure the feathers’ regrowth and spiritual potency. The Cherokee also regard the golden eagle as a sacred symbol of war and spirit, honoring it in ceremonies such as the Eagle Dance and permitting its hunting only under strict ceremonial conditions.
Across cultures, the eagle consistently emerges as a symbol of spiritual power, protection, and connection to the divine.
Eagle as a symbol of power, victory, and authority
The eagle has long served as a symbol of earthly power, military might, and national identity. In ancient Rome, the eagle, known as the aquila, stood at the head of every legion as a standard of authority and strength, a tradition that passed through the Byzantine and Holy Roman Empires and remains visible in many European coats of arms.
Nations such as Albania, Germany, Austria, Mexico, and Kazakhstan have adopted the golden eagle as their national animal, while others, including the United States, feature it prominently in state emblems.
The American bald eagle, in particular, was chosen as the national symbol in 1782 for its perceived qualities of independence and strength, a deliberate nod to Roman ideals of republican virtue. In the Arab world, the eagle has also been a long-standing emblem of power, associated with historical figures like Saladin and incorporated into the national symbols of Egypt, Iraq, and Palestine.
Even among Indigenous peoples, the eagle often represents victory. Among the Zulu of South Africa, the black-chested snake eagle symbolizes triumph over a harsh world and is seen as a sacred emblem of divine power, with its contrasting black and white feathers embodying the balance of light and dark. The bald eagle also holds spiritual significance for the Mono Indians of California, who honor it through ceremonies that celebrate the eagle’s sacred status alongside its role as a symbol of freedom and authority.
Eagle as an omen of fortune and danger
While many traditions revere the eagle, others portray it as an unpredictable or even ominous force.
Icelandic folklore abounds with tales of the white-tailed eagle (assa) as a bird of fortune and peril. In these stories, rescuing an eagle caught while fishing or trimming its overgrown beak is believed to bring great luck. However, the same folklore warns of magical stones and dangerous dragons hatching from eagle nests where gold has been placed.
Similar dualities appear in European and American folklore, where eagles are sometimes portrayed as ruthless predators capable of snatching children or fiercely defending their nests against human intruders.
Stories from Indigenous peoples also reflect this complex image. In a tale from the Carib Indians, a man is rescued by a harpy eagle after explaining that he had only hunted baboons to feed a young eagle he was raising, demonstrating both the protective and dangerous sides of the bird.
In Greenlandic Eskimo folklore, an old woman who is mocked by villagers eventually transforms into the first eagle, her lonely cries echoing her sorrow and the isolation of her new form.
These stories remind us that the eagle, while powerful, also symbolizes solitude, retribution, and the unpredictable forces of the natural world.
Eagle as a link between humans and the animal world
Beyond its role as a spiritual messenger or emblem of power, the eagle often appears in folklore as a figure that bridges the human and animal worlds, particularly in tales of transformation and kinship.
One such story from Cameroon tells how a turtle, whose child was killed by an eagle, cleverly tricks the eagle and exacts his revenge – a cautionary tale about betrayal and cunning among animal characters. In the Greenland Eskimo story, the mocked old woman’s transformation into an eagle speaks to deeper themes of sorrow and change.
A striking example comes from Eastern European folklore, where the tale of the Bewitched Brothers and the Eagle describes two brothers cursed by their mother to live as eagles, destined to remain in bird form after their sister breaks the conditions for reversing the spell. This story connects the eagle with themes of fate, sacrifice, and the intertwining of human and animal lives.
Across many cultures, such stories portray the eagle not just as a distant symbol of the sky, but as an intimate and active participant in human struggles, lessons, and transformations.
Eagle as a cultural healer and ceremonial participant
In addition to its symbolic power, the eagle also plays a significant role in healing and ceremonial traditions. In ancient Italy, the so-called “eagle stones” were believed to promote safe childbirth and bring good fortune. Biblical references also speak of the eagle’s regenerative powers, describing its supposed ability to rejuvenate itself and likening it to spiritual renewal. Ritual uses of eagle feathers are widespread in Native American cultures, where they are seen as instruments of healing and protection.
Among the Zuni, eagle feathers are carefully plucked and treated during rituals that involve symbolic connections to fertility and the cycle of life. The Cherokee similarly use eagle feathers in seasonal rites tied to agricultural cycles and war ceremonies. Beyond feathers, eagle claws and bones are also incorporated into protective charms and tools in various folk traditions.
These diverse practices highlight the eagle’s importance not only as a lofty spiritual figure but also as a practical agent of healing, fertility, and ceremonial power deeply rooted in everyday cultural life.
Eagles in real life
While myths often depict eagles as divine messengers, symbols of kingship, or creatures of magic, many of their legendary traits do echo their real behavior. Eagles are indeed fierce predators, known for their powerful eyesight, high-soaring flights, and ability to carry large prey.
Species like the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) have been seen locking talons with rivals in mid-air or driving off much larger animals from their kills, mirroring their symbolic roles as warriors and rulers. Their remarkable parental care, carefully guarding nests and training young, is another trait reflected in stories of protection and guidance.
Yet, despite their independent nature, eagles have also been drawn into human traditions. In parts of Central Asia, eagle hunting remains a living practice, where trained golden eagles assist in hunting foxes and hares – a rare, real-life partnership between humans and these majestic birds.
In many ways, the eagle’s place in legend is not far removed from its place in nature: both as a commanding figure of the skies and as a creature worthy of respect, caution, and admiration.