Myths, also known simply as folk tales or legends, are imaginative, allegorical narratives. They are stories, often faith-based, passed down from generation to generation through the imagination of society, evolving in form and content as they are passed down. These narratives, which include themes such as gods, goddesses, creation, and the existence of the universe, take different forms depending on society's imagination. Questions such as the origin of mythology and whether mythology originated with religion have been widely debated for at least 2,000 years. Some believe that myths began as historical events that were distorted over time. Others believe that myths arose from human attempts to explain natural phenomena that were beyond human understanding. It is a fact that there is no single, generally accepted explanation for the origins of mythology or how it began. Social scientists have also developed theories on the subject. While none of these theories answers all the questions about myths, each contributes to our understanding of the subject in some way. Mythology originating from historical facts: Euhemerus (340-260 BC), a Greek mythologist who served at the court of Cassander, King of Macedonia, developed one of the earliest known theories about the origin of myths. According to Euhemerus, all myths are based on historical facts. To access historical facts in myths, it is necessary to eliminate the supernatural elements within a myth. Once this is eliminated, what remains are historical events. This elimination reveals that Zeus was an ancient king of Crete. Other mythological deities were created in a similar manner. Mythological heroes as representatives of nature deities: German-born British linguist Max According to Müller (1823-1900), all gods and mythological heroes are actually representatives of nature deities. Mythological heroes symbolize a phase of the sun. A hero's birth represents dawn, while their fall and death represent sunset. However, over time, the symbolic purpose of gods and heroes was long forgotten, and people began to believe in gods and heroes. Instead of symbolically representing the sun rising in the east and setting in the west each day, the ancient Greeks believed that the sun god Helios drove the sun, his flaming chariot, across the sky each day. Mythology originating from unexplained events in dreams: British anthropologist Sir Edward Burnett Tylor (1832-1917), on the other hand, argued that myths began with human attempts to explain unexplained events in dreams. In the first stage, humankind's initial notions of supernatural beings led to the belief that humans possessed a soul inhabiting their own bodies. According to this belief, while the body slept, the soul left the body and roamed freely, experiencing adventures and these adventures appeared to the person in their dreams. In the second stage, humans began to believe that animals also had souls. Finally, humans concluded that everything in nature had a soul. This idea that everything in nature had a soul gave rise to animism. This animism was the first step in the development of human thought and the foundation of myths. Mythology origination from psychological conditions: Polish-born British anthropologist Bronislaw Malinowski (1884-1942) emphasized that human myth making is driven by psychological conditions, rejecting Tylor's view that dreams and other pre-scientific attempts to explain natural phenomena emerged. According to Malinowski, all humans recognize a limit between what humans can and cannot explain logically. When humans reach this limit, they create myths. Because early humans lacked the scientific knowledge to logically explain thunder, they created the myth that it was caused by a hammer-wielding god, thus reducing the tension created by the unknown. Mythology representing the great cycle of nature: Scottish anthropologist Sir James George Frazer (1854-1941) explained the genesis of myths through the great cycle of nature. Frazer argued that myths arose from the natural cycle of birth, growth, decay, death, and, most importantly, rebirth. Frazer's theory was based on the discovery of myths at Nemi, in the region Lazio, near Rome. It arose from an attempt to explain an ancient Italian ritual. In Nemi, there was a sacred grove of trees, and in the center of the grove grew a massive oak tree, associated with the god Jupiter. A priest presided over the grove and the oak tree. Frazer's curiosity and interest were piqued by the manner in which priests were rotated. To become a priest, a man had to kill the current priest with a sprig of mistletoe taken from the top of the oak tree. If the man succeeded, he would prove himself more powerful than the presiding priest and thus deserve the office. For in ancient Italy, when a priest began to lose his power, Jupiter weakened, and as Jupiter weakened, so did the world. When Jupiter weakened, winters lengthened and the land became barren. Therefore, killing the priest representing Jupiter and then being reborn as a more powerful killer meant the world would be restored to health. It is clear that the mythology of every society, passed down from generation to generation, actually carries fragments of that society's own past history and belief systems. Therefore, mythology should not be dismissed out of hand. In fact, another theory, not discussed here, suggests that the source of mythology is religion. Every society has a history as old as its own mythology and a history of beliefs as old as its own mythology.