Editing Ursa Major (section)

==Mythology==
{{More citations needed section|date=April 2019}}

The constellation of Ursa Major has been seen as a [[bear]], usually female,<ref name="allen">{{cite book
 | last=Allen
 | first=R. H.
 | year=1963
 | author-link=Richard Hinckley Allen
 | title=Star Names: Their Lore and Meaning
 | url=https://archive.org/details/starnamestheirlo00alle/page/207
 | access-date=2010-12-12
 | edition=Reprint
 | publisher=Dover Publications Inc
 | location=New York, NY
 | isbn=((978-0-486-21079-7))
 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/starnamestheirlo00alle/page/207 207–208]
 }}</ref> by many distinct civilizations.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Gibbon |first=William B. |title=Asiatic parallels in North American star lore: Ursa Major |journal=Journal of American Folklore |volume=77 |issue=305 |pages=236–250 |date=1964 |doi=10.2307/537746 |jstor=537746 }}</ref> This may stem from a common [[oral tradition]] of [[Cosmic Hunt]] myths stretching back more than 13,000 years.<ref>Bradley E Schaefer, ''The Origin of the Greek Constellations: Was the Great Bear constellation named before hunter nomads first reached the Americas more than 13,000 years ago?'', [[Scientific American]], November 2006, reviewed at [http://www.worldhistoryblog.com/2006/10/origin-of-greek-constellations.html The Origin of the Greek Constellations] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170401164801/http://www.worldhistoryblog.com/2006/10/origin-of-greek-constellations.html |date=2017-04-01 }}; Yuri Berezkin, [http://www.folklore.ee/folklore/vol31/berezkin.pdf The cosmic hunt: variants of a Siberian – North-American myth] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150504211656/http://www.folklore.ee/folklore/vol31/berezkin.pdf |date=2015-05-04 }}. ''Folklore'', 31, 2005: 79–100.</ref> Using statistical and phylogenetic tools, Julien d'Huy reconstructs the following Palaeolithic state of the story: "There is an animal that is a horned herbivore, especially an elk. One human pursues this ungulate. The hunt locates or get to the sky. The animal is alive when it is transformed into a constellation. It forms the Big Dipper."<ref>d'Huy Julien, [https://www.academia.edu/3226058/Un_ours_dans_les_etoiles_recherche_phylogenetique_sur_un_mythe_prehistorique._-_Prehistoire_du_sud-ouest_20_1_2012_91-106 Un ours dans les étoiles: recherche phylogénétique sur un mythe préhistorique] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211220195357/https://www.academia.edu/3226058/Un_ours_dans_les_etoiles_recherche_phylogenetique_sur_un_mythe_prehistorique._-_Prehistoire_du_sud-ouest_20_1_2012_91-106 |date=2021-12-20 }}, ''Préhistoire du sud-ouest'', 20 (1), 2012: 91–106; [https://www.academia.edu/3045718/PREPRINT_A_Cosmic_Hunt_in_the_Berber_sky_a_phylogenetic_reconstruction_of_Palaeolithic_mythology._Les_Cahiers_de_lAARS_15_2012_ A Cosmic Hunt in the Berber sky : a phylogenetic reconstruction of Palaeolithic mythology] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200528230401/https://www.academia.edu/3045718/2013._A_Cosmic_Hunt_in_the_Berber_sky_a_phylogenetic_reconstruction_of_Palaeolithic_mythology._-_Les_Cahiers_de_lAARS_15_93-106 |date=2020-05-28 }}, ''Les Cahiers de l'AARS'', 15, 2012.</ref>

===Arabian Folklore===
Whilst the [[Astronomy in the medieval Islamic world#history|Pre-Islamic Arabs]] recognised the larger constellation of [[Ursa Major]] as being a bear, perhaps due to Greek influence, they had traditionally always recognised the Big Dipper and Ursa Minor as being counterparts. Both were imagined as funeral processions with the ladle of either seen as a funerary [[bier]] and its handle as a train of mourners. The Big Dipper is known as ''banāt an-na'sh al-kubrā'' meaning literally "the greater daughters of the bier". However daughters here means ''those pertaining to it'', i.e. ''the mourners'' and thus is better translated as "the greater funeral procession", whilst Ursa Minor is known as the "the lesser funeral procession". There is also a legend that the body on the bier is the father of those following behind it, a man called ''Na'ash'' who was murdered by ''Al-judayy'' (the Arabic name for [[Polaris|the North Star]]) and whom the funeral procession is in pursuit of. <ref>{{ cite web|title=Lane's Lexicon Arabic to English p. 2816|url=https://lexicon.quranic-research.net/pdf/Page_2816.pdf/#}}</ref>

===Greco-Roman tradition===
In [[Greek mythology]], [[Zeus]] (the king of the gods, known as [[Jupiter (mythology)|Jupiter]] in [[Roman mythology]]) lusts after a young woman named [[Callisto (mythology)|Callisto]], a [[nymph]] of [[Artemis]] (known to the Romans as [[Diana (mythology)|Diana]]). Zeus's jealous wife [[Hera]] ([[Juno (mythology)|Juno]] to the Romans) discovers that Callisto has a son named Arcas as the result of her rape by Zeus and transforms Callisto into a bear as a punishment.<ref>{{Cite web|url= http://www.ianridpath.com/startales/ursamajor.html|title=Ursa Major, The Great Bear|website=Ian Ridpath’s Star Tales}}</ref> Callisto, while in bear form, later encounters her son [[Arcas]]. Arcas almost spears the bear, but to avert the tragedy Zeus whisks them both into the sky, Callisto as Ursa Major and Arcas as the constellation [[Boötes]]. [[Ovid]] called Ursa Major the Parrhasian Bear, since Callisto came from [[Parrhasia (Arcadia)|Parrhasia]] in [[Arcadia (region)|Arcadia]], where the story is set.<ref>Ovid, Heroides (trans. Grant Showerman) [https://www.theoi.com/Text/OvidHeroides4.html Epistle 18]</ref> 

The Greek poet [[Aratus]] called the constellation Helike, ("turning" or "twisting"), because it turns around the celestial pole. The [[Odyssey]] notes that it is the sole constellation that never sinks below the horizon and "bathes in the Ocean's waves", so it is used as a celestial reference point for [[History of navigation#Antiquity|navigation]].<ref>Homer, Odyssey, [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Hom.+Od.+5.270&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0136 book 5, 273]</ref> It has also been called the "Wain" or "Plaustrum", a Latin word referring to a ‍horse-drawn ‍cart.<ref>{{Cite web|url= http://www.ianridpath.com/startales/apianus-bears.html|title=Apianus's depictions of Ursa Major and Ursa Minor|website=Ian Ridpath’s Star Tales}}</ref>

===Hindu tradition===
In [[Hinduism]], The earliest mention of Ursa Major/Big dipper/ Great Bear is known as [[Saptarshi]], each of the stars representing one of the Saptarishis or Seven Sages (Rishis) viz. [[Bhrigu]], [[Atri]], [[Angiras]], [[Vasishtha]], [[Pulastya]], [[Pulaha]], and [[Kratu]]. is found in the Rigveda (c. 1500–1200 BCE), one of the oldest known texts in human history. 

References in Ancient Indian Texts:

1. Rigveda (Mandala 1, Hymn 24.10).  Mentions the Saptarishi in connection with celestial order and cosmic significance.

2. Mahabharata (c. 400 BCE – 400 CE). Discusses Saptarishi Mandal as a guiding star for navigation.

3. Puranas (Vishnu Purana, Brahmanda Purana, and others). Describe the Saptarishis as divine sages who hold cosmic wisdom.

For Ursa Minor, it was not explicitly mentioned in early Vedic texts but was recognized in later astronomical texts such as:

1. Vedanga Jyotisha (c. 1400–1200 BCE)

2. Surya Siddhanta (c. 4th century CE)

The fact that the two front stars of the constellations point to the pole star is explained as the boon given to the boy sage [[Dhruva]] by Lord [[Vishnu]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Mahadev Haribhai Desai|title=Day-to-day with Gandhi: Secretary's Diary|url=https://books.google.com/ppbooks?id=KTYKAQAAIAAJ|year=1973|publisher=Sarva Seva Sangh Prakashan|access-date=2021-01-06|archive-date=2022-05-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220513140126/https://books.google.com/books?id=KTYKAQAAIAAJ|url-status=live}}</ref>

Thus, the Rigveda holds the earliest recorded mention of Ursa Major, while Ursa Minor gained prominence in later astronomical traditions.

===In Judaism and Christianity===
One of the few star groups mentioned in the [[Bible]] ([[Book of Job|Job]] {{bibleverse-nb||Job|9:9}}; {{bibleverse-nb||Job|38:32|HE}}; – [[Orion (constellation)|Orion]] and the [[Pleiades]] being others), Ursa Major was also pictured as a bear by the [[Jews]]. "The Bear" was translated as "Arcturus" in the [[Vulgate]] and it persisted in the [[King James Version]] of the Bible.

===East Asian traditions===
In China and Japan, the Big Dipper is called the "North Dipper" {{lang|ja-Hani|北斗}} ([[Chinese language|Chinese]]: {{Transliteration|zh|běidǒu}}, [[Japanese language|Japanese]]: {{Transliteration|ja|hokuto}}), and in ancient times, each one of the seven stars had a specific name, often coming themselves from ancient China:

:* "Pivot" {{lang|ja-Hani|樞}} (C: ''shū'' J: ''sū'') is for Dubhe (Alpha Ursae Majoris)
:* "Beautiful jade" {{lang|ja-Hani|璇}} (C: ''xuán'' J: ''sen'') is for Merak (Beta Ursae Majoris)
:* "Pearl" {{lang|ja-Hani|璣}} (C: ''jī'' J: ''ki'') is for Phecda (Gamma Ursae Majoris)
:* "Balance"<ref>{{cite web |title=English-Chinese Glossary of Chinese Star Regions, Asterisms and Star Names |url=https://www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Museum/Space/en_US/web/spm/starshine/resources/constemyth/glossary.html |publisher=[[Hong Kong Space Museum]] |access-date=17 December 2018 |archive-date=17 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181217202511/https://www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Museum/Space/en_US/web/spm/starshine/resources/constemyth/glossary.html |url-status=live }}</ref> {{lang|ja-Hani|權}} (C: ''quán'' J: ''ken'') is for Megrez (Delta Ursae Majoris)
:* "Measuring rod of jade" {{lang|ja-Hani|玉衡}} (C: ''yùhéng'' J: ''gyokkō'') is for Alioth (Epsilon Ursae Majoris)
:* "Opening of the Yang" {{lang|ja-Hani|開陽}} (C: ''kāiyáng'' J: ''kaiyō'') is for Mizar (Zeta Ursae Majoris)
:* Alkaid (Eta Ursae Majoris) has several nicknames: "Sword" {{lang|ja-Hani|劍}} (C: ''jiàn'' J: ''ken'') (short form from "End of the sword" {{lang|ja-Hani|劍先}} (C: ''jiàn xiān'' J: ''ken saki'')), "Flickering light" {{lang|ja-Hani|搖光}} (C: ''yáoguāng'' J: ''yōkō''), or again "Star of military defeat" {{lang|ja-Hani|破軍星}} (C: ''pójūn xīng'' J: ''hagun sei''), because travel in the direction of this star was regarded as bad luck for an army.<ref>The ''[[Bansenshukai]]'', written in 1676 by the ninja master Fujibayashi Yasutake, speak several times about these stars, and show a traditional picture of the Big Dipper in his book 8, volume 17, speaking about astronomy and meteorology (from Axel Mazuer's translation).</ref>

In [[Shinto]], the seven largest stars of Ursa Major belong to [[Ame-no-Minakanushi]], the oldest and most powerful of all [[kami]].

In [[South Korea]], the constellation is referred to as "the seven stars of the north". In the related myth, a widow with seven sons found comfort with a widower, but to get to his house required crossing a stream. The seven sons, sympathetic to their mother, placed stepping stones in the river. Their mother, not knowing who put the stones in place, blessed them and, when they died, they became the constellation.

===Native American traditions===
The [[Iroquois]] interpreted Alioth, Mizar, and Alkaid as three hunters pursuing the Great Bear. According to one version of their myth, the first hunter (Alioth) is carrying a bow and arrow to strike down the bear. The second hunter (Mizar) carries a large pot – the star Alcor – on his shoulder in which to cook the bear while the third hunter (Alkaid) hauls a pile of firewood to light a fire beneath the pot.

The [[Lakota people]] call the constellation ''{{lang|lkt|Wičhákhiyuhapi}}'', or "Great Bear".

The [[Wampanoag people]] (Algonquian) referred to Ursa Major as "maske", meaning "bear" according to Thomas Morton in The New England Canaan.<ref>{{cite book|title=The new English Canaan of Thomas Morton|first=Morton|last=Thomas|date=13 September 1883|publisher=Published by the Prince Society|ol = 7142058M}}</ref>

The [[Wasco-Wishram]] Native Americans interpreted the constellation as five wolves and two bears that were left in the sky by [[Coyote (mythology)|Coyote]].<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RS7qtuhKhM0C&pg=PR7|title=Indian Legends of the Pacific Northwest|last=Clark|first=Ella Elizabeth|date=1963|publisher=University of California Press|language=en|access-date=2019-05-01|archive-date=2022-05-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220513140130/https://books.google.com/books?id=RS7qtuhKhM0C&pg=PR7|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Germanic traditions===
To [[Old Norse religion|Norse pagans]], the Big Dipper was known as ''Óðins vagn'', "[[Woden]]'s wagon". Likewise Woden is [[Norse poetry|poetically]] referred to by [[Kennings]] such as ''vagna verr'' 'guardian of the wagon' or ''vagna rúni'' 'confidant of the wagon'<ref>{{cite book | last1 = Cleasby | first1 = Richard | author-link = Richard Cleasby | last2 = Vigfússon  | author-link2 = Guðbrandur Vigfússon | first2 = Guðbrandur | title = An Icelandic-English Dictionary | publisher = Oxford: Clarendon Press | year = 1874 | url = https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_RnEJAAAAQAAJ | page = 674}}</ref>

===Uralic traditions===
In the [[Finnish language]], the asterism is sometimes called by its old Finnish name, [[Big Dipper|Otava]]. The meaning of the name has been almost forgotten in Modern Finnish; it means a [[salmon]] [[fishing weir|weir]]. Ancient Finns believed the [[bear]] (''Ursus arctos'') was lowered to earth in a golden basket off the Ursa Major, and when a bear was killed, its head was positioned on a tree to allow the bear's spirit to return to Ursa Major.

In the [[Sámi languages]] of Northern Europe, part of the constellation (i.e. the [[Big Dipper]] minus [[Dubhe]] and [[Beta Ursae Majoris|Merak]], is identified as the [[bow and arrow|bow]] of the great hunter Fávdna (the star [[Arcturus]]). In the main Sámi language, [[North Sámi]], it is called ''Fávdnadávgi'' ("Fávdna's Bow") or simply ''dávggát'' ("the Bow"). The constellation features prominently in the [[Sámi anthem]], which begins with the words ''Guhkkin davvin dávggaid vuolde sabmá suolggai Sámieanan'', which translates to "Far to the north, under the Bow, the Land of the Sámi slowly comes into view." The Bow is an important part of the Sámi traditional narrative about the night sky, in which various hunters try to chase down ''Sarva'', the Great Reindeer, a large constellation that takes up almost half the sky. According to the legend, Fávdna stands ready to fire his Bow every night but hesitates because he might hit [[Stella Polaris]], known as ''Boahji'' ("the Rivet"), which would cause the sky to collapse and end the world.<ref>Naturfagsenteret.no: Stjernehimmelen (https://www.naturfagsenteret.no/c1515376/binfil/download2.php?tid=1509706)</ref>

===Southeast Asian traditions===
In [[Burmese language|Burmese]], ''Pucwan Tārā'' (ပုဇွန် တာရာ, {{IPA|my|bəzʊ̀ɴ tàjà|}}) is the name of a constellation comprising stars from the head and forelegs of Ursa Major; ''pucwan'' (ပုဇွန်) is a general term for a [[crustacean]], such as [[prawn]], [[shrimp]], [[crab]], [[lobster]], etc.

In [[Javanese language|Javanese]], it is known as "lintang jong", which means "the [[Djong (ship)|jong]] constellation". Likewise, in [[Malay language|Malay]] it is called "bintang jong".<ref>{{Cite book|title=Hobson-Jobson: Glossary of Colloquial Anglo-Indian Words And Phrases|last=Burnell|first=A.C.|publisher=Routledge|year=2018|isbn=9781136603310|pages=472}}</ref>

===Esoteric lore===
In [[Theosophy (Blavatskian)|Theosophy]], it is believed that the ''Seven Stars of the Pleiades'' focus the [[spiritual energy]] of the [[seven rays]] from the ''Galactic Logos'' to the ''Seven Stars of the Great Bear'', then to [[Sirius]], then to the [[Sun]], then to the god of [[Earth]] ([[Sanat Kumara]]), and finally through the seven [[ascended master|Masters of the Seven Rays]] to the [[human]] race.<ref>Baker, Dr. Douglas ''The Seven Rays:Key to the Mysteries'' 1952</ref>