Why do so many cultures have dragon legends?

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Timothy J. Burbery |

TED-Ed

• June 2025

From the Chinese Loong to the Filipino Bakunawa, the Scottish Beithir and the Greek Hydra, dragons have inflamed imaginations for millennia. Their ubiquity across world mythology has led many scholars to ponder their possible origins. Could it be that tales of dragons were crafted to make sense of violent weather events? Timothy J. Burbery shares what geomythology has uncovered about dragons. [Directed by Sailesh Gopalan, Lanlan Studios, narrated by Alexandra Panzer, music by André Aires].