Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Monsters Of Canada 1 - Loup Garou


Loup Garou is actually the French name for a werewolf. Therefore it is easy to guess that this is a Canadian legend that was brought over from the French settlers in the area know as Quebec. Very old French folklore clearly was fascinated by wolves in generally and especially men who transformed into wolves. The natural increased population of wolves in the New World turned these random stories into something more coalesced. There are a multitude of Native American werewolf stories in this wolf playground throughout Canada as well. All of these aspects combined to make the legends of the loup garou even more well known and popular in Canada than in original continental Europe. Even today, very rural areas in Quebec still have a few scarce reports of man like wolves that attack farm livestock and even sometimes humans themselves. The more traditional loup garou stories are still favorites to tell around the campfire and to pass down to younger generations from family elders who may even claim to have seen the wolf men personally!

5 comments:

Paradox Al said...

That is so cool. I especially love the name "Loup Garou", it just feels perfect for a mysterious monster, doesn't it?

Over here, we have a popular legend called the Toyol. It's this spirit that looks like a dead baby, who goes around doing its masters bidding, which is usually to steal. I know, it doesn't sound very scary or dangerous, but it freaks the hell out of me.

Pearl said...

Ack! Toyol?! Freaks me out, too!

The American cartoon "Johnny Quest" once had the Loup Garou featured. My brother ran around making howling noises and referring to himself as the Loup Garou for WEEKS...

Pearl

Debra She Who Seeks said...

I remember reading Loup Garou stories when I was a kid.

Kal said...

We must have had the same book of Canadian myths and legends.

Nick Ward said...

I'm liking this new monster series. I vaguely remember reading a Donald Duck cartoon that featured "Lou" Garou a canadian werewolf that Donald and his nephews faced off against.