Urban legend

Short description: Form of modern folklore

"Urban myth" and "Urban myths" redirect here. For the theatre company, see Urban Myth Theatre Company. For other uses, see Urban Myths (disambiguation).

For other uses, see Urban legend (disambiguation).

Colchester Overpass, the site of the 1970s urban legend of the "Bunny Man", said to be a man or ghost in a rabbit costume who attacked people in the areaPart of a series on the

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An urban legend (sometimes modern legend, urban myth, or simply legend) is a form of folklore consisting of unusual, humorous, or frightening stories that circulate as true accounts but are typically unverified or apocryphal. These narratives are often shared through word of mouth, social media, or news-like sources and typically involve shocking, mysterious, or cautionary themes.[1][2]

These legends can be entertaining but often concern mysterious and troubling events, such as disappearances and strange objects or entities. Urban legends may confirm moral standards, reflect prejudices, or be a way to make sense of societal anxieties.[3]

In the past, urban legends were most often circulated orally, at gatherings and around the campfire for instance. Now, they can be spread by any media, including newspapers, mobile news apps, e-mail, and most often, social media. Some urban legends have passed through the years/decades with only minor changes, in where the time period takes place. Generic urban legends are often altered to suit regional variations, but the lesson or moral generally remains the same.

## Contents

* 1 Origin and structure
* 2 Propagation and belief
* 3 Relation to mythology
* 4 Documentation
* 5 Genres
* 5.1 Crime
* 5.2 Medicine
* 5.3 Internet
* 5.4 Paranormal
* 5.5 Marketing
* 6 See also
* 7 References
* 7.1 Citations
* 7.2 General and cited sources
* 8 Further reading
* 9 External links

## Origin and structure

The term "urban legend", as used by folklorists, has appeared in print since at least 1968, when it was used by Richard Dorson.[4] Jan Harold Brunvand, professor of English at the University of Utah, introduced the term to the general public in a series of popular books published beginning in 1981. Brunvand used his collection of legends, The Vanishing Hitchhiker: American Urban Legends & Their Meanings (1981) to make two points: first, that legends and folklore do not occur exclusively in so-called primitive or traditional societies, and second, that one could learn much about urban and modern culture by studying such tales.[5]

Many urban legends are framed as complete stories with plot and characters. The compelling appeal of a typical urban legend is its elements of mystery, horror, fear, or humor. Often they serve as cautionary tales.[6] Some urban legends are morality tales that depict someone acting in a disagreeable manner, only to wind up in trouble, hurt, or dead.[7]

Urban legends will often try to invoke a feeling of disgust in the reader which tends to make these stories more memorable and potent. Elements of shock value can be found in almost every form of urban legend and are partially what makes these tales so impactful.[8] An urban legend may include elements of the supernatural or paranormal.[9]

## Propagation and belief

As Jan Brunvand points out,[10] antecedent legends including some of the motifs, themes and symbolism of the urtexts can readily be identified. Cases that may have been at least partially inspired by real events include "The Death Car" (traced by Richard Dorson to Michigan, United States);[10] "the Solid Cement Cadillac"[11] and the possible origin of "The Hook" in the 1946 series of Lovers' Lane murders in Texarkana, Texas, United States.[12][13] The urban legend that Coca-Cola developed the drink Fanta to sell in Nazi Germany without public backlash originated as the actual tale of German Max Keith, who invented the drink and ran Coca-Cola's operations in Germany during World War II.[14]

An example of a supposed ghost train, the Silver Train of Stockholm, also known as Silverpilen (the Silver Arrow), artist's impression

The narrator of an urban legend may claim it happened to a friend (or to a friend of a friend), which serves to personalize, authenticate and enhance the power of the narrative[15] while distancing the teller from the tall tale. Many urban legends depict horrific crimes, contaminated foods, or other situations that would potentially affect many people. Anyone believing such stories might feel compelled to warn loved ones. On occasion, news organizations, school officials and even police departments have issued warnings concerning the latest threat.[16] According to the "Lights Out" rumor, street gang members would drive without headlights until a compassionate motorist responded with the traditional flashing of headlights, whereupon a prospective new gang member would have to murder the citizen as a requirement of initiation.[17] A fax retelling this legend received at the Nassau County, Florida, fire department was forwarded to police, and from there to all city departments. The Minister of Defence for Canada was taken in by it also; he forwarded an urgent security warning to all Ontario Members of Parliament.[17]

Urban legends typically include common elements: the tale is retold on behalf of the original witness or participant; dire warnings are often given for those who might not heed the advice or lesson contained therein (a typical element of many e-mail phishing scams); and the tale is often touted as "something a friend told me", the friend being identified by first name only or not identified at all.[18] Such legends seem to be believable and even provocative, as some readers are led in turn to pass them on, including on social media platforms that instantly reach millions worldwide.[19] Many are essentially extended jokes, told as if they were true events.[20]

Persistent urban legends do often maintain a degree of plausibility, as in the story a serial killer deliberately hiding in the back seat of a car. Another such example since the 1970s has been the recurring rumor that the Procter & Gamble Company was associated with Satan-worshippers because of details within its 19th-century "57" trademark.[21] The legend interrupted the company's business to the point that it stopped using the trademark.[22]

## Relation to mythology

The earliest term by which these narratives were known, "urban belief tales", highlights what was then thought of as a key property: their tellers regarded the stories as true accounts, and the device of the FOAF (acronym for "Friend of a Friend" invented by English writer and folklorist Rodney Dale in 1976) was a spurious but significant effort at authentication.[23] The coinage leads in turn to the terms "FOAFlore" and "FOAFtale". While at least one classic legend, the "Death Car", has been shown to have some basis in fact,[24] folklorists have an interest in debunking those narratives only to the degree that establishing non-factuality warrants the assumption that there must be some other reason why the tales are told, re-told and believed.[25] As in the case of myth, the narratives are believed because they construct and reinforce the worldview of the group within which they are told, or "because they provide us with coherent and convincing explanations of complex events".[26]

Social scientists have started to draw on urban legends in order to help explain complex socio-psychological beliefs, such as attitudes to crime, childcare, fast food, SUVs and other "family" choices.[27] The authors make an explicit connection between urban legends and popular folklore, such as Grimm's Fairy Tales, where similar themes and motifs arise. For that reason, it is characteristic of groups within which a given narrative circulates to vehemently reject claims or demonstrations of non-factuality; an example would be the expressions of outrage by police officers who are told that adulteration of Halloween treats by strangers (the subject of periodic moral panics) occurs extremely rarely, if at all.[25][28]

## Documentation

The Internet has made it easier both to spread and to debunk urban legends.[29][30] For instance, the Usenet newsgroup alt.folklore.urban and several other websites, most notably snopes.com, focus on discussing, tracking, and analyzing urban legends. The United States Department of Energy had a now-discontinued service called Hoaxbusters[31] that dealt with computer-distributed hoaxes and legends.[32] The most notable such hoaxes are known as creepypastas, which are typically horror stories written anonymously. Although most are regarded as obviously false, some, such as the Slender Man, have gained a following of people that do believe in them.[33]

Television shows such as Urban Legends, Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction, and later Mostly True Stories: Urban Legends Revealed, feature re-enactments of urban legends, detailing the accounts of the tales and (typically later in an episode) revealing any factual basis they may have. The Discovery Channel TV show MythBusters (2003–2016) tried to prove or disprove several urban legends by attempting to reproduce them using the scientific method.[34]

The 1998 film Urban Legend featured students discussing popular urban legends while at the same time falling victim to killings re-enacting them.[35] The 1999 film The Blair Witch Project purposefully positioned itself as an urban legend to gain viral hype and succeeded in fooling many that it was based on a real disappearance.[36] The lack of widespread social media and search engines helped it proliferate in the months leading up to its release.[37]

Between 1992 and 1998 The Guardian newspaper "Weekend" section published the illustrated "Urban Myths" column by Phil Healey and Rick Glanvill, with content taken from a series of four books: Urban Myths, The Return of Urban Myths, Urban Myths Unplugged,[38] and Now! That's What I Call Urban Myths. The 1994 comics anthology the Big Book of Urban Legends, written by Robert Boyd, Jan Harold Brunvand, and Robert Loren Fleming, featured 200 urban legends, displayed as comics. The British writer Tony Barrell has explored urban legends in a long-running column in The Sunday Times. These include the story that Orson Welles began work on a Batman movie in the 1940s, which was to feature James Cagney as the Riddler and Marlene Dietrich as Catwoman;[39] the persistent rumour that the rock singer Courtney Love is the granddaughter of Marlon Brando;[40] and the idea that a famous 1970s poster of Farrah Fawcett contains a subliminal sexual message concealed in the actress's hair.[41]

## Genres

### Crime

As with traditional urban legends, many internet rumors are about crimes or crime waves – either fictional or based on real events that have been largely exaggerated.[42][43][44] Such stories can be problematic, both because they purport to be relevant modern news and because they do not follow the typical patterns of urban legends.[45]

### Medicine

Some legends are medical folklore, such as the claim that eating watermelon seeds will result in a watermelon growing in the stomach, or that going outdoors just after showering will result in catching a cold.[46] Many old wives' tales have grown around the identification of ailments, real and imagined, and the recommended remedies, rituals, and home-grown medical treatments to treat them.

### Internet

Internet urban legends are those spread through the internet, as through Usenet or email[47] or more recently through other social media. They can also be linked to viral online content. Some take the form of chain letters and spread by e-mail, directing the reader to share them or to meet a terrible fate,[48] and following a recognizable outline of hook, threat, and finally request.[49]

### Paranormal

Paranormal urban-legend stories usually involve someone encountering something supernatural, such as a cryptid[50]—for instance, Bigfoot or Mothman,[51] legendary creatures for which evidence is lacking but which have legions of believers.[52] Research shows that people experiencing sudden or surprising events (such as a Bigfoot sighting) may significantly overestimate the duration of the event.[53]

### Marketing

Companies have been accused of hiding "secret messages" behind their logos or packaging,[54] as in the case of the old Procter & Gamble symbol, supposedly an occult figure that gave panache to the brand. (If the thirteen stars in the symbol were connected a certain way, it would show three sixes in a row or looked at the 3 curls at the bottom they form the inverted 6s.)[55] Similarly, a video of a Christian woman "exposing" Monster Energy for using the Hebrew letter vav ( ו ), forming the letter "M", to disguise the number 666 went viral on Facebook.[56]

## See also

* List of urban legends
* Factoid
* Woozle effect

## References

### Citations

1. ↑ "Urban legend | Definition, Meaning, Examples, & Facts | Britannica" (in en). 2024-01-16. https://www.britannica.com/topic/urban-legend.
2. ↑ Ellis, Bill (2001). Aliens, ghosts, and cults: legends we live. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi. ISBN 978-1-57806-325-3.
3. ↑ "Urban Legend Definition". Snopes.com. 10 March 2011. https://www.snopes.com/what-are-urban-legends/.
4. ↑ Oxford English Dictionary, 2d ed. 1989, entry for "urban legend", citing R. M. Dorson in T. P. Coffin, Our Living Traditions, xiv. 166 (1968). See also William B. Edgerton, "The Ghost in Search of Help for a Dying Man", Journal of the Folklore Institute, Vol. 5, No. 1. pp. 31, 38, 41 (1968).
5. ↑ Brunvand, Jan Harold (1981). The Vanishing Hitchhiker: American Urban Legends and Their Meanings. New York: WW Norton & Company. pp. xi-xii & 1-2. ISBN 9780393346534. https://books.google.com/books?id=eY-W_LiKe18C. Retrieved 10 November 2024.
6. ↑ "Urban Legend Definition" (in en-US). 2011-03-10. https://www.snopes.com/2011/03/10/what-are-urban-legends/.
7. ↑ "How Urban Legends Work" (in en). 2001-05-16. https://people.howstuffworks.com/urban-legend.htm.
8. ↑ Robson, David (26 January 2015). "What makes an urban legend?" (in en). https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20150126-how-to-create-an-urban-legend.
9. ↑ Markarian, Taylor. "50 of the Spookiest Urban Legends from Every State" (in en-US). https://www.rd.com/list/scary-urban-legends/.
10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Mikkelson, Barbara (10 August 2006). "snopes.com: Death Car". Urban Legends Reference Pages. http://www.snopes.com/autos/cursed/deathcar.asp.
11. ↑ "snopes.com: Cement in Lover's Car". Urban Legends Reference Pages. 10 August 2006. http://www.snopes.com/love/revenge/concrete.asp.
12. ↑ Mikkelson, Barbara (2 June 2008). "snopes.com: The Hook". Urban Legends Reference Pages. http://www.snopes.com/horrors/madmen/hook.asp.
13. ↑ Ramsland, Katherine. "Texas Chainsaw Massacre is based on a real case the crime library – Other Speculations – Crime Library on truTV.com". Turner Broadcasting System Inc.. http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/serial_killers/notorious/texas_chainsaw_massa/5.html.
14. ↑ Mikkelson, Barbara (13 September 2004). "The Reich Stuff?". Urban Legends Reference Pages. http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/fanta.asp.
15. ↑ Brunvand, p. 423
16. ↑ Gross, Dave. "The "Blue Star" LSD Tattoo Urban Legend Page". the Lycaeum Drug Archives. http://www.lycaeum.org/drugs/other/tattoo/.
17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Mikkelson, Barbara (8 December 2008). "snopes.com: Flashing Headlights Gang Initiation". Urban Legends Reference Pages. http://www.snopes.com/crime/gangs/lightsout.asp.
18. ↑ "Heard the one about...". BBC News. 27 October 2006. https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/6090918.stm.
19. ↑ Gelfand, Lynn (2014). They are watching you: The Slender Man and the Terrors of 21st Century Technologies.
20. ↑ Brunvand, p. 223
21. ↑ Procter and Gamble v. Amway 242 F.3d 539
22. ↑ Brunvand, p. 333
23. ↑ Brunvand, p. 459
24. ↑ Richard Dorson. "American Folklore" University of Chicago Press, 1959, pp. 250–52.
25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 Adam Brooke Davis."Davis, Adam Brooke. "Devil's Night and Hallowe'en: The Linked Fates of Two Folk Festivals." Missouri Folklore Society Journal XXIV (2002) 69–82
26. ↑ John Mosier "War Myths" Historically Speaking: The Bulletin of the Historical Society: VI: 4, March/April 2005.
27. ↑ Croft, Robin (2006). "Folklore, Families and Fear: Exploring the Influence of the Oral Tradition on Consumer Decision-making". Journal of Marketing Management 22 (9 & 10): 1053–76. doi:10.1362/026725706778935574.
28. ↑ Best, Joel; Horiuchi, Gerald T. (June 1985). "The Razor Blade in the Apple: The Social Construction of Urban Legends". Social Problems 32 (5): 488–97. doi:10.2307/800777. ISSN 0037-7791.
29. ↑ Donovan, p.129
30. ↑ "How Urban Legends Work" (in en). 2001-05-16. https://people.howstuffworks.com/urban-legend.htm.
31. ↑ "The U.S. Department of Energy has decided that it no longer wants to be associated with hoaxbusters.ciac.org so this site has been permanently shut down.". http://hoaxbusters.ciac.org/.
32. ↑ Watstein, Sarah; Jovanovic, John (2003). "Bioterrorism and Biological Warfare". Statistical Handbook on Infectious Diseases. An Oryx book. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 297. ISBN 9781573563758. https://archive.org/details/statisticalhandb00wats. Retrieved 26 January 2020. "A number of Internet sites are available regarding urban legends and hoaxes, such as [...] the Compute Incident Advisory Committee and Department of Energy's HoaxBusters site"
33. ↑ "Slender Man case: girl who attacked classmate gets 25-year hospital sentence" (in en). 2017-12-21. http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/dec/21/slender-man-case-anissa-weier-sentenced.
34. ↑ Zimmerman, Keith; Zimmerman, Kent (2005). Mythbusters: the explosive truth behind 30 of the most perplexing urban legends of all time (1st ed.). New York: Simon Spotlight Entertainment. ISBN 978-1-4169-0929-3. OCLC ocm62156278. https://www.worldcat.org/title/ocm62156278.
35. ↑ Ebert, Roger. "Urban Legend movie review & film summary (1998) | Roger Ebert" (in en). https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/urban-legend-1998.
36. ↑ "The Blair Witch Project". http://haxan.com/blairwitch/.
37. ↑ "The legend of the viral marketing campaign." (in en). 2020-10-25. https://writinginbound.com/blog/blair-witch-marketing/.
38. ↑ Healey, Phil; Glanvill, Rick (1994). Urban Myths Unplugged. Virgin. ISBN 9780863698972. https://books.google.com/books?id=jX0kAAAACAAJ. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
39. ↑ "Did You Know: Orson Welles". The Sunday Times. 5 July 2009. http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/culture/film_and_tv/film/article176017.ece.
40. ↑ "Did You Know: Courtney Love". The Sunday Times. 13 September 2009. http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/culture/music/article184306.ece.
41. ↑ "Did You Know: Farrah Fawcett". The Sunday Times. 4 October 2009. http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/culture/film_and_tv/tv/article186376.ece.
42. ↑ Pamela Donovan, No Way of Knowing: Crime, Urban Legends, and the Internet (Psychology Press, 2004).
43. ↑ Pamela Donovan, Crime legends in a new medium: Fact, fiction and loss of authority, Theoretical Criminology; vol. 6 no. 2; May 2002; pp. 189–215.
44. ↑ Zimring, Franklin E. (15 December 2009). "Foreword". Justice for Girls?: Stability and Change in the Youth Justice Systems of the United States and Canada. Adolescent Development and Legal Policy. Chicago: University of Chicago Press (published 2009). p. viii. ISBN 9780226770062. https://books.google.com/books?id=u4FpYMIUnoAC. Retrieved 1 March 2022. "Although isolated and misleading statistical sound bites make the news, the long-term stability of low rates of serious crime by females is a rule with very few exceptions. As of 2008, the girl crime wave is properly classified as an urban legend."
45. ↑ Donovan, Pamela (2004). No Way of Knowing Crime, Urban Legends, and the Internet. Great Britain: Routledge. pp. 2–3. ISBN 0203507797.
46. ↑ "Medical Myths and Hoaxes: Debunked? You Be The Judge". April 2017. https://www.boardvitals.com/blog/medical-myths-hoaxes/.
47. ↑ Chris Frost, (2000) "Tales on the Internet: making it up as you go along", ASLIB Proceedings, Vol. 52 Iss: 1, pp. 5–10
48. ↑ "Chain Linked". Snopes.com. 5 May 2005. http://www.snopes.com/luck/chain.asp.
49. ↑ Blank, Trevor (2007). "Examining the Transmission of Urban Legends: Making the Case for Folklore Fieldwork on the Internet". https://scholarworks.iu.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/2022/3231/FF 37-1 Blank.pdf;sequence=1.
50. ↑ "Definition of CRYPTID" (in en). https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cryptid.
51. ↑ "An Overview of Paracryptozoology" (in en-US). https://supernaturalmagazine.com/articles/an-overview-of-paracryptozoology.
52. ↑ Dagnall, Neil; Denovan, Andrew; Drinkwater, Kenneth; Parker, Andrew; Clough, Peter J. (2017). "Urban Legends and Paranormal Beliefs: The Role of Reality Testing and Schizotypy" (in en). Frontiers in Psychology 8: 942. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00942. ISSN 1664-1078. PMID 28642726.
53. ↑ Radford, Benjamin; Frazier, Kendrick (January 2017). "Felt Time: The Psychology of How We Perceive Time". Skeptical Inquirer 41 (1): 60–61.
54. ↑ Hieronimus, Robert (2008). The United Symbolism of America : Deciphering Hidden Meanings in America's Most Familiar Art, Architecture, and Logos. Franklin Lakes, NJ: New Page Books. pp. 267. ISBN 9781601630018.
55. ↑ The Big Book of Urban Legends. New York: Paradox Press. 1994. pp. 172. ISBN 1-56389-165-4. https://archive.org/details/bigbookofurbanle0000flem/page/172.
56. ↑ LaCapria, Kim (10 November 2014). "Does the Monster Energy Drink Logo Include the Number 666?". https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/monster-energy-drink-666/.

### General and cited sources

* Encyclopedia of Urban Legends: Updated and Expanded Edition. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. 2012. ISBN 978-1-598847208. https://archive.org/details/EncyclopediaOfUrbanLegends2ndEdition.
* No Way of Knowing: Crime, Urban Legends, and the Internet. New York: Routledge. 2004. ISBN 0-203-50779-7.

## Further reading

* Enders, Jody (2002). Death by Drama and Other Medieval Urban Legends. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-20788-9.
* Bennett, Gillian; Smith, Paul (2007). Urban legends : a collection of international tall tales and terrors. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-33952-3. OCLC 76864037.
* De Caro, F. A. (2009). An anthology of American folktales and legends. Armonk, N.Y.: M.E. Sharpe. ISBN 978-0-7656-2129-0. OCLC 212627165.

## External links

* Snopes – Urban Legends Reference Pages
* USC folklore legends archive
* International Society for Contemporary Legend Research

Template:Urban Legends

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* Tunguska (1908)
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* Pizzagate (2016)
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* Project Azorian (1974)
* QAnon
* Sandy Hook shooting (2012)
* Seth Rich (2016)
* Sovereign citizen / Redemption movement
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* TWA Flight 800 (1996)

Health, energy,
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* Electronic harassment
* Free energy suppression
* Global warming
* HIV/AIDS origins
* HIV/AIDS denialism
* SARS (2003)
* Vaccine controversies
* Water fluoridation

Other|

* 2012 phenomenon
* Agenda 21 (1992)
* Andinia Plan
* Cancellation of the Avro Arrow (1959)
* Bible
* Clockwork Orange (1970s)
* Conspiracy Encyclopedia
* Cultural Marxism
* "Death" of Paul McCartney (1969)
* Judeo-Bolshevism
* Judeopolonia
* Homintern
* Homosexual recruitment
* Knights Templar
* Lilla Saltsjöbadsavtalet (1987)
* Love Jihad
* Mexican Reconquista
* New Coke (1985)
* Phantom time / New Chronology
* Red mercury
* Soft coup
* George Soros
* War against Islam
* White genocide

See also|

* Denial of mass killings (list)
* Genocide denial

* v
* t
* e

Folklore genres, types, and subtypes

Narrative|

* Animal tale
* Fable
* Fairytale/Märchen
* Legend (Urban legend)
* Oral tradition
* Personal narrative

Verbal arts|

* Folk etymology
* Joke
* Rhyme (Nursery rhyme)
* Proverb
* Riddle
* Saying
* Word game

Foodways|

* Recipe

Religion and folk belief|

* Folk religion
* Myth
* Old wives' tale
* Ritual (Legend tripping)

Folk music|

* Folk song
* Folk instrument

Art|

* Folk art
* Outsider art

Calendar|

* Holiday

Other|

* Ghostlore

See also|

* Folklore studies
* Morphology (folkloristics)
* Aarne–Thompson–Uther Index
* Motif-Index of Folk-Literature

Template:Horror fiction Template:Misinformation

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