Baikal Web World - Legends of Lake Baikal


Origin & Development
Legends & Fairy tales • Earth's Crust Thickness • Underwater Relief • Landscapes • History & Formation • Seismic Activity •
History of Lake Baikal
History of Explorations • Inhabitants & Settlers • First maps of Baikal • Archaeological Sites •
Lake Baikal Climate
Introduction • Fogs • Winds & Waves • Ice Conditions •
Fauna & Vegetation
Mammals • Baikal seal - Nerpa • Ichthyofauna • Invertebrates • Vegetation •
Water of Lake Baikal
Colour • Transparency • Temperature • Pressure • Depth • Currents • Budget • Chemical Composition • Pollution •
Recreational Areas
Circumbaikal Railway • Peschanaya Bays • Olkhon Island • Chivirkuysky Gulf • Wooden Irkutsk • Trans-Siberian Railway •
People of Lake Baikal
People of Siberia • Buryat nation in Baikal • Russians in Baikal •

Explanation of the local terms and geographical names at lake Baikal

Legends of Baikal Origin

1: "It is said that a huge stone fell from the sky like they do now, sometimes. While it was falling it became red hot. When it hit the earth there was a great rainfall. Earth, stone, and water came to a boil and in that turmoil Lake Baikal was born."

2: The insufficiently known Arabian Cosmography "Creation Wonders" (the 12th century) reads about Baikal: "It is a sea of

remarkably transparent and tasty water. It lies behind the Diamond Sea. The Most High has made it in the form of two joined horns. It has sprung up from an underground crevice. And it has been and it will be moaning till the Last Judgement. And the sea is always rough and enraging...".

"And God saw: "The land has appeared cold, I am afraid it may feel hurt!" And not to offend the land, gave God the Lord not just a bedding but a bountiful measure of his, the measure by which he measured everything he had. And the measure fell down and turned into Lake Baikal..."

3: In ancient times the place where Lake Baikal now is, was covered a dense forest. There was so much game that it was difficult for man to pass through it. And among birds there was one, as big as a sturgeon. Its wings were huge and strong, and if it touched a tree, the tree would fall down with its roots up, and if it touched a rock the rock would fly to bits. The people were afraid of the bird, but they could not kill it as when it flew by, hot rays it eradiated, made hunters fall in a dead faint.
But a man was born. He grew before the people's eyes. Soon he grew up as strong as Hercules and feared nothing. The people came and asked him to save them and kill that monstrous fiery bird. The hero listened to them. From 100 trees he made a bow, from 200 stems he cut out an arrow and set off hunting. Shortly after the Earth shuddered. And the bird fell down and a fire broke out, and it was hot in the skies. The people left the taiga for the mountains and saw water columns through the flames. And a sea appeared on that place. While the Earth and the taiga were burning, the people "were crying out: "Baikal, Baikal". Since that time the place has been called Baikal. Nobody knows for sure what the people meant by that word, either that bird, or the big fire, or the word meant "much water"... All the people remember that the place is called Baikal.