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A dragon is a large, serpentine legendary creature that
appears in the folklore of many cultures around the world. Beliefs about
dragons vary drastically by region, but dragons in western cultures since
the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as winged, horned,
four-legged, and capable of breathing fire.
Dragons in eastern cultures
are usually depicted as wingless, four-legged, serpentine creatures with
above-average intelligence. The earliest attested reports of draconic creatures resemble giant snakes.
Draconic creatures are first described in the mythologies of the ancient
Near East and appear in ancient Mesopotamian art and literature.
Stories
about storm-gods slaying giant serpents occur throughout nearly all
Indo-European and Near Eastern mythologies. Famous prototypical draconic
creatures include the mušḫuššu of ancient Mesopotamia; Apep in Egyptian
mythology; Vṛtra in the Rigveda; the Leviathan in the Hebrew Bible;
Python, Ladon, Wyvern, and the Lernaean Hydra in Greek mythology;
Jörmungandr, Níðhöggr, and Fafnir in Norse mythology; and the dragon from
Beowulf.