Legends of the earth

Dorothy Vitaliano's Legends of the Earth examines myths and folk traditions through the lens of geology, proposing that many narratives preserve memories of real geological events such as floods, volcanic eruptions, and earthquakes.

The book was influential in establishing geomythology as a field that seeks correlations between oral traditions and physical evidence in the landscape.

Vitaliano combined detailed geological knowledge with close readings of myths to suggest that ancient storytellers encoded observations of landscape change.

Her work encouraged interdisciplinary collaboration between geologists and folklorists.

It remains a touchstone for scholars investigating how collective memory can persist in oral and mythic forms.