# Luison

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{{Short description|Creature in Guaraní mythology}}
{{notability|date=October 2016}}
thumb|220px|right|A Luison sculpture
The '''Luison''' (''Luisõ'' in [Guaraní](/source/Guarani_language); ''Luisón'' or ''Lobizón'' in [Spanish](/source/Spanish_language)) is one of the seven legendary beasts of [Paraguay](/source/Paraguay), and is the seventh and last son of [Tau](/source/Tau_(mythology)) and [Kerana](/source/Kerana). The [myth](/source/myth) is known also in [Argentina](/source/Argentina) and says that in a [family](/source/family) with seven male children, the last child will become Luisón.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Olivera |editor-first=Fernanda |chapter=El Lobizón |title=Bestiario nacional{{thinsp}}: criaturas del imaginario argentino |trans-title=National bestiary: creatures of the Argentine imaginary |language=es-AR |location=Buenos Aires |publisher=Biblioteca Nacional |year=2023 |pages=37-41 |isbn=978-987-728-171-2 |url=https://www.bn.gov.ar/micrositios/admin_assets/issues/files/54f81c4025bc28d9762027c4b704cdb7.pdf |access-date=18 November 2025}}</ref>

==Myth==
In the original version of the myth, Luisón was [the seventh](/source/seventh_son_of_a_seventh_son) and last child of Tau and Kerana, and thus was the most accursed. He appeared to be a giant dog, and was said to be extremely ugly, even horrendous looking.

The myth tells that the seventh son in a family will transform on his 13th birthday.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nuwer |first=Rachel |date=December 29, 2014 |title=Argentina Has a Superstition That Seventh Sons Will Turn into Werewolves |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/argentina-has-superstition-7th-sons-will-turn-werewolves-180953746/ |access-date=June 15, 2025 |website=[Smithsonian](/source/Smithsonian_(magazine))}}</ref>

==Origin==
The myth is widely present in roughly the same areas where the [maned wolf](/source/maned_wolf) is present. Wolves do not occur naturally in South America, but when settlers arrived they brought their myths and legends, including [lycantrophy](/source/Werewolf). The maned wolf, a slender, wolf-like, stilted canid that moves with shambling steps, fitted the popular depiction of the werewolf and ultimately it was [syncretized](/source/Syncretism) with local guarani myths.

In [Santiago del Estero](/source/Santiago_del_Estero_Province), Argentina, a similar description is now given to the [Alma mula](/source/Alma_mula), originally a demonic spirit shaped like a [mule](/source/mule).

== Presidential godchild, legend and sponsorship law in Argentina ==
It has been customary since the 19th century for the [President of Argentina](/source/President_of_Argentina) to be named the "[godparent](/source/godparent)" of each seventh male child of a married couple. This custom arose because superstitious people sometimes sacrificed their seventh son out of fear of the "possibility" that a ''[Luisón](/source/Luis%C3%B3n)'' had been born. Although this sponsorship was carried out informally until 1907, there are records that in that year the first official baptism took place with the president as godfather. On 12 March 1973, President [Juan Domingo Perón](/source/Juan_Domingo_Per%C3%B3n) gave legal form to this custom through Decree No. 848, known as the presidential sponsorship law. The decree also grants full scholarships for primary and secondary studies, while clarifying that this sponsorship "does not create any rights or benefits of any kind in favor of the godchild or their relatives".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.laurdimbre.com.ar/derechoshumanos/dh-0124.php |title=El INADI reclamará padrinazgo presidencial también para la séptima hija |trans-title=INADI will request presidential godparenthood also for the seventh daughter |access-date=27 June 2009 |archive-date=24 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090524022533/http://www.laurdimbre.com.ar/derechoshumanos/dh-0124.php |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Argentina's government and an opposition lawmaker are pushing to repeal the so-called "lobizón law" because it is seen as outdated and based on superstition, though current beneficiaries would keep their benefits.<ref>{{cite news
 |title=Un diputado opositor y el Gobierno buscan derogar la ley del lobizón
 |trans-title=An opposition deputy and the government seek to repeal the “lobizón law”
 |url=https://www.lanacion.com.ar/politica/un-diputado-opositor-y-el-gobierno-buscan-derogar-la-ley-del-lobizon-nid22042026/
 |work=La Nación
 |date=22 April 2026
 |language=es
}}</ref>

==See also==
*["Cry Luison"](/source/Grimm_(season_4)) 

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=zMPTV11OkeoC&dq=Lobison&pg=PA46 Argentina, a Primary Source Cultural Guide]

Category:Guaraní legendary creatures
Category:Mythological dogs
Category:Werewolves

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Luison](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luison) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luison?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.