{{Short description|Legendary monster}} {{About|the mythological creature}} {{Redirect|Ogress|the heraldic term|Roundel (heraldry)}} {{Distinguish|Orge}} [[File:Giovanni Lanfranco - Norandino and Lucina Discovered by the Ogre - WGA12455.jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|Giovanni Lanfranco: ''Norandino and Lucina Discovered by the Ogre'', oil on canvas, c. 1624]] An '''ogre''' (feminine: '''ogress''') is a legendary monster depicted as a large, hideous, humanoid being that eats ordinary human beings, especially infants and children.<ref>{{cite book|title=Why do Ogres Eat Babies?|first=Marina|last=Warner|publisher=SpringerLink|doi=10.1007/978-1-349-13816-6_18}}</ref> Ogres frequently feature in mythology, folklore, and fiction throughout the world. They appear in many classic works of literature, and are most often associated in fairy tales and legend.
In mythology, ogres are often depicted as inhumanly large, tall, and having a disproportionately large head, abundant hair, unusually colored skin, a voracious appetite, and a strong body. Ogres are closely linked with giants and with human cannibals in mythology. In both folklore and fiction, giants are often given ogrish traits (such as the giants in "Jack and the Beanstalk" and "Jack the Giant Killer", the Giant Despair in ''The Pilgrim's Progress'', and the Jötunn of Norse mythology); while ogres may be given giant-like traits.
Famous examples of ogres in folklore include the ogre in "Puss in Boots" and the ogre in "Hop-o'-My-Thumb". Other characters sometimes described as ogres include the title character from "Bluebeard", the Beast from ''Beauty and the Beast'', Humbaba from the ''Epic of Gilgamesh'', Grendel from ''Beowulf'', Polyphemus the Cyclops from Homer's ''Odyssey'', the man-eating giant in "Sinbad the Sailor" and the oni of Japanese folklore.
== Etymology == The word ''ogre'' is of French origin, originally derived from the Etruscan god Orcus.<ref>{{cite web |title=Definition of 'ogre' |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ogre |website=Merriam-Webster |access-date=19 February 2025 |language=en |date=14 February 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Etymology of 'ogre' |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/ogre: |website=Etymonline.com |access-date=19 February 2025 |language=en}}</ref> Its earliest attestation is in Chrétien de Troyes's late 12th-century verse romance ''Perceval, li contes del graal'', which contains the lines:
{{verse translation|lang=fr |Et s'est escrit que il ert ancore, que toz li reaumes de Logres, qui jadis fu la terre as ogres, ert destruite par cele lance. |And it is written that he will come again, to all the realms of Logres, which was formerly land of ogres, and destroy them with that lance.}}
The "ogres" in this rhyme may refer to the ogres who were, in the pseudohistorical work ''History of the Kings of Britain'' by Geoffrey of Monmouth, the inhabitants of Britain prior to human settlement.
[[File:Puss in Boots (136548447).jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|Puss in Boots before the ogre. One of the platters on the table serves human babies (illustrated by Gustave Doré).]] The word ''orco'' was widely used in Italy at least since 13th century, as attested by Jacomo Tolomei who, in the sonnet "{{lang|it|Le favole, compar, ch'om dice tante}}" ("The many fables, my friend, people tell" – before 1290), compares popular characters of fairy tales, like ogres (whose specific characteristic was to eat people), giants, witches and talking animals, to real people he could see in his city of Siena.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ruggiero |first1=Federico |title=Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani |date=2019 |chapter-url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/iacomo-tolomei_(Dizionario-Biografico)/ |chapter=Tolomei, Iacomo |volume=96}}</ref> The Italian author Giambattista Basile (1575–1632) used the related Neapolitan word ''uerco'', or in standard Italian, ''orco'' in some of his tales, and first talks of female orcs (e.g. in "Petrosinella"). This word is also documented<ref>[http://vocabolario.biblio.cribecu.sns.it/cgi-bin/Vocabolario/search_context?rimando=1&pattern=ORCO.&tag_n=ENTRY&attr_n=ID&attr_v=W288 Vocabolario Degli Accademici Della Crusca] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013191225/http://vocabolario.biblio.cribecu.sns.it/cgi-bin/Vocabolario/search_context?rimando=1&pattern=ORCO.&tag_n=ENTRY&attr_n=ID&attr_v=W288 |date=2007-10-13 }}</ref> in earlier Italian works (Fazio degli Uberti, 14th century; Luigi Pulci, 15th century; Ludovico Ariosto, 15th–16th centuries). An even older related word is Old English ''orcnēas'' found in Beowulf lines 112–113, which inspired J.R.R. Tolkien's ''orc''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.humanities.mcmaster.ca/~beowulf/main.html |title=Beowulf |publisher=Humanities.mcmaster.ca |access-date=2012-03-28}}</ref>
The word ''ogre'' came into wider usage in the works of Charles Perrault (1628–1703) or Marie-Catherine Jumelle de Berneville, Comtesse d' Aulnoy (1650–1705), both of whom were French authors. The first appearance of the word ''ogre'' in Perrault's work occurred in his ''Histoires ou Contes du temps Passé'' (1696). It later appeared in several of his other fairy tales, many of which were based on the Neapolitan tales of Basile. The first example of a female ogre being referred to as an ''ogress'' is found in his version of ''Sleeping Beauty'', where it is spelled ''ogresse.'' Madame d'Aulnoy first employed the word ''ogre'' in her story ''L'Orangier et l'Abeille'' (1698), and was the first to use the word ''ogree'' to refer to the creature's offspring.
== In modern fiction == In modern times, ogres have appeared in the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' role-playing game as large, powerful humanoid creatures, with below average intelligence,<ref name=KA>{{cite book|first=Keith|last=Ammann|date=2019|title=The Monsters Know What They're Doing|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ax2zDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA8|publisher=Saga Press|isbn=978-1982122669}}</ref>{{rp|249, 257}}<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Croitoriu|first=Michaël|date=May–June 1998|title=Aide Au Jouer: Talents & Pouvoirs|language=fr|magazine=Backstab|volume=9|page=54}}</ref> throughout its editions as adversaries<ref>Gygax, Gary, and Dave Arneson. ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (3-Volume Set) (TSR, 1974)</ref><ref>Gygax, Gary. ''Monster Manual'' (TSR, 1977)</ref><ref>Gygax, Gary, and Dave Arneson [1974], edited by J. Eric Holmes. ''Dungeons & Dragons Basic Set'' (TSR, 1977)</ref><ref>Gygax, Gary, and Dave Arneson [1974], edited by Frank Mentzer. ''Dungeons & Dragons Set 1: Basic Rules'' (TSR, 1983)</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Dungeons & Dragons Art & Arcana: a visual history |last1=Witwer |first1=Michael |last2=Newman |first2=Kyle |last3=Peterson |first3=Jonathan |last4=Witwer |first4=Sam |last5=Manganiello |first5=Joe |date=October 2018 |isbn=9780399580949 |publisher=Ten Speed Press |oclc=1033548473 |page=236}}</ref><ref>Slavicsek, Bill. ''Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Game'' (TSR, 1999)</ref><ref>Cook, Monte, Jonathan Tweet, and Skip Williams. ''Monster Manual'' (Wizards of the Coast, 2000)</ref><ref>Mearls, Mike, Stephen Schubert, and James Wyatt. ''Monster Manual'' (Wizards of the Coast, 2008)</ref><ref name=KA/> but also playable characters.<ref>Slavicsek, Bill. ''The Complete Book of Humanoids'' (TSR, 1993)</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|last=Croitoriu|first=Michaël|date=November 2000|title=Dungeon Master's Guide|language=fr|magazine=Backstab|number=24|pages=74–75}}</ref><ref>Eckelberry, David, Rich Redman, and Jennifer Clarke Wilkes. ''Savage Species'' (Wizards of the Coast, 2003)</ref> The ogre was counted among the ten best low-level monsters by the authors of ''Dungeons & Dragons for Dummies''. They posit that the ogre "teaches players about fighting big, powerful, stupid monsters, which is an iconic D&D experience".<ref name="Dummies">{{cite book |last1=Slavicsek |first1=Bill |authorlink=Bill Slavicsek |last2=Baker |first2=Rich |authorlink2=Rich Baker (game designer) |last3=Grubb |first3=Jeff |authorlink3=Jeff Grubb |title=Dungeons & Dragons for Dummies |publisher=Wiley Publishing |location=Indianapolis, IN |year=2005 |page=356 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xNU7E01MCEgC&dq=ogre&pg=PA356 |accessdate=27 March 2012 | isbn=978-0-7645-8459-6}}</ref>
The green-skinned ogre Shrek is a fictional character created by the American author William Steig that since 1990 has appeared in a book, several movies by DreamWorks Animation, a TV series, and a musical.
The Ogre Mulgarath is the main antagonist in ''The Spiderwick Chronicles'' books series (also adapted into a film and a TV series).
Ogres make up the army of Duke Igthorn, antagonists in ''Adventures of the Gummi Bears''.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Burak |first=Alexander |date=2011 |title=Some Like It Hot – Goblin-Style: 'Ozhivliazh' in Russian Film Translations |url=https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/rlj/vol61/iss1/3/ |journal=Russian Language Journal |volume=61 |issue=1 |pages=5–31 |doi=10.70163/0036-0252.1093 |url-access=subscription }}</ref> In this children's TV series, they are presented as anthropomorphized creatures, emphasized through neomedieval trappings in clothing and equipment.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Mussies |first=Martine |date=2021 |title='Dashing and daring, courageous and caring': Neomedievalism as a Marker of Anthropomorphism in the Parent Fan Fiction Inspired by ''Disney's Adventures of the Gummi Bears'' |journal=Dzieciństwo. Literatura i Kultura |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=60–83 |doi=10.32798/dlk.625 |doi-access=free }}</ref>
In ''The Smurfs'', ogres like Bigmouth appear human-like but are stouter than humans.
== Fairy tales that feature ogres == [[File:Le Petit Poucet (136548020).jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|Hop-o'-My-Thumb steals the ogre's seven-league boots (illustrated by Gustave Doré, 1862).]]
* "Bearskin" * "The Bee and the Orange Tree" * "Corvetto" * "The Dove" * "The Enchanted Doe" * "Finette Cendron" or "Cunning Cinders" * "The Flea" * "Garulfo" * "Hop-o'-My-Thumb" * "Liisa and the Prince" * "Mr Miacca" * "Puss in Boots" * "The Selfish Giant" * "Sleeping Beauty" * "Tale of the Ogre" * "The Three Crowns" * "Violet"
== Gallery ==
=== In illustration === <gallery widths="200" heights="150"> File:Le Chat face à l'ogre.jpg|Puss in Boots before the ogre (illustrated by Walter Crane). File:Barbebleue.jpg|Gustave Doré (1832–1883): ''Bluebeard'', woodcut from an 1862 edition of ''Histoires ou contes du temps passé'' File:Poucet10.jpg|Gustave Doré: Illustration for ''Le Petit Poucet'', 1862 File:Le Petit Poucet (136547460).jpg|Gustave Doré: Illustration for ''Le Petit Poucet'', 1862 File:Däumling.jpg|Alexander Zick (1845–1907): Illustration for ''Der kleine Däumling'' File:Der kleine Daumling (2).jpg|The ogre and his wife, illustration for ''Hop-o'-My-Thumb'' from a late-19th-century German fairy tale book File:Oni in pilgrim's clothing.jpg|An oni in pilgrim's clothing File:Kyosai Oni in priest's robes.jpg|Kawanabe Kyōsai (1831–1889): An oni in wandering Buddhist priest's robes, 1864 File:Oni pelted by beans.jpg|Katsushika Hokusai (1760–1849): An oni being chased away by scattered beans, detail of a print File:Australian ogre 1900.jpg|Political cartoon from 1900 depicting Australia as an ogre and referencing its origins as a penal colony </gallery>
=== In sculpture === <gallery widths="200" heights="150"> File:Kleinduimpje Efteling.jpg|The ogre from ''Hop-o'-My-Thumb'' at Efteling, Netherlands File:Ogre king at Mandalay Hill.jpg|An ogre king represented at Mandalay Hill, Myanmar File:Sanda Muhki, Mandalay Hill, Myanmar.jpg|The ogress Sanda Muhki represented at Mandalay Hill File:Oni.jpg|A Japanese oni File:鬼山地獄PB060318.jpg|An oni in Beppu, Kyushu File:4377 - Bern - Kindlifresserbrunnen am Kornhausplatz.JPG|Ogre Fountain (lit. "Child Eater Fountain") at Corn House Square, Bern, Switzerland </gallery>
==See also== {{div col|colwidth=22em}} *Buggane *Child cannibalism *Darkspawn *Daeva *:Category:Fictional ogres *Giant *Goliath *Jinn *Ke'let *Mapinguari *Oni *Orc *Rakshasa *Stallo *Troll *Wendigo {{div col end}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== *Briggs, Kathrine Mary. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=si_cXO1yJNwC The Fairies in Tradition and Literature].'' London: Routledge, 2002. *"Ogre." ''Encyclopædia Britannica Online''. 15 May 2006, [https://archive.today/20130102164230/http://www.search.eb.com/eb/article-9125639 search.eb.com] *Rose, Carol. ''Giants, Monsters, & Dragons: An Encyclopedia of Folklore, Legend, and Myth''. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2001. {{ISBN|0-393-32211-4}} *Shippey, Tom. ''The Road to Middle-earth''. London: HarperCollins, 1992 (rev.). {{ISBN|0-261-10275-3}} *South, Malcolm, ed. ''Mythical and Fabulous Creatures: A Source Book and Research Guide.'' Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1987. Reprint, New York: Peter Bedrick Books, 1988. {{ISBN|0-87226-208-1}}
==External links== {{Wiktionary|ogre}} *{{Commons category-inline|Ogre}}
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Category:Ogres Category:Monsters Category:Mythological creatures Category:Supernatural legends Category:English legendary creatures Category:German legendary creatures Category:Medieval European legendary creatures Category:Mythic humanoids Category:French legendary creatures Category:Italian legendary creatures