It is hard to find a country without a dragon legend. China has its long, snake-like dragons that bring rain and good luck. Europe has its fire-breathing, treasure-hoarding dragons. The Aztecs of Mexico had a feathered serpent god called Quetzalcoatl. Even ancient Mesopotamia had dragons over 4,000 years ago.
What is amazing is that all these stories popped up in cultures that were separated by oceans and mountains. They could not have copied each other. So why do so many people invent dragons? There are lots of theories. One popular idea is that ancient humans dug up dinosaur or whale bones, mistook them for monster skeletons, and made up stories to explain them.
Another idea is that we are all naturally afraid of three things: snakes, big cats, and birds of prey. A dragon combines all three into one super-scary monster. Whatever the reason, dragons have stayed popular for thousands of years and still show up in books, movies, and games today.
