by Alan Barton, All News Pipeline:

In the middle of April last year ANP published a column of mine speaking of mythology and my views on portions of that very common concept; a recommended good practice would be to go back over that one to obtain some background on my mindset regarding myth and mythology.  Our standard definitions source Merriam-Webster defines mythology as “an allegorical narrative” including the body of myths and mythos and “a popular belief or assumption that has grown up around someone or something”.   A few synonyms include Folklore, Legend, Lore, Tradition and so forth.  Wikipedia mentions on Myth that in a broader sense they refer to any “traditional story, popular misconception or imaginary entity”.  While myth and folklore often overlap, they note that “In colloquial use, “myth” can also be used of a collectively held belief that has no basis in fact, or any false story. This usage, which is often pejorative, arose from labelling the religious myths and beliefs of other cultures as incorrect, but it has spread to cover non-religious beliefs as well.”  There is obviously far more to it than that mentioned above, but will suffice for our usage in this column.