While I was writing the text about dragons, I realized that the idea of gaining control by naming something is itself another myth that unites all of humanity. Why it works, I explained in the last paragraph of the previous text — so here, I’ll just give a few examples.
Genesis: “So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.”
This is how God granted Adam authority over the creatures — and how humans describe their own dominion.
In the ritual of exorcism, the priest invokes the names of saints to force the demon to reveal its own name. Once the demon is named, the priest gains the power to banish it.
And naming works against all kinds of supernatural beings — Greek, Norse, Japanese, Celtic. And, of course, against the good old Slavic upyrs.
And remember, if Shrek somehow didn’t teach you:
Rum – pels – tilt – skin.