Hurtaly
Encyclopedia
Hurtaly or Hurtali is a legendary giant
. He appears in Gargantua and Pantagruel
by Rabelais, as an ancestor of Gargantua. Hurtaly is there said to have survived Noah's Flood, by sitting astride Noah's Ark
. He is characterised as beau mangeur des souppes, and as the son of Faribroth, father of Nembroth.
The name is not original to Rabelais. It is commented in Rabelais and His Critics that the ancestors are biblical Jewish giants such as Hurtaly of rabbinic legend; his name in Hebrew means “he who has survived.” Another biography states that Hurtaly is based on the Biblical Og, King of Bashan, and that Rabelais was paraphrasing the Pirkei of Rabbi Eliezar of Hyracanus.
Giant (mythology)
The mythology and legends of many different cultures include monsters of human appearance but prodigious size and strength. "Giant" is the English word commonly used for such beings, derived from one of the most famed examples: the gigantes of Greek mythology.In various Indo-European mythologies,...
. He appears in Gargantua and Pantagruel
Gargantua and Pantagruel
The Life of Gargantua and of Pantagruel is a connected series of five novels written in the 16th century by François Rabelais. It is the story of two giants, a father and his son and their adventures, written in an amusing, extravagant, satirical vein...
by Rabelais, as an ancestor of Gargantua. Hurtaly is there said to have survived Noah's Flood, by sitting astride Noah's Ark
Noah's Ark
Noah's Ark is a vessel appearing in the Book of Genesis and the Quran . These narratives describe the construction of the ark by Noah at God's command to save himself, his family, and the world's animals from the worldwide deluge of the Great Flood.In the narrative of the ark, God sees the...
. He is characterised as beau mangeur des souppes, and as the son of Faribroth, father of Nembroth.
The name is not original to Rabelais. It is commented in Rabelais and His Critics that the ancestors are biblical Jewish giants such as Hurtaly of rabbinic legend; his name in Hebrew means “he who has survived.” Another biography states that Hurtaly is based on the Biblical Og, King of Bashan, and that Rabelais was paraphrasing the Pirkei of Rabbi Eliezar of Hyracanus.