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A serpent of water, rainbow and creation appears independently on opposite sides of the planet, with no route by which either tradition could have influenced the other.

One Being, Two Unconnected Origins

In Aboriginal Australia, the Rainbow Serpent is one of the most widely attested beings across the continent's traditions, a creator whose passage carved the rivers and whose arc across the sky follows the rain. In West African and diaspora tradition, Damballa holds much the same territory: a serpent bound to water, the rainbow and the origin of the world.

Australia and West Africa had no contact that could explain the resemblance before the modern era. Each tradition arrived at the same figure on its own.

The Atlas' Most Widely Placed Animal

Within the atlas, the snake carries more attested regions than any other animal that receives ritual or symbolic standing, six in total, spanning Greece, Egypt, the Indian subcontinent, Mesoamerica, West Africa and Oceania. That count says more about how thoroughly this one animal has been researched than about which animal is truly most universal in world religion. The rainbow serpent pairing at its center does not depend on the count. It stands on two independently documented traditions describing the same thing.

Where To Read More

• SnakeReptilesCarries six regional readings, more than any other spirit animal in the atlas
• Oceania and AustraliaHome to the Rainbow Serpent, one of the most widely attested beings in Aboriginal tradition
• West Africa and the CaribbeanHome to Damballa, the rainbow serpent of Dahomean tradition