Yeti

Yeti or Abominable Snowman, legendary wild man of the Himalaya. The American counterpart reported from the American Northwest is called Bigfoot in the United States and Sasquatch (from a Coast Salish Indian term) in Canada. These elusive creatures are said to be ape-like, heavily built, hairy, and smelly. They communicate only with grunts, cries, or whistles. Similar “wild men of the woods” in ancient lore include Enkidu in the Gilgamesh epic; fauns and satyrs in Greek mythology; and Grendel in the Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf.

Authorities disagree as to whether modern reports of the Abominable Snowman are merely a continuation of these legendary traditions, or whether the ancient reports prove that such creatures have existed for generations and may still live in remote regions. The physical evidence—footprints, body parts, hair, and indistinct photographs—are ambiguous; on investigation many reports have proved either to be misidentifications (such as blurred footprints of a known animal) or outright hoaxes.

In 1960 the mountaineer Sir Edmund Hillary undertook to investigate reports of the yeti, including one seen by the father of Hillary's sherpa guide Tenzing Norkay. He found no evidence of the creature; a “yeti scalp” brought back from a Tibetan monastery proved to be a fur cap made from goat skin. Numerous “bigfoot hunters” continue the search, and the literature of the subject is huge and contentious. Investigators have collected many casts of footprints, reviewed native folklore of regions where “snowmen” were reported, and devised schemes for the capture of the creatures. Some writers propose that an undiscovered species of ape or a last survival of Neanderthal man may explain the sightings; others go so far as to link them with extraterrestrial beings. Sceptics maintain that, without physical evidence, the burden of proof remains with the “Bigfoot Buffs”. Since the creatures are reported from remote areas, usually glimpsed near the edges of clearings, from a considerable distance, or crossing a road or path, the chances of mistaken identity are high; thus, sceptics interpret the sightings as symbolizing the fascination with the wild that persists in the modern world and the sense that civilization has penetrated all areas of the world, except for a few pockets of wilderness and mystery.