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Cthulhu

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Cthulhu

Cthulhu (alternate spellings: Tulu, Cthulu, Ktulu, and many others) is a fictional character in the Cthulhu mythos of H.P. Lovecraft. Cthulhu often includes the title Great or Dread.

Cthulhu's name is usually pronounced /kəˈθuːluː/, /kəˈθʊːluː/, or /kəˈtʰʊːluː/ (IPA transliteration); however, according to Lovecraft, this may simply be the closest that human vocal cords can come to reproducing the syllables of an alien languageAkeley-a. In fact, Lovecraft speculated that "Khlul'hloo"Pearsall-129 might be closer to the actual pronunciation. The ancient Babylonians believed in fish-men named the Kulullu, a race of demons that Tiamat gave birth to.

Although the cycle of stories written by Lovecraft, his proteges, and his literary successors bear the label "Cthulhu mythos" (a term invented by August Derleth and never used by Lovecraft), Cthulhu is arguably one of the least terrible creatures in the pantheon. Cthulhu himselfNote-a debuted in Lovecraft's short story "The Call of Cthulhu"Burleson-8 (1928)—though he makes minor appearances in a few other of Lovecraft's worksAngell-a. Much of what is now termed the "Cthulhu mythos" varies greatly from Lovecraft's original conception of a meaningless, value-less universe with no eternal struggle. Furthermore, the mythos lore that came after Lovecraft's death was mostly concocted by Derleth.


Cthulhu in the mythos

If I say that my somewhat extravagant imagination yielded simultaneous pictures of an octopus, a dragon, and a human caricature, I shall not be unfaithful to the spirit of the thing. A pulpy, tentacled head surmounted a grotesque and scaly body with rudimentary wings... It represented a monster of vaguely anthropoid outline, but with an octopus-like head whose face was a mass of feelers, a scaly, rubbery-looking body, prodigious claws on hind and fore feet, and long, narrow wings behind. This thing, which seemed instinct with a fearsome and unnatural malignancy, was of a somewhat bloated corpulence...
— H.P. Lovecraft, "The Call of Cthulhu"

File:Cthulhupainting.jpg
Painting of Cthulhu

Cthulhu is a Great Old OneSumerian-theory and is by far the most prominent member of the group. He currently lies in death-like sleep in the sunken city of R'lyeh somewhere in the Southeast Pacific Ocean. "When the stars are right", R'lyeh will rise from the sea, never to sink again, and Cthulhu will awaken and revel across the world, "ravening for delight". Though humans might worship Cthulhu as he lies sleeping, they are immaterial to his grand design (it is implied, however, that Cthulhu will ultimately require the assistance of his human cult to escape from his watery tomb in R'lyeh, but there are many other beings in the mythos that could fill this role, including the servants of Cthulhu himself.) The tomb in which Cthulhu slumbers is locked with the great seal of the Old Ones however, which repels his spawn and that of other Great Ones. As a result, humans are almost assuredly required in his re-awakening.

Cthulhu is described as being colossal, but his exact size is not given. In Lovecraft's story, he was able to pursue a ship across the Pacific Ocean for some distance, albeit on some underwater portion of risen R'lyeh, yet still keep most of his body above water. Although he can communicate with "the fleshy mind of mammals" in their dreams, this contact is currently blocked by his present immersion in seawater. Cthulhu's body is essentially proof against damage by weapons of mortal design, being constructed of the material found in the empty spaces of the cosmos. Any damage will simply be replaced by dust and summoned material, as the Great One's will allows him to manifest a physical form across space. Attempts were made by the Old Ones at the disruption of his earthly form, however all yielded failure. The position of the stars alone disrupts his mental control so that he must remain sleeping in sunken R'lyeh.

Cthulhu is sometimes regarded as "evil", but this is not how he is depicted in "The Call of Cthulhu" and other works. Instead, he is portrayed as amoral, with an ethic that transcends conventional notions of good and evil. Cthulhu's amorality might be compared to what S. T. Joshi and David E. Schultz call the "anti-mythology" of Lovecraft's fictionJoshi-51. In most mythologies, man's significance in the universe is validated by his connection to divine agents with similar moral values. Lovecraft shattered this conceit by basing his stories on the "premise that common human laws and interests and emotions have no validity or significance in the vast cosmos-at-large... To achieve the essence of real externality, whether of space or time or dimension, one must forget that such things as organic life, good and evil, love and hate, and all such local attributes of a negligible and temporary race called mankind, have any existence at all... [W]hen we cross the line to the boundless and hideous unknown—the shadow haunted Outside—we must remember to leave our humanity and terrestrialism at the threshold."Lovecraft-150 Cthulhu's nature seems to be consistent with this view.

Cthulhu is closely identified with this quote from the Necronomicon:

"That is not dead which can eternal lie,
And with strange æons, even death may die."

He is also associated with the phrase "ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn," which translates to "In his house at R'lyeh dead Cthulhu waits dreaming." This line is ostensibly part of a couplet from the Necronomicon, the second line of which is "yet He shall rise and His kingdom shall cover the Earth."

Cthulhu has several avatars, including B'moth (Beh'moth, the Devourer) and Chorazin, although these are not mentioned in Lovecraft's work and are actually later additions. Cthulhu is served by the beings known as the star-spawn (see below), which look like smaller versions of Cthulhu himself. His coming to earth aeons ago and the sinking of R'lyeh were recorded by the Elder Things (in At the Mountains of Madness) with whom he warred.

Cthulhu in Derleth's mythos

In Derleth's stories, Cthulhu is not as powerful as the other god-like mythos creatures, nor is he much of a leader. In fact, the two most powerful (revealed) beings in the mythos are, in order, Azathoth (The Blind Idiot God) and Yog-Sothoth (The Lurker at the Threshold). Nonetheless, Cthulhu's cult is the most widespread and has the largest number of worshippers.

Cthulhu cult

Cthulhu's cult has survived through the centuries and is arguably the most effective at recruiting new members. While Cthulhu dreams in R'lyeh, his cult actively pursues its agenda in his name. The cult's behind-the-scenes activities play a major role in Derleth's stories, and through them Cthulhu can continue to implicitly exert his influence.

Cthulhu's rival

Although Cthulhu is the best known figure in the pantheon, his alliance with the other mythos creatures in Derleth's stories is an uneasy one at best. At least one other Great Old One rivals his power and appears to be his personal enemy. That being is Hastur, Lord of the Interstellar Spaces, who currently resides in the Hyades. Although Derleth did not create Hastur, he did introduce him into the mythos as Cthulhu's half-brother and worst enemy. Various stories feature Hastur's cult assisting those trying to prevent Cthulhu from awakening. Other stories simply mention the rivalry between the two. In Derleth's "The Return of Hastur", first published in March 1939, the two gods even meet face-to-face, albeit briefly. This must be taken with a grain of salt, however, since many authors of Mythos fiction rarely dwell on this assumed rivalry, if they acknowledge it at all. Also, Hastur's domain is limited to a region far beyond Earth (Carcosa) and rarely impinges on Cthulhu's territory.

Cthulhu's family tree

According to Lovecraft and his correspondent Clark Ashton Smith, Cthulhu's parent is the androgynous deity Nagoob. Nagoob mated with the Outer God Yog-Sothoth to bear Cthulhu on the planet Vhoorl. Lin Carter, in his Xothic legend cycle, mated Cthulhu with the quasi-female entity Idh-yaa to produce four offspring: GhatanothoaGhatanothoa, Ythogtha, Zoth-Ommog, and Cthylla. The English horror writer Brian Lumley introduced an equally powerful, but questionably benevolent, "brother" to Cthulhu called Kthanid.

Idh-yaa

According to the Ponape Scripture, Idh-yaa is the "wife" of Cthulhu. No description for Idh-yaa is given, but the being is said to dwell on a planet near the double star Xoth. It is here where Cthulhu mated with Idh-yaa to produce their four progenies.

Star-spawn of Cthulhu

The star-spawn of Cthulhu (or Cthulhi) are beings who arrived on Earth with Cthulhu. They resemble Cthulhu and may be his progenies. Like Cthulhu, they can mutate their shapes, but always retain their master's distinctive outline.

After coming to Earth, the star-spawn built a great basalt city called R'lyeh on an island in the Pacific Ocean. They warred briefly with the Elder Things, but thereafter established a treaty. When R'lyeh sank, the star-spawn became trapped beneath the sea with Cthulhu (nonetheless, a few of his spawn may still be free).

(The Illithids—or Mind Flayers—of the role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons are thought to be based on these creatures.)

References to Cthulhu

See also: References to the Cthulhu mythos

Literary references

  • The "Lovecraft Circle"
    • Ramsey Campbell's short story "The Tugging" (1976) pays homage to "The Call of Cthulhu", hinting that the appearance of a strange astronomical body in the solar system heralds the return of the Great Old One himself.
    • In Brian Lumley's short story "The Fairground Horror" (1976), Cthulhu's priests bear the "Mark of Cthulhu", which looks something like a white sea anemone—in one priest, this "mark" substituted in place of a hand, while in another it grew from the top of the priest's head, seemingly rooted deep in the brain.
  • Other literary references
    • A Cthulhu-like entity features in the Doctor Who novel White Darkness by David A. McIntee. A later Doctor Who novel, All-Consuming Fire by Andy Lane, states that the entity in question was Cthulhu, although McIntee stated in internet postings that this was not his original intention (which see).
    • Cthulhu is referenced in the book El Mas Violento Paraíso by Costa Rican author Alexander Obando.
    • The name is used in Foucault's Pendulum by Umberto Eco, towards the end of Ch. 113
    • Cthulhu is the master of William Starling in the book Knees Up Mother Earth (2004) by British author Robert Rankin. Raised by the Eye of Utu, he sought to unearth the serpent featured in Genesis of the Bible, but was ultimately blown up by a witch's familiar.
    • Cthulhu is referred to in The Illuminatus! Trilogy in a song about sharks sung by Howard, the dolphin, the line in question being '"May storms and typhoons beat them" Howard sang on, "May Great Cthulhu rise and eat them."' - there is also a scene based in the Miskatonic University of the Cthulhu Mythos.

Music references

  • French black metal band Arkham has many songs dealing with topics covered in the mythos, most notably in their album Chapter III - The Madness From The Sea, which includes a track entitled "The Call Of Cthulhu".
  • Self-proclaimed "Britannic battle metal" band Bal-Sagoth has a song called "The Dreamer In The Catacombs of Ur" on the Atlantis Ascendant album in which Cthulhu is mentioned.
  • British progressive rock band Caravan has a song "C'thlu Thlu" on their 1973 album For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night.
  • There is a reference to Cthulhu by the band Clutch in the song "Circus Maximus": "Cthulu’s red headed step child, quite the precocious babe."
  • Cradle of Filth, the black metal band, wrote a song about Cthulhu, "Cthulhu Dawn" (on the album Midian, respectively). In the song, they pronounce it [kəˈθuːluː]. On the Nymphetamine (2004) album the band plays a sequel to this song called "Mother of Abominations".
  • The Darkest of the Hillside Thickets, a Canadian rock band, makes frequent (and usually tongue-in-cheek) references to Cthulhu and other members of the Lovecraft mythos, going so far as to have albums with names like Cthulhuriffomania! and Cthulhu Strikes Back. They also produced Let Sleeping Gods Lie, an album made with Wizards of the Coast to promote the new edition of the Call of Cthulhu role-playing game.
  • The Spanish progressive metal band Dark Moor released a song called "The Call" in which they mention Cthulhu.
  • Fields of the Nephilim, the influential British Gothic rock band, had several references to Cthulhu in "Last Exit for the Lost" and "Dead but Dreaming" (on the albums The Nephilim and Elizium, respectively).
  • Gwar vocalist Oderus Urungus has named his enormous, terrifying penis the 'Cuttlefish of Ctulu'.
  • King Diamond sang "Kutulu (The Mad Arab Part Two)" while he was with the band Mercyful Fate.
  • The heavy metal band Metallica wrote two songs about Cthulhu: "The Call of Ktulu" (partially written by former Metallica guitarist Dave Mustaine), recorded on the 1984 album Ride the Lightning, and "The Thing That Should Not Be", appearing on the 1986 album Master of Puppets. The band's late bassist Cliff Burton was an avid fan of H. P. Lovecraft.
  • The death metal band Morbid Angel mentions Cthulhu in the song "Lord Of All Fevers & Plague", which is included on the album Altars of Madness. The band also produced a Lovecraft influenced album entitled Blessed Are The Sick (songs like "Doomsday Celebration" and "The Ancient Ones" give a hint, and the songs "Fall From Grace" and "Unholy Blasphemies" contain Lovecraftian references). On their album Covenant, Shub-Niggurath is mentioned in the song "Angel of Disease"—Cthulhu is also mentioned in the final verses of this song, and, as a final nod to the mythos, the last line declares "Ancient ones rule once more."
  • The American death metal band Nile refers to Cthulhu or related deities in various songs, with some of their work related to Lovecraftian fiction, including the song "Von Unaussprechlichen Kulten". Most of the band members, particularly Karl Sanders, admit to being great fans of Lovecraft's work.
  • The band Rotting Christ mentions both Cthulhu and Yog-Sothoth in the album Non Serviam, and R'lyeh in the song "Which Eternal Lie" from the album Necrotical.
  • A group called Talisdream produced a 70-minute CD called Mythos - H.P.Lovecraft's Cthulhu Nightmares in 2003. This was planned as the first part of a musical trilogy, in a style similar to that of Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds. In early 2004, the website registration expired, and few traces of the group or its plans remain. Some copies of the CD, sold only online via PayPal, are still in circulation.
  • There was a black metal parody band called Teen Cthulhu from Washington that has since broken up.
  • The symphonic metal band Therion released a song named "Ctulhu" on their second studio album Beyond Sanctorum (1992). This was arguably their final pure death metal release before their style began to evolve into its present form (although two of the songs, "Symphony Of The Dead" and "Paths" utilize a pair of classical vocalists). There is also a demo version of "Ctulhu" on the 2000 re-release of this album.
  • Samael, a Black Metal band from Switzerland, had an instrumental track named "Rite of Cthulhu" on their album "Worship Him".
  • Electronic music is not at rest, with a Belgian DJ going by the name Cthulhu.
  • There are many filk songs about Cthulhu in which the name is pronounced [kəˈθuːluː].

Role-playing games

  • Call of Cthulhu is the title of a popular role-playing game based on the Cthulhu mythos.
  • The Cthulhu myths were introduced in the role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons in the first edition of the TSR book Deities and Demigods (in 1980) further editions were released without the Cthulhu myths due to copyright issues. In 2002, an edition of Call of Cthulhu was released under the d20 license, an open source rule system compatible with Dungeons and Dragons (ISBN 0786926392).
  • The Horrors of the Z'Bri sourcebook (ISBN 1896776574) for the Tribe 8 game briefly mentions Tct'lu the Ancient who is "slumbering beneath the water, [his] dreams winding into the thoughts of Skkr." The author has confirmed this as a reference to Cthulhu.
  • Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay features the Ruinous Powers, gods of Chaos that are reminiscent of Cthulhu and his associates. WFRP has been described as tricking you into thinking it's D&D, and then turning out to be Call of Cthulhu.

Video games

  • The 3DO console game Alone In The Dark features a hidden book in the library predicting the coming of Cthulhu. After reading the book, the main character is seen contorted and twisted disturbingly.
  • Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth is a computer game by Headfirst Productions and Bethesda Softworks, the makers of the highly praised Morrowind. The game is based on the pen-and-paper role-playing game.
  • Cthulhu, or a very similar monster, appears in the Castlevania video game series, most notably in Castlevania: Symphony of the Night and Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow. Since Konami's rendition of the monster is remarkably similar to Lovecraft's design, it was renamed "Malachi" in the English language versions to avoid copyright infringement. Its name is simply "Evil" in the Japanese versions, while its sister creature "Devil" became "Ctulhu" for the English release.
  • Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem is a psychological thriller/survival horror video game exclusively for the Nintendo GameCube, largely inspired by (but not directly adapting) the works of H. P. Lovecraft. Many images and creatures apparently inspired by Cthulhu appear in later levels, particularly in wall-etchings in an ancient tomb visited repeatedly throughout the game. This creature is not referred to by name and resembles a creature of the Cthulhu Mythos known as Azathoth.
  • The entire Megami Tensei series and its offshoots, most notably Persona 2, draw heavily on Cthulhu and other Lovecraftian creatures for their enemy designs. Cthulhu himself appears as a demon in Shin Megami Tensei II.
  • Pathways Into Darkness, an early FPS/RPG hybrid by Bungie Software for the Macintosh, challenges the player to prevent a dreaming god of chaos from awakening.
  • The Marathon series of games, also by Bungie, makes numerous references to the Cthulhu mythos.
  • Prisoner of Ice and Shadow of the Comet are PC adventure games in the Call of Cthulhu game series that center around the Cthulhu mythos.
  • The PC game Quake uses many Cthulhu-related names for monsters and levels, e.g. Shub-Niggurath as the final level boss.
  • In the PC game Thief, Cthulhu is depicted as a giant statue wearing a white robe. This image appears in the level "The Lost City" which is set in a long forgotten ruin buried deep underground.
  • X-COM: Terror from the Deep has a main adversary with a very similar appearance and origin to Cthulhu. Also, there is a race of aliens named Deep Ones.
  • In the PC PlayStation 2 and Xbox game Max Payne, Cthulhu is one of an assortment of demons and dark gods invoked in a rant by an insane level boss (Jack Lupino).
  • The PlayStation 2 game Shadow Hearts is inspired by the Cthulhu mythos, using such notables as Cthulhu and Nyarlathotep for monster designs.
  • The PC game Pray for Death by LightShock Software is a beat 'em up which features Cthulhu as one of the playable characters.

Television

  • In the Digimon television series, a Digimon resembling Cthulhu (Dragomon) is seen at the end of the episode "His Master Voice".
  • Cthulhu and his cult (along with other mythos references) appear in an episode of the Real Ghostbusters animated series entitled "The Collect Call of Cthulhu".
  • In The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy animated series, episode number 52, "The Prank Call of Cthulu", features a phone of Cthulu which Grim says is the most dangerous phone in the universe, and which Billy hopes to use to avoid being identified by caller ID. Cthulu then enlists Billy and Irwin into a prank calling business, turning the people of Endsville into squid-like horrors. In the episode, Cthulhu appears more anthropomorphic than usual, with scrawny legs and purple skin.
  • In an episode of the Justice League animated series entitled "The Terror Beyond", Superman, Wonder Woman, and Hawkgirl join forces with Dr. Fate, Aquaman, and Solomon Grundy to stop an invasion by strange, alien creatures. Their leader turns out to be a Cthulhu-like being named Ichthultu, and it is revealed that Hawkgirl's people (the Thanagarians) used to worship him centuries ago.
  • In an episode of the Freakazoid! animated series entitled "Statuesque," Waylan Jeepers creates a Medusa Watch that turns Freakazoid's girlfriend, Steff, into a statue, then summons a Cthulu-like creature named Vorn the Unspeakable to aid him in his dastardly plans. Vorn is more anthropomorphic than his Lovecraftian originator, and he exhibits a personality not unlike the average person. He and Jeepers get into several arguments, in which Jeepers calls him squid-face and Vorn ridicules Jeepers' first attempt at a magical watch: one that turned beavers into gold.
  • The character of Illyria from Joss Whedon's television show Angel (TV series) has many parallels to Cthulhu. She was one of the Old Ones; she still has worshipers who wait for her to return; she is beyond good and evil, and humanity is mostly irrelevant to her.

Film and other media

  • The H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society has produced an independent black-and-white silent film titled "The Call of Cthulhu", based closely on Lovecraft's original story. More about the film through IMDB or the HPLHS website.
  • Arkham NW Productions, a Seattle based production company is producing a feature horror film titled Cthulhu loosely based on the short story "Shadow Over Innsmouth". The film stars Jason Cottle, Scott Green, Cara Bouno and Tori Spelling and is scheduled to be released in 2006. More on the movie through imdb.
  • In Joss Whedon's movie Serenity, something very much like Cthulhu makes a token appearance in a Fruity Oaty bar commercial, emerging from an animated woman's cleavage.

Parodies of Cthulhu

Cthulhu has become an icon symbolizing evil in humorous writing and webcomics. If a character resembles Cthulhu, it is a safe bet that the character is evil.

  • In Shivian Montar Bolaris's webcomic "Oh My Gods" Cthulhu makes a few guest appearances.
  • In Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels, the ichor god Bel-Shamharoth is a parody of Cthulhu, complete with cult following and veneration of the number Eight.
  • On the User Friendly-Website, there are a few plot-lines involving Cthulhu and/or other Great Old Ones.
  • In the Mark Rogers fantasy/parody series Samurai Cat, the hero faces "Great K'chu", and later his vengeful brother Bl'syu.
  • In the comic Nothing Nice to Say, Cthulhu is apparently discovered slumbering in the closet of the main characters. He is eventually transformed into a kitten.
  • In the webcomic DnDorks, one of the characters summons Cthulhu, who appears about 3 inches tall in the DM's bathroom.
  • Cthulhu is one of the main characters of Blagaria and its sequel Coffee Shop Cthulhuca.
  • David_Morgan-Mar's Irregular Webcomic! has Cthulhu making several appearances in the "Steve and Terry" storyline.
  • In Michael Poe's webcomic Exploitation Now, Cthulhu appears out of an uncleaned toilet that someone had dumped bad seafood into.
  • In the webcomic Order Of The Stick, a variant of the god Banjo (a hand puppet) is Banjthulu (a Cthulhu hand puppet).
  • In the sci-fi webcomic Schlock Mercenary by Howard Tayler, Cthulhu has joined the Rook, Knight, and Bishop as one of the pieces in chess. It is unclear what the rules for this piece are.
  • Cthulhu was a fictional presidential candidate in the US's 2004 presidential election. The campaign poked fun at the mediocrity of the forerunners in that election, exemplified by the catchphrase: "Cthulhu for President 2004 – Don't Settle for the Lesser Evil!", which was featured on a variety of merchandise.
  • There was an online parody of a Jack Chick tract, "Who Will Be Eaten First?", which featured a message about Cthulhu instead of Christ. It was removed after Chick's lawyers sent a letter to the author. An off-site copy can be viewed here.
  • In the webcomic College Roomies from Hell!!!, Cthulhu appears in an early storyline.
  • In the webcomic Penny Arcade, Cthulhu appears in a Christmas-themed series titled The Last Christmas that chronicles the end of the world.
  • The CDs of The HP Lovecraft Historical Society feature a Lovecraftian Broadway musical entitled A Shoggoth on the Roof and a collection of mythos holiday tunes called A Very Scary Solstice.
  • The bone-collectors of The Hickory Staff are described as being Cthulhu-like.
  • In the online RPG Runescape, a variant of the Karambawan (a commonly eaten octopus) is the Karamthulhu (an evil, sinister octopus).
  • In the webcomic Something Positive the main characters produce a public access TV show called My Neighbor Cthulhu. Several references to Cthulhu also appear throughout the comic.
  • In the Munchkin card game expansion pack Star Munchkin, one card features "The Great Cthulhu" as a monster.
  • Cthulhu often appears in the webcomic Machall as a character or just a symbol (on clothing).
  • On DeviantART, if you go to the prose section of the submission area, chose fiction, and then click the select bubble next to "occult" the category description at the bottom will read "The occult spans everything from witches and runes to UFOs and ESP. Writings that bear the characteristic quality of Cthulu belong here."
  • Cthulhu is the main character of the webcomic Hello Cthulhu, a parody that throws the mythos into the Hello Kitty universe.
  • Cthulhu has several small cameos in the Final Fantasy VII fanfiction titled "Writing of Wrongs". He can be found running the elevator in Wutai, and his presence causes several characters to go temporarily insane.

References

  • Akeley, Henry (a pseudonym?) (September 8). "Cthul--Who?: How Do You Pronounce 'Cthulhu'?". Crypt of Cthulhu. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  • Angell, George Gammell (a pseudonym?) (October 29). "Cthulhu Elsewhere in Lovecraft". Crypt of Cthulhu. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  • Burleson, Donald R. H.P. Lovecraft, A Critical Study, Westport, CT / London, England: Greenwood Press, 1983. ISBN 0-313-23255-5.
  • Harms, Daniel. "Cthulhu" in The Encyclopedia Cthulhiana (2nd ed.), pp.64–7. Chaosium, Inc., 1998. ISBN 1-56882-119-0.
—"Idh-yaa", pp.148. Ibid.
—"Star-spawn of Cthulhu", 283–4. Ibid.
  • Joshi, S.T. and David E. Schultz. An H.P. Lovecraft Encyclopedia, Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2001. ISBN 0-313-31578-7.
  • Lovecraft, Howard P. Selected Letters II, Sauk City, WI: Arkham House, 1968. ISBN 0-870-54029-7.
  • Pearsall, Anthony B. The Lovecraft Lexicon (1st ed.), Tempe, AZ: New Falcon Pub., 2005. ISBN 1-561-84129-3.

Notes

  1. ^ Akeley, "Cthul--Who?: How Do You Pronounce 'Cthulhu'?".
  2. ^ Lovecraft suggested that "the first syllable [of Khlul'-hloo is] pronounced gutturally and very thickly. The u is about like that in full; and the first syllable is not unlike klul in sound, hence the h represents the gutteral thickness." (Pearsall, "CTHULHU", The Lovecraft Lexicon, pp. 301.)
  3. ^ Although commonly referred to as "he", Cthulhu's gender is never defined and is probably an absurd definition to give to "outre" creatures such as the Great Old Ones. However, there is the impression that another being in the mythos, Shub-Niggurath, an Outer God, has distinct female qualities due to her presumed fecundity.
  4. ^ Derleth was probably inspired by Lovecraft's seminal tale to call his mythology the "Cthulhu mythos"; though Lovecraft himself (had he heard it) would likely never have approved. (Burleson, H.P. Lovecraft, A Critical Study, pp. 8.)
  5. ^ Angell, "Cthulhu Elsewhere in Lovecraft".
  6. ^ It is sometimes claimed that Cthulhu corresponds to a monster or god in Sumerian mythology named "Kutulu" (or sometimes "Cuthalu"). This is not true. "Kutulu" comes from Simon's Necronomicon, which is a fiction based loosely on Sumerian mythology and other things.
  7. ^ S.T. Joshi & David E. Schultz, An H.P. Lovecraft Encyclopedia, pp. 51.
  8. ^ H.P. Lovecraft, Selected Letters II, pp. 150.
  9. ^ Ghatanothoa first appeared in Hazel Heald's short story "Out of the Aeons"—a story ghostwritten by Lovecraft (q.v.). Carter later included the deity in his Xothic legend cycle, which connected Ghatanothoa to Cthulhu, though no such relation appears in the original Heald story. It is also worth noting that the mythos links Ghatanothoa to the energy beings known as the Lloigor.

The lighter side of Cthulhu

On-line short stories

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