Ogres: The fictional creatures known for cannibalism 

We have all grown up reading fables and fairy tales, haven’t we? While some feature sweet-natured fairies that hold magic wands and spread pixie dust (such as in Cinderella), there are others that exhibit huge and hideous looking monsters that often attack and even feed on human beings (such as in Sleeping Beauty and The Selfish Giant). One mythical monster that many of you are aware of, thanks to the movie franchise Shrek, is ogre. These creatures aren’t for real though. Ogres have existed in fictions and mythologies over the course of history. Read on to know more about them.  

What do ogres look like? 
Ogre (female term is ogress) has been described in myths and pop culture in varied ways. However, the structure of ogres has more or less similar in most depictions. These are strong, gigantic and human-like creatures, with huge and tall physique, disproportionately large head, unusually coloured skin and lots of hair. As for their nature, they are both dim-witted and unpleasant and are known to be voracious eaters who enjoy feeding on ordinary humans, especially infants and children.  

Tracing the origin of the term ogre 
There are more than one origin stories surrounding the name ogre. Some believe that the word is French (derived from Latin ’orcus’ meaning ‘god who feeds on human flesh’), while others deem it as Hungarian. Another popular version says that ogre comes from the Italian ‘orco’ meaning demon. Then there are the Greeks who are certain that ogre refers to Greek mythical giants such as the Gog (also called Magor). Gog was deemed as the personified demon of oaths capable of inflicting punishment upon perjurers. The word could have also been derived from the ancient Greek river god named Oiagros.   

Interestingly, experts believe that ogres have been around since the time of prehistoric humans such as the Neanderthals who roamed around the Earth. In fact, they have been grouped with other beastly creatures such as giants, cyclops and trolls who prefer living in woodlands, caves, on mountain tops and under the bridge and and do not like humans.  

Ogre in pop culture 
Apart from the Shrek movie franchise where ogre is the eponymous protagonist, this monstrous creature widely appears throughout pop culture, and video games too. For instance, they featured as antagonists in the 1996 video game Quake, as well as the Warhammer series. They can also be seen in the 2004 film Ella Enchanted and the animated TV series Disney’s Adventures of Gummi Bears.  

Apart from these, ogres also made appearances in the literary works of fantasy authors such as J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis.