Cosmogony

=== Mythology ===
{{Main|Creation myth}}
[[File:Sumerian creation myth.jpg|thumb|The [[Library of Ashurbanipal|Sumerian tablet]] containing parts of the [[Sumerian creation myth|Eridu Genesis]]]]

In mythology, [[Creation myth|creation]] or cosmogonic myths are narratives describing the beginning of the [[universe]] or [[cosmos]].

Some methods of the creation of the universe in mythology include:

* the will or action of a [[Deity|supreme being]] or beings, 
* the process of [[metamorphosis]], 
* the copulation of female and male [[Deity|deities]],
* from [[Chaos (cosmogony)|chaos]],
* or via a [[World egg|cosmic egg]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Long |first=Charles |title=Creation Myth |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/creation-myth#ref1239147 |access-date=20 April 2019 |website=Encyclopedia Britannica}}</ref>

Creation myths may be [[Etiological myth|etiological]], attempting to provide explanations for the origin of the universe. For instance, [[Sumerian creation myth|Eridu Genesis]], the oldest known creation myth, contains an account of the creation of the world in which the universe was created out of a primeval sea ([[Abzu]]).<ref>{{Cite web |date=20 July 1998 |title=Eridu Genesis Mesopotamia Epic |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Eridu-Genesis |access-date=30 April 2019 |website=Encyclopaedia Britannica |publisher=Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Morris |first=Charles |date=1897 |title=The Primeval Ocean |journal=Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia |volume=49 |pages=12–17 |jstor=4062253}}</ref> Creation myths vary, but they may share similar [[Deity|deities]] or [[symbol]]s. For instance, the ruler of the gods in [[Greek mythology]], [[Zeus]], is similar to the ruler of the gods in [[Roman mythology]], [[Jupiter (mythology)|Jupiter]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last1=Thury |first1=Eva |title=Introduction to Mythology Contemporary Approaches to Classical and World Myths, 4th ed. |last2=Devinney |first2=Margaret |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2017 |location=Madison Avenue, New York |pages=4, 187}}</ref> Another example is the ruler of the gods in Tagalog mythology, [[Bathala]], who is similar to various rulers of certain pantheons within [[Philippine mythology]] such as the Bisaya's [[Philippine mythology|Kaptan]].<ref>Garverza, J. K. (2014). The Myths of the Philippines. University of the Philippines.</ref><ref>Jocano, F. L. (1969). Philippine Mythology. Quezon City: Capitol Publishing House Inc.</ref>

[[File:Serer cosmogony - representation of the universe.jpg| thumb| 
The representation of the Universe as rooted in Serer religion and Cosmogony]]