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The Yeti is the Western name given to a large primate-like creature reported to live in the Himalayas. It is most likely derived from yettin, transliterated from the Old English geottin (a term used in the poem Beowulf to describe Grendel), which itself was a variant of yotun from the Norse jotun (pronounced "yo-tun"). It would therefore be closely related to the English words ent and ettin, both of which describe giant, usually troll-like beings.
Most mainstream scientists and experts consider current evidence of the Yeti's actuality unpersuasive, and the result of hoaxes, legend or misidentification of mundane creatures. Still, the Yeti remains one of the most famous creatures in cryptozoology.
Certain physical evidence, however, such as tracks and nests have suggested to some that Yeti is an unknown primate, a remnant hominid, or a type of bear.
The Yeti is sometimes referred to as the "Abominable Snowman." This name was popularized by the mainstream press after a reporter related a mistranslation of a Nepali name for the Yeti. "Migoi" is another name for such a creature.
The term yeti is often used to describe a number of very different reported creatures:
The term is also often used to refer to reported ape-like creatures that fits any of these descriptions, e.g. the "Scottish yeti" with reference to the fear liath.
Recently, Henry Gee, editor of the prestigious Nature, writes that "The discovery that Homo floresiensis survived until so very recently, in geological terms, makes it more likely that stories of other mythical, human-like creatures such as Yetis are founded on grains of truth....Now, cryptozoology, the study of such fabulous creatures, can come in from the cold." [1] (http://www.nature.com/news/2004/041025/full/041025-2.html)
History Occasional reports of an ape-like creature in the Himalayas began filtering to the west in the 1800s, mainly by British explorers. [2] (http://www.anomalyinfo.com/articles/sa00072.shtml) Perhaps the first formal record of reported Yeti footprints was in 1889's Among the Himalayas, by L.A. Wadell. [3] (http://www.cryptozoology.com/cryptids/yeti.php) Waddell reports his native guides described the large apelike creature that left the prints; he concluded the prints were a bear's.
The frequency of reports increased in the early 20th century, when westerners began making determined attempts to climb the many mountains in the area and sometimes reported seeing odd creatures or strange tracks. [4] (http://www.pbs.org/edens/bhutan/a_migo.htm). In 1942, after escaping from a Siberian prison, Slavomir Rawicz and his companions reported seeing two large, apelike creatures while crossing the Himalayas. They claim to have observed the creatures for several hours from a distance of about 100 meters (300 feet).
Western interest in the Abominable Snowman peaked dramatically in the 1950s. While attempting to scale Mount Everest in 1951, Eric Shipton took photographs of a number of large prints in the snow, at about 6,000 meters (20,000 feet) above sea level. These photos have been subject to intense study and debate: Some argue they are the best evidence of Yeti's reality; others disagree, and think the prints are a mundane creature's, distorted and enlarged by the melting snow.
In 1953, Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay reported seeing large footprints while scaling Mount Everest.
Beginning in 1957, Tom Slick, an American who'd made a fortune in oil, funded a few missions to investigate Yeti reports.
In 1959, actor Jimmy Stewart, while visiting India, reportedly smuggled the remains of a supposed Yeti — the so-called Pangboche Hand — by hiding them in his luggage when he flew from India to London. [5] (http://www.anomalist.com/milestones/stewart.html)
Yeti accounts have perhaps received less attention in recent decades, but as recently as 1998, Craig Calonica reported seeing two apelike, bipedal creatures on Everest.
Analyses - Many cryptozoologists, after careful examinations of eye-witness reports and statistical evidence, have concluded that Yeti reports are misidentification of mundane creatures. Well-financed expeditions have failed to turn up any positive evidence of its existence, although a sample of hair retrieved from one expedition was reportedly confirmed as belonging to an unknown ape.
- Enthusiasts speculate that these reported creatures could be present-day specimens of the extinct giant ape Gigantopithecus, as the only evidence -- other than teeth -- recovered from Gigantopithecus (its jawbone) indicates a skull rested upon a vertical spinal column (as in hominids and other bipedal apes such as Oreopithecus). However, while the Yeti is usually described as a bipedal, most scientists feel that Gigantopithicus was probably quadrupedal, and so massive that unless it evolved specifically as a bipedal ape (like Oreopithecus and the hominids) upright walking would have been even more difficult for the now extinct primate than it is for its extant quadrupedal relative, the Orangutan. Without evidence to support it, this suggestion must be regarded as highly speculative.
- Although there is no firm evidence to support Yeti reports, some have noted the Himalayas are remote and sparsely populated, and that there is perhaps more room for the Yeti's actuality than with Bigfoot in North America.
The Yeti and popular culture With the many Yeti reports in the 1950s the creature crossed-over into popular culture. Mel Blanc lent his talent to voicing a bumbling, lovelorn Abominable Snowman on a few Warner Brothers cartoons from the era.
The long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who featured robotic Yeti in the serials The Abominable Snowmen and The Web of Fear and its 20th anniversary special The Five Doctors.
An abominable snowman called Bumbles was the villain in the perennial 1964 Rankin-Bass Christmas television special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
In 1978, Disneyland added Audio-Animatronic yetis to its Matterhorn Bobsleds attraction.
The 2001 Disney/Pixar film Monsters, Inc. featured an Abominable Snowman voiced by John Ratzenberger.
In 2005, Walt Disney World will open Expedition Everest in Animal Kingdom, which will be a roller coaster featuring animatronic Yetis.
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