Category: Science | Title: Is the Kraken an Octopus? Facts, Biology, and Mythology Explained | Tag: Marine Biology | Meta Description: Is the kraken an octopus? This article provides a direct, factual breakdown of the kraken's origins, its biological links to octopuses and squids, and its place in modern science and mythology...
Is the Kraken an Octopus or a Different Creature?
The kraken is not classified as an octopus in modern marine biology. It is a legendary sea monster from Norse mythology, often depicted as a giant cephalopod. The term is now used colloquially to describe large, mysterious cephalopods, but it does not refer to a single scientific species. The closest real-world biological relatives are giant squid and colossal squid, which belong to the order Teuthida, while octopuses belong to the order Octopoda. These are distinct branches within the class Cephalopoda.
Historical accounts describe the kraken as a massive creature capable of dragging ships underwater. Early naturalists, including Erik Pontoppidan in the 18th century, linked these tales to giant squid. The giant squid, Architeuthis dux, can reach lengths of 12 to 13 meters, including tentacles, dwarfing the largest octopus species. The colossal squid, Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni, is even heavier, with estimates up to 500 kilograms. These real animals likely inspired the kraken legend, but they are not octopuses.
What Is the Biological Classification of the Kraken?
In taxonomy, the kraken has no official scientific name because it is a mythological construct. If researchers were to classify the creature based on historical descriptions, it would fall under Cephalopoda, the same class as octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish. Within that class, the kraken's attributes align more closely with the superorder Decapodiformes, which includes squid, than with the order Octopoda. The giant Pacific octopus, Enteroctopus dofleini, is the largest octopus species, with an arm span of about 4.3 meters and a weight of around 15 kilograms.
By contrast, the giant squid's mantle length can exceed 2 meters, and its total length, including tentacles, can surpass 13 meters. The colossal squid has the largest eyes in the animal kingdom, measuring up to 27 centimeters in diameter. These physical differences highlight why the kraken, as a ship-sinking leviathan, maps more closely to giant squid than to octopuses. The first complete giant squid specimen was filmed in its natural habitat in 2012, a milestone documented by researchers and reported by Forbes.
What Is the Origin of the Kraken Myth?
The kraken myth originates from Norse folklore, with the earliest written descriptions appearing in the 13th-century Icelandic saga Örvar-Oddr. The creature was later popularized in European natural history texts, where it was often described as a crab-like or octopus-like beast. Carl Linnaeus, the father of modern taxonomy, included a theoretical species called Microcosmus marinus in his Systema Naturae, which some scholars believe referenced the kraken, though it was never confirmed as a real animal.
The myth persisted through maritime culture, with sailors reporting massive tentacles and whirlpools attributed to the creature. These accounts were often exaggerated or misidentified sightings of giant squid. The giant squid remained largely a mystery to science until the late 19th century, when the first complete specimens washed ashore. In 2004, Japanese researchers captured the first photographs of a live giant squid in the wild, and in 2012, a team led by Edith Widder filmed the first video of a live giant squid in the deep ocean, as noted by National Geographic.