Foundlings and Feral Children

Andal

In Tamil Nadu tradition, Andal was a girl (by some considered to be a manifestation of the goddess Bhoodevi) found under a tulsi bush in the flower garden of the temple of Vishnu at Srivill... [more]

Genet, Jean

Genet's early life seems shrouded in confusion. The three sources looked at present three different stories: One gives his birthdate as 19 December, that he was abandoned by his parents... [more]

McNab, Andy

"McNab" was a foundling, left on the steps of Guy's Hospital in a carrier bag. He was fostered throughout his childhood and entered the army after leaving school early, a spell of... [more]

Maui

Maui was miscarried by his mother, the goddess Taranga, and abandoned for dead. She cut off her hair, wrapped the baby in it (hence the epithet Tiki Tiki a Taranga: Taranga's Topknot), and ... [more]

Michener, James Albert

Michener was a foundling, raised in Bucks County, Pennsylvania by a widow who took in a number of such children. There was no father figure in the home and they lived in extreme poverty, al... [more]

Nebuchadnezzar II

Nebuchadnezzar was King of Babylon from 605 to 562 BCE, succeeding his father, Nabopolassar. It was he who destroyed Jerusalem in 586 and forced the Jews into captivity in Babylon. He was a... [more]

Oedipus

Oedipus was the son of King Laius of Thebes and Queen Jocasta. There was a prophecy that Laius would be killed by his own son, so the baby was abandoned on a mountainside to die. (This was ... [more]

Rabbit Boy

Like Blood Clot Boy, Rabbit Boy arose from a blood clot. This time the clot was found by a rabbit, who kicked it around in play. This motion caused the clot to transform itself into a littl... [more]

Romulus and Remus

These were twin sons of Mars and Rhea Silvia. Their grandfather, Numitor, was the king of Alba Longa and was deposed by his younger brother, Amulius, who ordered the twins to be thrown into... [more]

Francisco, Peter

Francisco was found abandoned on the docks of Hopewell, Virginia, in 1765, aged about five. He could speak no English and after a week he was taken in by the wealthy judge Anthony Wilson, a... [more]