Mu (mythical lost continent) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Mu
Map of Mu by James Churchward
Lost Continent of Mu Motherland of Men location
Created by	Augustus Le Plongeon
Genre	Pseudoscience
Type	Hypothetical lost continent

Mu is a legendary "lost continent" that some people believe once existed. It was first talked about by Augustus Le Plongeon, who thought it was like the famous lost city of Atlantis. Later, a writer named James Churchward said Mu was a huge land in the Pacific Ocean that sank long ago. Scientists, especially geologists, say there is no real proof that Mu or Atlantis ever existed. They explain that continents cannot sink or disappear quickly as these stories suggest.

Exploring the Idea of Mu

Augustus Le Plongeon's Discovery

The idea of a "Land of Mu" began with a British-American explorer named Augustus Le Plongeon (1825–1908). He studied ancient Maya ruins in Yucatán, Mexico. Le Plongeon believed he had translated old Maya texts, including the sacred book Popol Vuh.

He claimed these texts showed that the Maya civilization was even older than those in Greece and Egypt. He also said they told a story of an even older continent. Le Plongeon got the name "Mu" from another researcher, Charles Étienne Brasseur de Bourbourg. Brasseur had misread an ancient Maya book, thinking a word meant a land lost in a disaster.

Le Plongeon connected this lost land to Atlantis. He believed it was a continent that once existed in the Atlantic Ocean. He wrote that this "Land of Mu" was destroyed by volcanoes and earthquakes.

James Churchward and the Pacific Continent

Map of the mythical lost continent of Mu in 'Books of the Golden Age' by James Churchward, published in 1927.

Churchward's map showing how he thought Mu refugees spread out after the cataclysm.

The idea of Mu as a lost continent in the Pacific Ocean became very popular thanks to James Churchward (1851–1936). He wrote several books about it, starting with Lost Continent of Mu, the Motherland of Man (1926). He also wrote The Children of Mu (1931) and The Sacred Symbols of Mu (1933).

Churchward claimed that when he was a soldier in India, he met a wise temple priest. This priest supposedly showed him ancient clay tablets written in a forgotten language. Churchward said he learned this language and translated the tablets.

These tablets, along with others found in Mexico, supposedly told the story of Mu. Churchward believed Mu was the first place where humans appeared. He said it was the home of an advanced civilization called the Naacal.

Life on the Continent of Mu

Churchward described Mu as a highly developed place that existed between 50,000 and 12,000 years ago. He claimed it was home to a diverse population and was more advanced than our world in many ways. At its peak, Mu supposedly had 64 million people, seven major cities, and colonies across other continents.

He said Mu was located in the Pacific Ocean. It stretched from the Marianas Islands to Easter Island and from Hawaii to Mangaia. This area was larger than South America. Churchward imagined Mu as a flat land with huge plains, rivers, hills, and bays.

The Destruction of Mu

According to Churchward's translations, Mu was lifted above the sea by underground volcanic gases. But then, it was destroyed "in almost a single night." A series of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions caused the land to break apart. It then sank into a "great abyss of fire" and was covered by the ocean.

Churchward believed Mu was the origin of many great ancient civilizations. These included Egypt, Greece, Central America, India, and Easter Island. He thought Mu was also the source of ancient megalithic architecture, like huge stone structures.

He pointed to symbols found around the world as proof. He saw common themes of birds, the Earth and sky, and especially the Sun. Churchward claimed the king of Mu was named Ra, connecting it to the Egyptian sun god, Ra. He also linked it to the Rapa Nui word for Sun, ra’a.

Churchward also connected the giant moai statues on Easter Island to Mu. He said the stone hats (pukao) on top of the statues represented the Sun. He believed the platforms (ahu) were meant for shipping stones to other parts of Mu.

Other Ideas of Lost Continents

John Newbrough's Pan

In 1882, a book called Oahspe: A New Bible by John Newbrough showed a map of Earth before a great flood. It included an unknown continent in the Northern Pacific called Pan. Some people link Pan and Mu as the same mythical continent because both were said to be in the Pacific. Newbrough claimed Pan disappeared 24,000 years ago.

Louis Jacolliot's Rutas

Louis Jacolliot was a French lawyer and writer who studied ancient Sanskrit texts. In his 1874 book, he wrote about a lost land called Rutas. Ancient sources placed Rutas in the Indian Ocean, but Jacolliot moved it to the Pacific. He connected it to the stories of Atlantis.

Modern Interest in Mu

Underwater structures near Yonaguni, Japan, which some claim are remnants of Mu.

In the 1930s, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of modern Turkey, showed interest in Churchward's ideas. He wondered if Mu could be the original home of the Turks. However, his interest was mainly about exploring the claims, not fully believing them.

More recently, a scientist named Masaaki Kimura has suggested that certain underwater structures near Yonaguni Island, Japan, might be ruins of Mu. These structures are popularly known as the Yonaguni Monument. However, most geologists believe these are natural rock formations.

See also