9. WORLD - The Moon Rabbit or Moon Hare is part of the folklore of various cultures in which part of the world?
From Quiz A Hare-Raising Quiz
Answer:
East Asian (Chinese, Japanese, etc.)
In East Asian folklore, rather than a Man on the Moon, there is a Moon Rabbit or Moon Hare, pounding with a mortar and pestle. The Moon Hare originated in ancient Chinese folklore and spread throughout the Far East -- and it would have been a hare originally, not a rabbit, because rabbits were not introduced into the Far East until the development of the Silk Road network of trade routes. During the Han Dynasty, they called the mythical creature the Jade Hare, and sometimes "Jade Hare" served as a synonym for the Moon itself. In modern times the Moon Hare or nowadays Moon Rabbit remains an important part of East Asian culture, not just in China but throughout Japan, Vietnam, Myanmar, etc. For example, the Japanese manga character Sailor Moon's alternate name is Usagi Tsukino, a play on "Tsuki no usagi", which means "Moon Rabbit" in Japanese. Moon Rabbit characters appear in comics in Korea and Vietnam as well. The Chinese named their lunar rover Yutu, meaning Jade Rabbit, which landed on the Moon in 2013.
The Moon Rabbit has also been a part of Native American folklore, separate and apart from the Asian legends. (Cottontail rabbits are indigenous to North America.) Ancient Mayan art depicts a rabbit companion of the Moon Goddess. In Aztec mythology, the god Quetzalcoatl put the image of a rabbit on the moon to honor her for saving his life. The Cree also have a tale of a rabbit who wanted to ride the Moon and was taken there by a crane.