The name "Brother Jonathan" likely derives from Biblical phrasing (the phrase from 2 Samuel 1:26 is cited in sources) and dates back at least to the 17th century. It was used by Royalists and British officers as a term for Puritans/roundheads during the English Civil War and later applied to colonial New Englanders. Over the late 18th and 19th centuries the figure was reworked in American print culture as an archetypal Yankee and regional emblem; by the late 19th century Uncle Sam had largely supplanted Brother Jonathan as the dominant national personification.
In editorial cartoons and patriotic posters Brother Jonathan is shown as an archetypal New Englander whose clothing signals thrift and Yankee character: versions include striped trousers, a somber black coat, and a stove‑pipe hat, or a portrayal with "too‑short pants, too‑tight waistcoat and old‑fashioned style" emphasizing thrift and economy of means. Outside New England he is lampooned as a comic, long‑winded figure; inside New England he can appear as an enterprising businessman. These appearances are theatrical and emblematic, deployed by illustrators and writers to communicate regional traits.
As a personification and stock character Brother Jonathan's 'abilities' are rhetorical and social: he can be mobilized in newspapers, novels, cartoons, and political discourse to embody and critique New England manners (thrift, acquisitiveness, enterprise), to serve as a regional self‑identifier for Yankees and sailors, and to stand in for national or economic commentary. Sources treat these functions as emblematic and discursive rather than supernatural action.
Brokkr
Brokkr is a dwarf and master smith's assistant in Norse mythic tradition, famed for operating the bellows while his brother (Eitri/Sindri) performed magical forging in the contest that produced Mjölnir, Draupnir, and Gullinbursti. He is best known from the Skáldskaparmál episode in which Loki, as a gadfly, tries to disrupt his bellows work and Brokkr later sews Loki's lips shut when Loki evades a wager.
Bromius
Bromius (Ancient Greek: Βρόμιος) is an epithet and identity-state of the god Dionysus/Bacchus in ancient Greek religion, signifying 'noisy', 'roaring', or 'boisterous'. In some modern readings of fragmentary Orphic material (notably summaries of the Derveni papyrus), Bromius is discussed by scholarship as a name applied to a divine figure placed early in an alternative cosmogony.
Bronze Tiger
Bronze Tiger (Benjamin 'Ben' Turner) is a fictional DC Comics character: an African-American, world-class martial artist, operative, and recurring figure who has served as assassin, mercenary, instructor, and member/second-in-command of Amanda Waller's Suicide Squad. Created in the Bronze Age of comics, his history includes training under O-Sensei, capture and brainwashing by the League of Assassins, and later rehabilitation and multimedia adaptations.
Brook horse
No attested folkloric entity called 'Brook horse' appears in the supplied sources. The corpus contains a general note on Germanic water-spirits (nixie family) and several toponymic references to brooks and places named with 'Horse' or 'Brook'; any linking of these materials into a distinct 'Brook horse' folk-entity is not documented in the provided research notes.
Broteas
Broteas (Ancient Greek: Βροτέας, lit. 'mortal' or 'man') is a mythic human figure in Greek tradition, presented as a son of Tantalus and member of that cursed house. He is credited in local tradition with carving the ancient rock relief of the Great Mother (Cybele) on Mount Sipylus near Magnesia ad Sipylum and is also variously narrated as a hunter punished by Artemis or listed among the Lapiths slain in the Lapith–centaur battle.
Brother Blood (Sebastian Blood mantle)
A recurring fictional cult-leader mantle in DC Comics borne by multiple individuals (notably men named Sebastian Blood and later incarnations) who lead the Church/Cult of Blood; the role combines political-theocratic leadership, ritual relics, and supernatural powers tied to lineage and artifacts.
Brotherhood of Evil
A recurring supervillain organization in DC Comics, introduced in Doom Patrol #86 (1964). Led by the Brain and frequently allied with Monsieur Mallah and other powered operatives, the Brotherhood functions as an enduring antagonist faction opposing the Doom Patrol, New Teen Titans, and occasionally the Justice League.
Brotherhood of Mutants
A recurring organized team of superpowered mutants in Marvel Comics who oppose the X-Men and pursue mutant-centered political and militant goals. Formed in the 1960s and reconstituted in multiple incarnations, the Brotherhood ranges from a band of supervillains to a political/militant movement advocating mutant supremacy.
Brown Lady of Raynham Hall
A recurring house-ghost reported at Raynham Hall in Norfolk, England, traditionally identified with Dorothy Walpole and famed for a claimed 1936 photograph of a female apparition on the main staircase. Accounts range from 19th-century eyewitness reports to 20th-century photographic claims; the case has been subject to later re-examination and debate.
Brown Man of the Muirs
A moorland guardian figure from Anglo-Scottish Border folklore. In a field account he appears as a solitary dwarf who reproves hunters and claims custodianship of upland animals; in later fairy-tale literature he appears as (or is related to) a tribe—the Brown Men of the Moors and Mountains—associated with stronger, more violent motifs and a compulsion-incantation.
Brown Mountain lights
A long‑reported series of unexplained nocturnal lights observed near Brown Mountain in Burke County, North Carolina. Local storytelling treats them as mysterious 'ghost lights,' while early 20th‑century USGS investigations and later skeptical accounts correlated many sightings with ordinary light sources such as locomotive and automobile headlights and brush fires.
Brownie
A household spirit from Scottish and related British traditions that performs nocturnal domestic labour in return for small offerings left by the hearth. Brownies are protective, place-tied domestic beings who work while humans sleep and will depart or become mischievous if offended.
Community Record
- [1]Brother Jonathan. Wikipedia, 'Brother Jonathan' (accessed via provided research notes)wiki
- [2]Brother Jonathan (Wikidata). Wikidata entry Q990782 (noted in research notes; contains limited/unrelated material about a vessel)other