Breast-shaped hill

A breast-shaped hill in Western Sahara

There is an ancient Iberian archaeological site beneath the Mola Murada, a breast-shaped hill in the Moles de Xert, Spain.

A breast-shaped hill is a hill that resembles the shape of a breast. Some such hills are named "pap", an archaic word for the breast or nipple of a woman, particularly those with a small hilltop protuberance. ^[1] Such anthropomorphic geographic features are found in different parts of the world, and in some traditional cultures, they were once revered as the attributes of the Mother Goddess, such as the Paps of Anu, named after Anu, an important female deity of pre-Christian Ireland. ^[2]

Overview

The Mamelon Central, formed by the Bory and Dolomieu craters, Piton de la Fournaise, on 28 brumaire 1801. Drawing by Jean-Baptiste Bory de Saint-Vincent.

The name Mamucium that gave origin to the name of the city of Manchester is thought to derive from a Celtic language name meaning "breast-shaped hill", referring to the sandstone bluff on which the fort stood; this later evolved into the name Manchester. ^{[3] [4]}

Breast-shaped hills are often connected with local ancestral veneration of the breast as a symbol of fertility and well-being. It is not uncommon for very old archaeological sites to be located in or below such hills, as on Samson, Isles of Scilly, where there are large ancient burial grounds both on the North Hill and South Hill, ^{[5] [6]} or Burrén and Burrena, Aragon, Spain, where two Iron Age Urnfield culture archaeological sites lie beneath the hills. ^[7]

The "Breasts of Aphrodite" in Mykonos, Greece.

Many of the myths surrounding these mountains are ancient and enduring and some have been recorded in the oral literature or written texts; for example, in an unspecified location in Asia, there was a mountain known as "Breast Mountain" with a cave in which the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma (Da Mo) spent a long time in meditation. ^[8]

Travelers and cartographers in colonial times often changed the ancestral names of such hills. The mountain known to the Indigenous Australian people as Didhol or Dithol (Woman's Breast) was renamed Pigeon House Mountain by Captain James Cook at the time of his exploration of Australia's eastern coast in 1770. ^[9]

Mamelon (from French "nipple") is a French name for a breast-shaped hillock. ^[10] Fort Mamelon was a famous hillock fortified by the Russians and captured by the French as part of the Siege of Sevastopol during the Crimean War of the 1850s. The word mamelon is also used in volcanology to describe a particular rock formation of volcanic origin. The term was coined by the French explorer and naturalist Jean Baptiste Bory de Saint-Vincent. ^[11]

Africa

The thelarchic-shaped Naasa Hablood in Somaliland (1896)

View of one of the Trois Mamelles in Mauritius. Drawing from page 121 of Atlas by Jacques-Gérard Milbert.

African Great Lakes

• Mount Elgon on the Uganda-Kenya border
• Sweet Sixteen, Matthews Range (Ldoinyo Lenkiyio), Laikipia district, Rift Valley Province, northern Kenya. ^[12]

Horn of Africa

• Naasa Hablood in Somaliland. ^[1]

Indian Ocean

• Trois Mamelles mountains in the west of Mauritius ^[1]
• Mamelles Island, Seychelles ^[1]

Jabal al-Nahdain in Sana’a, Yemen

North Africa

• Jebel Toubkal in the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. ^[1]

Southern Africa

• Omatako Mountain south-west of Otjiwarongo in Namibia
• Sheba's Breasts, Eswatini; these formations inspired British writer H. Rider Haggard, who included them in his novel King Solomon's Mines . ^[13]
• Three Sisters in the Northern Cape, South Africa

West Africa

• Breast Mountain in Kyabobo National Park, Ghana. ^[1]
• Deux Mamelles, Pointe des Almadies, Cap-Vert, Senegal ^[14]

Antarctica

• Una Peaks, long known as Una's Tits colloquially, at the entrance to the Lemaire Channel, Graham Land
• Nipple Peak, Palmer Archipelago, Graham Land
• Hemus Peak, Livingston Island, South Shetland Islands

Asia

Khao Nom Nang in Western Thailand.

Cambodia

• Sroh-Plom Mountain, "Virtuous Woman's Breast Mountain", ^[1] located close to Senmonorom, Senmonorom District, Mondulkiri Province, Cambodia. ^[15]

China

• Dazeshan Mountain in Shandong Province
• Wuyi Mountain in Fujian Province
• Twin Breasts Peak in Tianzhu Mountain in Anhui Province
• Qianling Mausoleum near Xian, their shape is man-made
• Two Breast Peaks (Chinese :雙乳峰):

• two mountains in Zhenfeng County, Guizhou Province
• two peaks of Golden Needle Mountain (Chinese :雙乳峰) in Taimali Township, Taitung County, Taiwan

• Rushan (meaning "Breast Mountain") is a mountain in Weihai, Shandong Province, China.

Japan

• Mount Tsukuba with double peaks, one considered male (Nantai-san) and one female (Nyotai-san). ^[1]

Malaysia

• Hills on Dayang Bunting Island, Langkawi, named for their supposed resemblance to a pregnant maiden.

Middle East

• Jabal Al Nahdain is a set of hills in the middle of Sana’a, Yemen. It was on the property of the Presidential Palace and is used as a weapons cache.
• Tell Sader al-Arus (translation from Arabic: "Breast of the bride") is a mountain in the Golan Heights.

Philippines

Chocolate Hills in Bohol, Philippines

• Chocolate Hills, more than a thousand unusual geological formations in Bohol. A popular tourist destination named for their brown colour in the summer.
• Ilihan Hill, "Watery Breast", a pilgrimage site about four kilometres from Jagna, Bohol
• Kagmasuso, among other breast-shaped hills in San Andres, Catanduanes ^[16]
• Mount Susong Dalaga (literally "Maiden's Breasts Mountain") is the name of several peaks in the Philippines, including:

• Mount Susong Dalaga, Abra de Ilog, Occidental Mindoro ^[17]
• Mount Susong Dalaga (also known as Breast Peak) in Tampakan, South Cotabato
• Susong Dalaga Peak of Mount Batolusong, Tanay, Rizal
• Manabu Peak (also known as Mount Dalaga or Mount Susong Dalaga) of the Malepunyo Mountain Range between the provinces of Batangas, Laguna, and Quezon
• Mount Tagapo (also known as Mount Susong Dalaga), Talim Island, Rizal two huge conical hills that are the highest peaks of Talim Island.

• Musuan Peak, an active volcano in Maramag, Bukidnon

Thailand

• Doi Phu Nom (Thai : ดอยภูนม), Phayao Province, a breast-shaped hill rising in an area of grassland of the Phi Pan Nam Range. ^[18]
• Khao Nom (Thai : เขานม), was one of the former names of Khanom, a district of Nakhon Si Thammarat Province, due to the surrounding mountains. ^[19]
• Khao Nom Nang, a hill at Huai Krachao, Kanchanaburi. 14°18′00″N99°43′00″E / 14.30000°N 99.71667°E / 14.30000; 99.71667
• Khao Nom Nang, (Thai : เขานมนาง), a hill north of Pak Phraek, Kanchanaburi. 14°05′00″N99°34′00″E / 14.08333°N 99.56667°E / 14.08333; 99.56667
• Khao Nom Nang, a hill between Nong Pet and Chong Sadao, Kanchanaburi. 14°21′02″N99°12′53″E / 14.35056°N 99.21472°E / 14.35056; 99.21472
• Khao Nom Nang, an isolated hill in Khok Samae San, Lopburi. 15°19′00″N100°51′00″E / 15.31667°N 100.85000°E / 15.31667; 100.85000
• Khao Nom Nang, an isolated large hill in Khao Kala, Nakhon Sawan Province. 15°34′00″N100°17′00″E / 15.56667°N 100.28333°E / 15.56667; 100.28333
• Khao Nom Nang, the name of two hills west of Doeng Bang Nam Buat, Suphan Buri. 14°51′00″N100°04′00″E / 14.85000°N 100.06667°E / 14.85000; 100.06667
• Khao Nom Sao (Thai : เขานมสาว, lit.  'female breast mountain'), a mountain located in Ranong Province, Thailand.
• Khao Nom Sao, a round hill east of Phet Kasem road in Prachuap Khiri Khan Province. 10°59′00″N99°22′00″E / 10.98333°N 99.36667°E / 10.98333; 99.36667
• Khao Nom Sao, a mountain in Chumphon Province. 09°46′00″N98°43′01″E / 9.76667°N 98.71694°E / 9.76667; 98.71694
• Khao Nom Sao, a hill in Phang Nga Province, part of a greater mountain system. 08°58′00″N98°28′00″E / 8.96667°N 98.46667°E / 8.96667; 98.46667
• Khao Nom Wang (Thai : เขานมวังก), a small hill just east of the main road at Phanom Wang, Khuan Khanun District, also known as Khao Phanom Wang, Phatthalung Province. 07°40′58″N100°01′01″E / 7.68278°N 100.01694°E / 7.68278; 100.01694
• Ko Nom Sao (Thai : เกาะนมสาว, lit.  'female breast island') are twin islands located in the Phang Nga Bay, ^[20] Phang Nga Province.
• Ko Nom Sao in Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park, Prachuap Khiri Khan Province. ^[21] 12°13′N100°01′E / 12.217°N 100.017°E / 12.217; 100.017
• Ko Nom Sao, an island off the shore in Chanthaburi Province. ^{[22] [23]} 12°28′N102°01′E / 12.467°N 102.017°E / 12.467; 102.017

Europe

Deganwy Castle

Paps of Anu. View of the western Pap from the eastern Pap, Ireland.

UK and Ireland

• Mumbles, the two islands (on one of which stands a lighthouse) off the southeast corner of the Gower peninsula, Swansea, Wales
• Beinn Chìochan in the Grampians, Scotland
• Bennachie in Aberdeenshire, Scotland
• North Berwick Law In East Lothian, Scotland
• Mam Barisdale in Knoydart, Scotland
• Mynydd Llanwenarth near Abergavenny, Wales
• Mount Keen in Aberdeenshire / Angus, Scotland
• Northala Fields in London, England. Technically 4 hills, and artificial, but clearly resembling two "grassy boobs" from the A40
• A' Chioch in Ben More, Isle of Mull, Scotland
• Mam Sodhail, on the northern side of Glen Affric, some 30 kilometres east of Kyle of Lochalsh
• Mam Tor, near Castleton in the High Peak of Derbyshire, England. ^[24]
• Samson, Isles of Scilly
• Twmbarlwm near Risca, Wales
• Wittenham Clumps in Oxfordshire
• Shutlingsloe, Cheshire
• Paps or Maiden Paps are rounded, breastlike hills located mostly in Scotland:
  • Paps of Anu, near Killarney, Ireland
  • Paps of Fife in Scotland
  • Paps of Jura, on the western side of the island of Jura, in the Inner Hebrides, Scotland
  • Paps of Lothian in Scotland
  • Maiden Paps, twin hills in Caithness, Scotland
  • Maiden Paps, twin hills in the Kilpatrick Hills, Scotland
  • Maiden Paps, twin hills south of Hawick in the Scottish Borders, Scotland
  • Maiden Paps, another name for the Tunstall Hills near Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England
  • Maiden's Pap, another name for Schiehallion, Perth and Kinross, Scotland
  • Pap of Glencoe in the Scottish Highlands

Marens Patter (literally "Maren's breasts") in Denmark.

Denmark

• Marens Patter (Maren's Tits), a pair of twin hills that has functioned as a landmark for seafarers since the Bronze Age.

Germany

• Lilienstein in Saxon Switzerland

Greece

• Breasts of Aphrodite in Mykonos

Hungary

• Sashegy

Iceland

• Vatnsdalshólar

Slovenia

• Šmarna gora or Mount Saint Mary north of Ljubljana

Spain

• Burrén and Burrena ^[25] near Fréscano, Aragon
• Mola Murada near Valencia. ^[1]
• Picos de Busampiro  [ es ], commonly known as Tetas de Lierganes, in Cantabria
• Puig de Mamelles, Felanitx, Mallorca
• Ses Mamelles, another name for the 714 m (2343 ft) high Puig des Castellot, Escorca, Mallorca
• Tetas de Viana, La Alcarria, Guadalajara Province
• Tetica de Bacares or "La Tetica", a 2,086 m (6,488 ft) high mountain in the Sierra de Los Filabres, Spain. ^[26]
• Turó de la Mamella, a mountain near Vacarisses, Catalonia

France

• Téton de Vénus  [ fr ] in the Mounts of Cantal

North and Central America

Spanish Peaks, Colorado

Las Tetas de Cayey in Salinas, Puerto Rico

Canada

• Anûkathâ Îpa in the Canadian Rockies of Alberta

El Salvador

• San Vicente, also known as Chichontepec, the mountain of the two breasts in Nahuat, a stratovolcano

Guadeloupe

• Mamelles

Haiti

• Morne Deux Mamelles

Mexico

• Las Tetas de Juana, San Pedro Municipality, Coahuila
• Tres Tetas Mountain or El Chichión in Costa Grande of Guerrero

Nicaragua

• Ometepe, in Lake Nicaragua. Legend says that the island's volcanoes Maderas and Concepción formed from the breasts of Ometepetl, a daughter of the Niquirano tribe. ^[27]

Panama

• Cerro La Teta in Las Guabas

Puerto Rico

• Cerro Las Tetas in Salinas
• Tetas de Cerro Gordo in San German

The Bubbles on Jordan Pond in Acadia National Park

United States

• Bubble Mountains, in Acadia National Park, Maine. ^[28]
• Isanaklesh Peaks, in Maricopa County, Arizona, formerly known as Squaw Tits.
• Nippletop, in the Adirondack High Peaks of New York. During the later 19th century, it was euphemistically renamed "Dial Mountain", a name now officially applied to another nearby peak.
• Pilot Mountain, North Carolina. Referenced many times on the Andy Griffith Show as Mt. Pilot. Andy spoke about a wonderful place to travel called "Pilot" by the locals.
• Pinnacle Mountain, Arkansas, near Maumelle. During the colonial and early American periods, the mountain was known as "Mamelle" mountain. "Mamelle" is a name commonly applied in the French-speaking parts of the world to a breast. ^[29]
• Rock Mary, Caddo County, Oklahoma.
• Spanish Peaks, Colorado, named Huajatolla by the Ute Indians, meaning "two breasts". ^[30]
• Tetilla Peak, Caja del Rio, New Mexico. "Tetilla" is Spanish for "nipple".
• Teton Range. French-Canadian trappers named the Teton Mountains around 1820. The distinctive peaks appeared as Les Trois Tétons (The Three Breasts) as seen from the north; ^{[31] [1]}
  • Grand Teton,
  • Middle Teton,
  • South Teton.
• Twin Peaks, in San Francisco, California. When the Spanish conquistadors and settlers arrived at the beginning of the 18th century, they called the area "Los Pechos de la Chola" or "Breasts of the Indian Maiden" and devoted the area to ranching. ^[32] When San Francisco passed under American control during the 19th Century, it was renamed "Twin Peaks".
• Maggie's Peaks, just west of Lake Tahoe, California.
• Uncanoonuc Mountains, Goffstown, New Hampshire. From a Native American word for a woman's breasts. ^[33]
• Mollie's Nipple or Molly's Nipple is the name given to as many as seven peaks and some other geological features in Utah. ^[34]
• Tunas Peak located in Pecos County, Texas, west of Bakersfield. ^[35]
• Betsy Bell and Mary Gray, two adjacent hills in Staunton, Virginia.
• Little and Big House Mountain, two adjacent mountains in Lexington, Virginia, resemble breasts if viewed from Kerr's Creek.

Oceania

Saddle Hill, as seen from Lookout Point, Dunedin, New Zealand.

Australia

• Pyramid Hill, Pilbara, Western Australia
• The Paps, Victoria
• Pigeon House Mountain, New South Wales
• Black Mountain (Australian Capital Territory) and Mount Ainslie, the space between being known as Canberra, meaning cleavage between the two 'breasts' of those mountains. ^[36]
• Mammaloid Hills, Victoria, Australia

New Zealand

• Saddle Hill, Dunedin
• Harbour Cone, Dunedin

South America

Argentina

• Cerro Tres Tetas, in Santa Cruz ^[37]
• Cerro Teta in Neuquén.
• Ñuñorco Grande, in Tucumán.
• Los Nonos, in Nono, Córdoba.

Bolivia

• Cerro Tres Tetas in Potosí

Chile

• Sierra Teta, Futaleufú
• Tetas del Biobío, formed by Cerro Teta Norte and Cerro Teta Sur, located in the mouth of the Biobío River.

Cerro Batoví, Tacuarembó, Uruguay.

Colombia

• Cerro La Teta, La Guajira
• La Sedona in the Tayrona National Park, Colombia. ^[1]
• Morro La Teta, El Carmen de Viboral, Antioquia
• Pico Tetari, Serranía del Perijá, La Guajira

Cuba

• Tetas de Santa Teresa, Baracoa

French Guiana

• Les Mamelles Islets

Peru

• Cerro Tetas, Chiclayo Province

Uruguay

• Cerro Batoví, in Tacuarembó. Batoví means breast of a virgin in the Guaraní language. ^[38]
• Cerro Pan de Azúcar (Sugarloaf Hill), in the Maldonado Department

Venezuela

• Tetas de María Guevara, Isla Margarita
• Teta de Niquitao, Trujillo State ^[39]
• Cerro de Las Tetas, Tinaquillo, Cojedes
• Cerro las Tres Tetas, Barquisimeto

Gallery

• 
  Seal of La Colle-Saint-Michel former commune with two golden breast-shaped hills (Mamelons)
• 
  Church tower at Pennant Melangell with the breast-shaped hill in the background
• 
  Las Tetas de Lierganes, Cantabria, Spain
• 
  Cerro Las Tetas, Salinas, Puerto Rico, as seen from the PR-52 northbound rest area at km 49.0
• 
  Hill by Lake Elgygytgyn, Chukotka, Russia

See also

• Maiden Paps (disambiguation)
• Mamelon (fort)
• Mamelon (volcanology)
• Mamucium
• Monadnock
• Mountains and hills of Scotland
• Phallic Rock, a rock in Arizona, United States
• St Melangell's Church, Pennant Melangell
• The Sleeping Lady

• mountains portal

References

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36. Hayne, Jordan (4 April 2016). "Thousands of Indigenous heritage sites scattered across Canberra". ABC News. Retrieved 22 January 2023. [The word 'Canberra'] means cleavage – the space between a woman's breasts, that's Black Mountain and Mount Ainslie, and a very very important area for our people, indeed a corroboree ground for our people, right where the National Museum of Australia is today.
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External links

• Stuart McHardy, The Goddess in the Landscape of Scotland
• The Gododdin triangle by Philip Coppens
• Yakima Herald-Republic - State Changes Name of Hill (Squaw Tit) to Pushtay
• Mark Monmonier, From Squaw Tit to Whorehouse Meadow: How Maps Name, Claim, and Inflame