The word Dragon instantly creates an image in one's mind. For many Westerners, they picture a great beast with four or two legs, great wins like a bat, a reptilian body and face, with the ability to breathe fire. Easterners might picture a benevolent serpentine creature with a long flowing tail, the antlers of a deer, and the taloned claws of an eagle.
But across the world and across time those that we define as dragons have changed from region to region. From the Feathered Serpent of Mesoamerica to the Nordic root-gnawer Nidhogg, the Australian Rainbow serpent, the French turtle-backed Tarasque, the African Crocodilian giraffe Ninki Nanka, the human-headed Nagas of India, and even the White Buddhist Pai Lung, dragons have come in all sorts of shapes, sizes, and powers. But there is no mistaking that power is relevant across them all.
According to Wikipedia:
A dragon is a snake-like legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as winged, horned, four-legged, and capable of breathing fire. Dragons in eastern cultures are usually depicted as wingless, four-legged, serpentine creatures with above-average intelligence.
The earliest attested reports of draconic creatures resemble giant snakes
The earliest attested reports of draconic creatures resemble giant snakes. Draconic creatures are first described in the mythologies of the ancient Near East and appear in ancient Mesopotamian art and literature. Stories about storm-gods slaying giant serpents occur throughout nearly all Indo-European and Near Eastern mythologies. Famous prototypical draconic creatures include the mušḫuššu of ancient Mesopotamia; Apep in Egyptian mythology; Vṛtra in the Rigveda; the Leviathan in the Hebrew Bible; Grand'Goule in the Poitou region in France; Python, Ladon, Wyvern, Kulshedra in Albanian Mythology and the Lernaean Hydra in Greek mythology; Jörmungandr, Níðhöggr, and Fafnir in Norse mythology; and the dragon from Beowulf.
The popular western image of a dragon is likely based on a conflation of earlier dragons from different traditions, and of inaccurate scribal drawings of snakes. In western cultures, dragons are portrayed as monsters to be tamed or overcome, usually by saints or culture heroes, as in the popular legend of Saint George and the Dragon. They are often said to have ravenous appetites and to live in caves, where they hoard treasure. These dragons appear frequently in western fantasy literature, including The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien, the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling, and A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin.
The word "dragon" has also come to be applied to the legendary creature in Chinese mythology, loong (traditional 龍, simplified 龙, Japanese simplified 竜, Pinyin lóng), which is associated with good fortune and is thought to have power over rain. Dragons and their associations with rain are the source of the Chinese customs of dragon dancing and dragon boat racing. Many East Asian deities and demigods have dragons as their personal mounts or companions. Dragons were also identified with the Emperor of China, who, during later Chinese imperial history, was the only one permitted to have dragons on his house, clothing, or personal articles.
The impression of dragons in a large number of Asian countries has been influenced by Chinese cultures, such as Korea, Vietnam, Japan and so on. Chinese tradition has always used the dragon totem as the national emblem, and the "Yellow Dragon flag" of the Qing Dynasty has influenced the impression that China is a dragon in many European countries.
Commonalities between dragons' traits are often a hybridization of feline, avian, and reptilian features, and may include: snakelike features, reptilian scaly skin, four legs with three or four toes on each, spinal nodes running down the back, a tail, and a serrated jaw with rows of teeth.
What separates a Dragon from a Griffin? When does a named creature go from a mythological beast to becoming classified as a dragon?