Metamorphosis

The myth of the werewolf, like that of the wild man, was widely extended throughout Europe during the Middle Ages. In the peasant villages, the roots of those myths stretched very far back in time, which certainly was why Augustine of Hippo, as well as Isidore of Seville, referred to those beliefs. But hardly anything is heard about werewolves again, until the twelfth century, when the question of metamorphosis was a concerning issue for the Christian religious authorities who encountered popular legends that spoke of such transformations.