What does legend mean?

"Legend" pinyin: chuánshuō, meaning the name of a story with a certain history that evolved from a myth; a set of rumors about the past deeds of someone, something, or somewhere. Human and historical values in purely local legends.

In the days before writing was invented, the only way people could keep track of history was by word of mouth, which is where legends came from. Legends were often unreliable, describing events that took place in the distant past, long before the invention of writing. Unsolved unexplained mysteries can only rely on time to be proven.