International Folktales: A to Z

Van der Grinten map

 

For the annual A to Z Challenge, I decided to summarize folktales from all over the world. This is a list of all the posts:

Australia

Brazil

Canada

Denmark

Ethiopia

France

Germany

Haiti

India

Japan

Kenya

Liberia

Mexico

Nigeria

Oman

Puerto Rico

Qatar

Russia

Sweden

Thailand

Uganda

Venezuela

Wales

Xinjiang

Yemen

Zambia

Z is for Zambia

 How the Mason-Wasp Fetched Fire from God

The birds needed fire but there wasn't any on earth so four birds decided to get it from God. After twenty days of travel, three of the birds died. Mason-Wasp stops at a cloud. God asks what he is doing there and, after explaining, the Lord makes him the leader of the birds and tells him how to make babies (it's not clear if they received fire).

Source: Ila-Speaking Peoples of Northern Rhodesia by Edwin William Smith

Y is for Yemen

"Knight Exemplar" (2011) by Jason Chan

The Manly Maiden

Two cousins wanted to get married but their fathers disapproved. The couple eloped. However, they became separated and the girl was targeted by men who wanted to marry her. She drugged them all and escaped. Along the way, she befriended forty girls and they dressed as men to avoid unwanted attention. She reached a foreign port and became king of the land. Using her newfound authority, she reunited with her lover, married off all her gal pals, and lived happily ever after.

Source: From the land of Sheba; tales of the Jews of Yemen by S. D.  Goitein.

X is for Xinjiang

 "How Scarlet Lion Khongor Defeated Khan Iron Head Mangna"

Over 6000 people gathered for a feast when Mangna Khan's messenger arrived, telling the to surrender various items and people by a certain date, of be attacked by an army. Khongor refused to be enslaved and went to do battle with his enemy. He captured multiple soldiers until he was shot and his allies treated him. He then battled Khan to the end.

Source: Jangar: The Heroic Epic of the Kalmyk Nomads by Saglar Bougdaeva.

More information about the epic here and here.

W is for Wales

"The Castle of Melvales" (1894) by John D. Batten

An Old King and His Three Sons in England

A king fell sick and the only thing that could heal the man was a magic apple. His three sons went in search of it. The youngest, Jack, made it to the enchanted castle with the help of three old Romani brothers who tested his resolve. He finds a Sleeping Beauty in the palace and switches her garter, handkerchief, and watch with his (and kisses her). After escaping the castle, rejuvenating the old men, and arriving at the rendezvous point, he falls asleep. His big bros steal his apples. They trick their father and condemn the youngest prince to execution. The butcher spares him leaves him in the woods. The princess eventually shows up - with an army! - and she exonerates her man before they return to her castle.

Source: Gypsy Folk Tales by Francis Hindes Groome

Tale Type: 551, "The Water of Life"

Variants: "The Rose of Bakawali" and "The Water of Life"

V is for Venezuela

The Horse of Seven Colors

A man's wheat field was devoured and he appointed his sons as watchmen. Two failed. The third caught the culprit - a multicolored pony - which promised to aid him in exchange for its life. Thereafter, the patriarch sent his boys to sell at the marketplace. Yet again, the youngest succeeded. His brothers left home and, wanting to be with them, the boy followed until they blinded and abandoned him. After his sight was magically restored, he reunites with his brothers, who make him their servant. Then there's a competition to win a princess bride and the boy wins with the help of the enchanted horse.

Source: Latin American Folktales: Stories from the Hispanic and Indian Tradition by John Bierhorst.

Tale Type: 530, "Princess on the Glass Mountain"

Variants: "The Thief in the Millet" and "The Princess and the Glass Mountain"

U is for Uganda

Namulindwa

A girl is raised by her paternal aunt after her parents have died. She reaches the cusp of adulthood when, suddenly, her aunt develops the same terminal illness as her father. Before the woman passes away, she tells the girl to never marry without consulting her spirit first. The girl obeys the edict and feels more and more frustrated as her aunt dismisses all of her suitors. Then a prince arrives in the village and proposes to Namulindwa, whose aunt finally approves.

Source: The Oral Tradition of the Baganda of Uganda: A Study and Anthology of Legends, Myths, Epigrams and Folktales by Immaculate N. Kizza.

T is for Thailand

Drinking with Yommaban, the King of the Dead

A drunkard wants nothing except to see his son ordained as a monk. He perishes just before it can happen and, per his request, his wife leaves a bottle of whiskey in his coffin. When his soul descends into Hell, he shares a drink with its king. The king gets drunk and grants the man one more year of life so that he may see his son ordained. But the years pass and the drunkard never dies, The king of the dead checks his logbook and learns that, in his alcohol-induced confusion, he accidentally gave the man centuries of extra life.

Source: Thai Tales: Folktales of Thailand by Supaporn Vathanaprida and Margaret Read MacDonald.

S is for Sweden

 

Lars, My Lad!

An aristocrat found a box containing a wish-granting spirit. He used its power to charm (and intimidate) a nobleman and marry the princess. Unknown to him, the spirit had its own agenda and left the aristocrat for dead when time was right. The aristocrat escaped doom, tracked down the imp, put it back under his power, and renewed his upper-class life.

Source:  Fairy Tales from the Swedish of G. Djurklo by H. L. Brækstad.

R is for Russia

Dimian the Peasant

Dimian liked manipulating people into denying his authority so he'd have an excuse to thrash them. A local visited, and Dimian prepared a lavish meal, thinking his guest would feign modesty and decline his offerings. The guest happily indulged. Dimian then asked the man to switch kaftans. His guest acceded. Then the jerk proposed that the stranger take his horse - which he couldn't possibly do! Except he did and rode away, leaving Dimian stunned.

Source: Folk Tales From the Russian by Verra Xenophontovna Kalamatiano De Blumenthal.

Q is for Qatar

 

Fsaijrah

One day, the girl ran into a talking fish that granted her wishes. The fish dressed her for a ball, decked her out in a fancy gown and diamond slippers, and put her on the path to meeting a prince. But, she needed to leave the party before her abusive stepfamily returned home. She dropped a shoe during her race back. The prince stumbled upon it and vowed to marry whoever it fit. He eventually found the girl and wedded her.

Source: Tales Arab Women Tell by Hasan El-Shamy.

Tale Type: 510A "Cinderella"

Variants: see this link

P is for Puerto Rico

The Carnation Prince

Three sisters tried catching a carnation. The youngest succeeded. She put the flower away and later found that it'd turned into a prince, whom she accidently enchanted. To disenchant him, she had to travel until she wore out an iron dress. She happened upon the sun, moon, and the birthing person of all animals on her odyssey, and each gifted her an item. After feeding all of her limbs to a bird, she arrived at her paramour's home and they were happily reunited and married on the spot.

Source: Folk Stories from the Hills of Puerto Rico by Rafael Ocasio.

Tale Type: ATU 425 Search for the Lost Husband.

Variants: "The Black Bull of Norroway" and "The Padlock" 

O is for Oman

Tale of Fadil or Ramadu

A boy's stepmother abused him. Worse, his teacher was her brother, so his suffering was constant. His father was oblivious and the boy told him nothing. His one ally was an enchanted horse that warned him of his stepmother's desire to kill him. When the steed foiled her plans too many times, the stepmother plotted its death. The boy and his pet escaped and he sent a letter to his father, explaining everything. The boy then had adventures and ultimately married a princess.

Source: An Omani Folktale by Asyah Al-Bualy

N is for Nigeria

Why the Sun and the Moon Live in the Sky

Sun and Water  always visited each other. Or, at least, Sun visited Water on Earth but not vice versa. When asked why, Water said it there wasn't enough space at Sun's home. Sun, with the approval of his wife, Moon, built a compound for Water to stay in. However, when Water came by it was so ginormous that it forced Sun and Moon to retreat into the heavens, where they have since remained.

Source: Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria, West Africa by Elphinstone Dayrell and Andrew Lang.

M is for Mexico

Jace's Ingenuity (2011) by Steve Argyle

The Sorcerers

An aging wizard was convinced to take an apprentice so that the community might enjoy the benefits of healing magic. He trained the grandson of another wizard. When the boy's talents exceeded his master's, the man was so enraged that he made up his mind to kill the lad. However, the boy knew of his teacher's feelings and fled. The old man hunted the boy in various animal forms until the child killed him.

Source: Wonder Tales for Men by Diego Morales

Tale Type: ATU 325, "The Magician and His Pupil"

Variants: "Maestro Lattantio and His Apprentice Dionigi" and "The Deceiver Shall be Deceived" and "The Battle of the Enchanters"

L is for Liberia

 

The Good Child and the Bad

Two girls helped a witch doctor spin cotton. One of them spat on her staff and had to wash it in a river or disaster would strike. During her journey, she met a cat and a rooster, who aided her because she fed  them. The girl returned home with a treasure basket. The other girl wanted a basket too so she spat on the staff and set out, but didn't feed the animals. She chose a large basket, full of dangerous creatures, and barely survived their assault.

Source: Folk-Tales from Liberia (In Abstract) by Richard C. Bundy.

Tale Type: ATU 480, The Kind and Unkind Girls.

Variants: "The Fairy" and "Frau Holle" and "The Twelve Months"

K is for Kenya

The Great Famine

A drought caused problems for carnivores: the dwindling of their herbivore food supply. King Lion gathered his subjects and suggested they migrate. The one catch was that anyone who stopped along the way would be eaten unless they had a valid excuse. Everyone died except for Hare and King Lion. In their attempts to outfox each other, Hare prevailed and killed the king.

Source: Little Wise One: African Tales of the Hare by Phyllis Savory.

J is for Japan

The Mirror of Matsuyama

A girl's mother left her a hand mirror as a gift before dying. Not understanding its function, the girl thought her reflection was her mother's soul. Her father remarried and her stepmother believed the girl was trying to curse her. She demanded her husband confront his daughter and the girl explained her relationship to the mirror and her departed mother. The stepmother apologized to her stepdaughter and the family lived happily ever after.

Source: The Japanese Fairy Book by Yei Theodora Ozaki.

I is for India

 

A Tales' Revenge

Two men agreed their children should marry. During their journey homewards, the spirits of unshared stories agreed to murder the man who wouldn't retell them. His companion overheard their conversation and protected his companion until every assassination plot failed. Once the danger passed, he told his buddy what had happened. They then reached their destination and joined their children in marriage.

Source: Telling Tales (1989) by A. K. Ramanujan.

Variants: "The Story-Spirits" in Folk Tales from Korea (1982) by In-Sob Zong.

H is for Haiti

 I'm Tipingee, She's Tipingee, We're Tipingee, Too

A girl lived with her stepmother. The woman collected firewood and sold her stepdaughter as a servant to the guy who carried her load. Tipingee heard their talk and formed a plan: she visited her classmates and asked them to wear dresses of the same color as the ones her stepmother would put on her. When the old man saw everybody dressed alike, he asked which girl was Tipingee. The children had an "I'm Spartacus" moment where they all claimed they were her. After three episodes of that, the old man enslaved the stepmother instead.

Source: The Magic Orange Tree and Other Haitian Folktales by Diane Wolkstein.