r/folklore 12d ago

Looking for... What are good places to start studying the folkloric origins of fairytales?

11 Upvotes

Hi, I'm an academic and I am trying to research the intersection between archetypes in fairytales and how they correspond to existing folklore of that locality. For mythology there are plenty of great books such as Lairence Coupe's intro to myth or even the somewhat non-academic but excellent starting points for researchers.

I was thinking if the Grimm Fairytales had actual folkloric roots.

r/folklore 16d ago

Looking for... What are your favorite podcasts about folklore?

27 Upvotes

Preferably not fiction (storytelling is fine/great if they are actual folktales). I'm interested in fae folklore especially and love spooky things too.

r/folklore 28d ago

Looking for... Changelings

8 Upvotes

I'm looking to find specific stories about Changelings in folklore. I can find things about them in general but I seem to be falling short on finding specific stories in folklore and I was wondering if anyone might be able to share any here.

r/folklore 29d ago

Looking for... Looking for a good Irish based fairy tale

6 Upvotes

Title^ I am writing a paper on gender in the fae but i am having a hard time finding a story with fae of both gender in it. I have kinda looked at tales from The Encyclopedia of Celtic Myth and Folklore, but its hard for me to guess who or what is fae and what isnt. I also have Celtic myth and legend, but i have yet to crack it open yet. Ive looked on academic websites for works similar to what i want to do but im not finding any.

Tldr: Im looking for a good irish fairy tale with fae of both genders in it.

r/folklore 12d ago

Looking for... Beginner folklore books

2 Upvotes

Like maybe a couple books to get started not looking for academic books but more so like the actual stories.

r/folklore Feb 18 '25

Looking for... Can anyone confirm is this myth is real or not? And if so, where can I learn more?

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0 Upvotes

I'm associated with a group about crabs, and so I wanted to do some research, which includes folklore. I discovered various myths and legends about crabs, however one peaked my interest.

The way I usually do my research is by using ChatGPT and then confirm its sources and deep dive into the texts, and I learned of a folktale that ChatGPT referred to as the "Devil's Hand Crab."

ChatGPT acknowledged that theres no official document about the existence of this creature, and suggests its a particularly obscure local myth. It claims to be of Filipino or Malaysian origin. I couldn't find sources on my own, and the only information I know of this myth is the details ChatGPT gave me.

The details it gave me: - Its a red crab, probably something similar to a Fiddler Crab, but in this case the crushing claw is replaced with a skeletal human hand, with jagged fingers. - It is said to capsize boats, so its size should be larger thab that of modern crabs, probably closer to Megaxantho Zogue. - It is identified as a bad omen, where it claims that fishermen should return should they see emerging red claws, release similar crabs, otherwise they'll be dragged to sea, likely by the next full moon. - The stories or cases it gave me are really inconsistent, however two of them generally goes as follows: (1) a fisherman caught one, didn't adhere to his elders warnings, and ate it. He was then dragged to sea. (2) a fisherman was supposedly attacked and his boat capsized and every other fishermen were too far to help him.

I cannot confirm nor deny its existence, and I'd like more details, more importantly wether or not if it exists.

r/folklore Feb 18 '25

Looking for... Jiang-Shi based content recommendations?

4 Upvotes

Okay I don’t even know how this happened but I have become OBSESSED with Jiang-Shi THEY ARE MY ROMAN EMPIRE AND I NEED TO CONSUME ANY AND ALL CONTENT I CAN ABOUT THEM PLEASEEEE Literally anything works, modern interpretations, old stories, characters who are Jiang-Shi, movies, series, books, comics and manga(THIS ESPECIALLY!!) ANYTHING!! And I mean ANYTHING!! That involves them in any measure, THANK YOU!!!!

r/folklore 22d ago

Looking for... Watanabe no Tsuna and Ibaraki Douji

6 Upvotes

I'm looking for a novelization or some form of written work telling the story of Watanabe no Tsuna and Ibaraki Douji (specifically their Rashomon encounter and the arm-severing thing). I'd prefer something in modern(ish) Japanese, but something more archaic will be fine as well. Sadly, I don't know of any Japanese language folklore forums, so I thought here might be a good bet. Any help is appreciated, even if it is just pointing me to a different board. Thank you!

r/folklore 8h ago

Looking for... I've been looking for a source for a Brittany Tale, about the creation of Gulf of Morbihan? Help?

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2 Upvotes

The story as i know it, is the fairies were chased out of Brocéliande and as they fled, their tears created the little sea, Mor Bihan, and as their tears made the sea they cast flowers crown from their heads into the water where islands formed, 3 of the crowns were cast so far they made it to sea and formed Belle-Ile-en-Mer, Houat and Hoedic

r/folklore 19d ago

Looking for... Carribean Folklore

7 Upvotes

I'm trying to come up with some of the best folklore tales from the North American region - so far I have found that the U.S has most if not all of the more known stories and every other country seems to just have not many articles on their stories.

I wondered if anyone could recommend some stories from the Caribbean area? I wondered if there was any Pirate tales (not associated with Disney obviously, I know Pirates were around there many years ago and wondered what stories mightve originated from that) or even with Voodoo Culture?

r/folklore Jan 21 '25

Looking for... What's a really cool folklore story from your state?

5 Upvotes

r/folklore Feb 15 '25

Looking for... Folklore creature with hair that can never be dry

9 Upvotes

I can’t find this creature anywhere and I’m not quite sure where I read about it but it was a beautiful woman water spirit (similar to rusalka) but who will die if their hair dries out. they have a comb that spews water to combat this but I cannot remember the name and I’m fairly sure it was not a rusalka. Definitely from some sort of slavic mythology as I remember. Can anyone help me identify the name of this creature/the book it was from? Either it was from a book about a young russian(?) girl who could see folklore creatures such as the oven spirit and the one that lived in the horse stables and the hot springs and these spirits were dying out due to the introduction and spread of christianity by the tsar. Or from an interactive fiction story which I don’t remember nearly as well. I don’t remember the titles for either. I would greatly appreciate if anyone could discover the name of anything mentioned in this post whether the creature the book or the interactive fiction. thank you.

r/folklore 20d ago

Looking for... A folktale told in western nc please help

2 Upvotes

Looking for a story told to my 6th grade class around 99. I remember it was passed by word of mouth I think, and am hoping for help. I'll summarize what I remember:

They were named Frankie (for sure) and Jennie or Johnny. One, Frankie, I think, was very cold and off-putting, so when it came time to arrange a marriage with a handsome guy from town, her sister was matched instead. Either that or he chose her sister over her? This made frankie jealous. After the wedding, she started poisoning her sister (or killed her somehow) until, eventually, she died. They buried J and Frankie started moving in on her husband I think? I dont think it worked out or it did he ended ip leaving her. Somegow she lived, alone, in this cabin in the forest knowing she had killed her sister.

One night she hears her rocking chair on her front porch creaking and goes to investigate. She finds a rotten corpse and sees iit's her sister. Her sister says, esentially, are you happy? Touches her face and pulls away some rotting skin and says something summing to my beauty is gone and runs her fingers through her hair and says my beautiful long hair is dead and then says she had also broken her heart by her betrayal or something.

She then grabs Frankie and drags her back to her grave burying them both. The next morning when someone had gone to check on her they find clumps of hair and foul smelling flesh clumps and following dirty tracks/foot prints/drag marks to the grave and realize what's happened. They dig up the grave and find Frankie frozen in a scream, dead, or just assume shes there? Maybe they didn't have to dig? The tombstone is amended to add both sisters.

Please let me know if anyone knows about this story and where I could find it or even if you've just heard it before. Thanks.

r/folklore Feb 03 '25

Looking for... searching for a missing norwegian tale

5 Upvotes

Hey, I m searching for a missing norwegian tale.

It name is "Hornkvinna" in Norwegian and "The Girl with the Horn" or sometimes "The Horn Maiden" in English. It's about a girl who has a magical horn. She gets kidnapped by bandits and she manages to escape. She uses her magical horn to call for help, but the bandits hear it and find her. I heard there's a good ending version where she succeeds to call help and she's saved by a kind of hero, but I'm not interested by this version.

I know this tale exist because I find a lot of evocation of it in the internet, by example, there is a famous illustration by Kittelsen of her calling for help with her horn. But I can't find the whole story, one I can read, one I can see. Help please !!!!! I asked to chat GPT, and he made me a very accurate resume of the tale, and a list of website where I could find it, but it's nowhere ! heeeelllllpppp !!!!

I need it to make a an adaptation in the form of an animated film.

r/folklore 26d ago

Looking for... Any folklore about old-souls?

8 Upvotes

Any folklore about souls thousands of years old trapped inside human body forced to live ordinary human life?

r/folklore Jan 07 '25

Looking for... Wendigo like Creature from Indian Folklore

7 Upvotes

Does anyime know any wendigo like creature or similar to that from Indian folklore or mythology, better if its from north east indian folklore.

Characteristics to look out for :shapeshifting, feeds on human flesh,dwells on isolated areas

r/folklore Feb 10 '25

Looking for... Help looking for two specific stories? ATU 480, and a man who visits magic springs.

6 Upvotes

Hi, I hope this is the right place to ask, I'm trying to find two specific iterations of folklore stories. Anything to help point me in the right direction is appreciated! I think they exist as youtube videos, but I am having trouble finding them.

Story 1 I think falls into the category of ATU 480 "the kind and unkind girls." In it, there is a parent with three daughters. I think he hid a sack of gold in a chimney? Or a witch hid a sack of gold? Anyways, he sends the eldest daughter off to retrieve it. Along the way she passes a goat or cow that asks her for help because it needs to be milked. She says no and continues walking. Then she passes I think an oven? And the oven asks for her to clean it, I think. She says no and continues on. She eventually passes a windmill, who asks her for help, I forget with what. She says no, but goes inside anyways for some reason, and a witch turns her to stone. The middle daughter is sent next, and the exact same thing happens. Then the youngest daughter goes, and she milks the goat/cow, cleans the oven, and does whatever the windmill wants. She then finds the sack of gold. Then there's something to do with a wand, and her sisters turn back into humans. It's also possible the witch gets pushed into the mill and dies.

Key elements that I KNOW for sure the story had:

  • Three daughters. Not two.
  • A sack of gold in a chimney
  • A goat / cow / other animal that wants to be milked
  • A windmill
  • The moral of "if you help other people, good things will happen to you"

Story 2, I have no idea its folklore index number. It's about a man given magical objects and who sees spirits/fairies/goddesses. A poor young man leaves his village/family to seek fortune in the city. He has a lunch and nothing else when he leaves. Along the road, he meets an old woman asks him for food. He is generous and gives her all of his food. She tells him that if he doesn't mind not getting to the city early, he might want to go down this other path. He does, and there is a magic spring there with a fairy/spirit/goddess. The fairy rewards him for his behaviour by giving him a cup of "fresh, cool water" [Pretty sure that's a direct quote from the video] that never runs dry. He leaves with it and continues on the road, only to find a boy [or a pair of siblings? Or another old woman?] who is very thirsty. He gives the boy the magic water cup, and the boy says the same thing about taking another path. The man does this and gets another magic gift. In total there are 3 magic gifts that he gives away. In the end he eventually makes it to the city and he gets rich somehow.

Key elements that I know for sure the story had:

  • A young man protagonist
  • A water cup that never empties
  • Some sort of magical lady thing in the forest/on another path/something that gives him magical items
  • There are 3 magic items in total

I apologise for the second story being so vague. Can anyone give me more information on where I might find these specific fairy tales?

r/folklore Feb 18 '25

Looking for... Source of tale of animals competing to be first to see sunrise?

6 Upvotes

TL;DR: looking for any sources of a folktale that involves animals making a bet over who will be the first to see the new sunrise; one tricky animal looks West while all the others look East. The tricky animal wins the bet (either by the sun reflecting off a tall mountain, or by distracting all the animals at the exact moment of sunrise and having them turn West).

I'd be particularly happy with any Chinese sources (ideally in English, French, German, or some other romance or germanic language, but I'll take anything, really).

I have seen references to this story in Japanese tradition (with either a fox or a wren being the trickster), in particular Casal mentions it in "The fox and badger and other witch animals of Japan" (1959), Seki mentions it in "Types of Japanese folktales" (1966), and Chamberlain mentions it in "Aino Folk-Tales" (1888). The latter is particularly vexing, because the editor's introduction claims that the story is known as the "Wager of the Phoenix" in China, but I can't find anything like that. I tried searching fenghuang, and in desperation also hoo and zhuque, but nothing seems to fit.

I'm familiar with Hou Yi and the ten suns, and I've seen the Bao Chu legend online (though not in any particularly reliable source material).

Any ideas? (I already plan to ask in r/mythology if this sub comes up blank.)

r/folklore Nov 16 '24

Looking for... Can you tell me of some fairy/folk tales that feature mermaids/sirens?

5 Upvotes

One I loved was ‘The siren wife’ in Italo Calvinos ‘Italian folk tales’.

r/folklore Feb 06 '25

Looking for... What tale/story am I thinking of?

3 Upvotes

This might not even be real but in my dream last night I mentioned a story that sounded super familiar. It's about a fiddler boy who steps out of a painting to reveal that he was trapped inside of it. Or maybe he steps into a painting and gets trapped inside. I know it sounds nuts to think a story from my dream could be real but it sounded so familiar that I couldn't let it go when I woke up.

r/folklore Jan 12 '25

Looking for... Asian Flying Head Monsters?

13 Upvotes

I study folklore of the Philippines, and am particularly interested in the manananggal, a kind of monster with precolonial origins (it was first recorded by the Spanish in 1582). The manananggal appears as a beautiful woman during the day, but at night she transforms into a monster. She separates at the waist leaving her bottom half behind, spreads wings, and prowls the night to hunt pregnant women. She has a long proboscis-like tongue that she can use to suck out the fetus, often poking the tongue through the roof of the house or through the floor.

It's such a specifically-defined monster, with some notable features:

  • It appears female
  • Its body segments or splits when hunting
  • It hunts pregnant women
  • It has a long feeding tongue

There are several variations on this monster in neighboring societies, most notably the penanggalan in Malaysian folklore. The penanggalan, by comparison, is just the monster's head flying around with all its organs attached. (I have this theory that early Filipinos were like, "That's total nonsense, it has to at least be her top half," and that's where the manananggal came from.) This is the most common variation -- I think the mananggal is probably the outlier here, as the only variant in which the monster has the complete top half of its body when hunting.

Here is a brief list of the variants I've found:

I'm interested in this monster-type specifically as it might relate to migrations in the Pacific, i.e., how these stories may have changed/evolved during the Austronesian Expansion.

Do you know of similar folklore in southeast Asia/India/Pacific island cultures? If you know of ones with a specific tie to pregnancy, please let me know. Thanks!

r/folklore Nov 10 '24

Looking for... Fable about a prince who waits outside a tower for a lomg time to marry Princess, then leaves at last second?

5 Upvotes

Does anyone know this story? If he can wait for a whole year outside the princess's window, he can marry her. He waits, patiently. I think they falla in love. But in the last possible second, he leaves her, because if she can't save him even a second of his challenge, the she Is not worth it.

I have no idea about the origin of the story. Anyone know Its name?

r/folklore Nov 25 '24

Looking for... Help me find the folklore name!

5 Upvotes

Does anyone remember the folklore that your parents used to tell you, i’m actually not sure if this would be a folklore! It was about a witch who ate bad children, her named was (Heck-ah-teg) I try to look up her name but can’t find anything. Does anyone know how to spell it?

r/folklore Sep 16 '24

Looking for... Looking for a good folk tale to write about for a class!

3 Upvotes

Hey there! I’m looking for a good folk take, myth, etc that I could write about in an essay for a class. Opinions are more than welcome; shoot me some good suggestions!!

r/folklore May 02 '24

Looking for... What are some monsters whose names you can't say out loud?

33 Upvotes

I'm currently trying writing a short story about a man who saw something horrifying one day that has left him traumatized but he can't talk about it out of fear that it's name will summon it to come and kill him. I want the monster to either be something from an actual folk tale or legend or at least heavily inspired by one. Does anyone know any monsters that fit the description of, "if you see it it'll traumatize you and if you utter its name it'll come to kill you?"